How Important Is Gut Health?

And why focusing on a healthy microbiome goes beyond healthy digestion.

Everywhere you turn, you hear how the gut is considered the body's second brain, and with good reason! Our gut contains a whole colony that orchestrates more than digesting foods. Our microbiome supports our immune system, blood sugar balance, inflammatory responses, and more.

It's estimated that our gut contains over 100 trillion microbes, making up what's referred to as the gut microbiome. Ideally, the microbiome should include a very diverse population of microbes, and most of the microbes should be beneficial, with pathogenic (bad) microbes kept to a minimum.

These microbes are super important because they support all bodily functions, including:

🦠 digestion and absorption of nutrients

🦠Protecting the interior lining of the digestive tract

🦠Signaling of hunger cues and cravings

🦠Metabolism

🦠Detoxification

🦠Inflammation

🦠Production of neurotransmitters (brain chemicals)

🦠Immunity

🦠 Affects weight, mood, energy levels, cognitive function, and behavior

Functional nutrition coaching centers around addressing the root causes of your concerns, not masking the symptoms, and one approach we use is the 5Rs. You may notice that some stages overlap and how long you stay in each phase depends on your symptoms and bio-individuality. Remember healing your body starts with simple steps, but the results take time.

Remove - Stress on the body. This can look like stepping back from toxic relationships, uncovering foods you may be sensitive to that place undo stress on the body, eliminating or cutting back on caffeine and alcohol, and getting rid of the crap in your diet.

Relax - Incorporate ways to destress the body, such as journaling, playing sudoku or doing a crossword puzzle, getting outdoors, or even heading to the salon for a massage and mani-pedi. Relaxing the body ignites the parasympathetic nervous system allowing the body to rest and recover.

Repair - Go back to basics and focus on a whole-food diet that supports gut health and optimizes digestion. Adding in foods like nuts and seeds, eggs, and healthy fats such as avocado, coconut oil, or olive oil, incorporate more protein and complex carbohydrates. When you add in whole foods, you crowd out the processed because you fill up on the stuff your body needs.

Replace - Introduce benefi­cial microbes into the gut with fermented foods such as sauerkraut, pickles, beet kavas, kimchi, or probiotic yogurt. Consider making homemade bone broth or a chia seed pudding for dessert.

If you believe your gut needs attention, I'd love to discuss how I can support you on your journey. In addition to providing accountability, coaching offers a blueprint for better health based on an individual approach, not a mass-produced plan. You will receive all the details about the program if we both believe we are a good match. Click here to schedule your free consultation!