Are you leading a healthy lifestyle, but still feeling like you’re running on empty?
It could all come down to your gut health, the microbes that live there and whether you are able to absorb nutrients from your food properly.
Our gut flora has such an important role in how well the body is able to breakdown, absorb and utilise essential nutrients from our food. These nutrients include macronutrients, (fats, protein, and carbohydrates) as well as the micronutrients, (vitamins and minerals). Our gut flora also break down and protect us from pathogens and harmful micro- organisms.
During digestion, sugars are quickly absorbed in the small intestine, but the less easily digested complex carbohydrates such as starches and fibre travel to the large intestine. This is where the gut flora help to break down these compounds with their digestive enzymes. The fermentation of indigestible fibres causes the production of short chain fatty acids (SCFAs). SCFAs are important because they prevent bad bacteria from forming in the intestines, increase mineral absorption and metabolise fats and carbohydrates.
The gut flora also synthesise the vitamins and amino acids we need, such as the B vitamins and vitamin K. Our gut flora are crucial, as the enzymes needed to form vitamin B12 are only produced by bacteria and are not found in plants and animals.
Without healthy gut flora we cannot absorb the essential nutrients that our body uses as fuel to function properly.
Here are a few healthy gut habit tips to help promote gut flora that are thriving and doing their job in the digestive system.
1) Eat fibre rich prebiotic foods—fresh fruits, veggies and whole grains feed good bacteria in the gut.
2) Cut down on sugar and processed foods—unhealthy foods feed unhealthy bacteria.
3) Stay hydrated — Drink up to 2 litres of filtered water. This helps keep the digestive system moving and flushes out undesirable bacteria and toxins.
4) Reduce stress and get enough sleep—Stress and tiredness can deplete our good gut flora because of the gut brain connection.
5) Consume probiotic foods and liquids – These are great source of good bacteria to help maintain and nourish our good gut flora. Our good bacteria are depleted by stress, pollution, chemicals, toxins, processed foods and antibiotics. So they need to be replenished regularly.
Sources: Krajmalnik-Brown, Rosa et al. “Effects of gut microbes on nutrient absorption and energy regulation” Nutrition in clinical practice: official publication of the American Society for Parenteral and Enteral Nutrition vol. 27,2 (2012): 201-14. The Microbiome The Nutrition Source – Harvard School Of Public Health
