Gut health just doesn’t get the credit it deserves. We pay so much attention to our skin, brain health and immune system individually but our gut affects all those systems and THEN some!
Our gut contains microbiome which consists of good and bad bacteria. It breaks down food to allow our body to absorb those nutrients but it’s also very important for it to be balanced. Individuals with Crohn’s, IBS or ulcerative colitis typically have too much of bad bacteria.
But can you change your microbiome? Sure, but there are always limitations. Food and your surrounding environment are the biggest factors with your gut health so it can be difficult at times to fulfill your specific needs. Let’s say you need to consume more of a particular herb that isn’t native to where you live or you’re unable to import it from another country – that’s where supplements come into play.
Supplements are one of the easiest ways you can pack the maximum daily intake of a particular vitamin, food extract, herb, mineral, amino acid, prebiotic and probiotic without needing to consume 4 cups of spinach daily to gain the recommended amount of vitamin D, as an example.
Probiotics in particular, are extremely beneficial for your microbiome. From food, they can add to the bacteria in your intestinal tract and help keep everything in balance, but they’re not all the same as each bacteria has it’s own specific function and affects your body in different ways from each other.
Probiotics also help with making your immune system stronger. Some of them can even help with IBS, allergies or even lactose intolerance.
After eating if you experience;
– stomach pain
– abnormal bowel movement
– skin changes
– mood swings
– brain fog
Those can all be signs of eating a particular fruit, vegetable or even a food group that just doesn’t sit well with your particular microbiome.
Superfoods however, are foods rich in compounds (antioxidants, fibre, fatty acids etc) that are extremely beneficial to your health. It’s easy to see advertisement in grocery stores, or ads stating that blueberries, salmon, and broccoli are labeled as superfoods, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re YOUR superfood. What if you’re vegan or allergic to blueberries?
For general advice on how to improve your gut health it’s recommended that you;
– take probiotics and eat fermented foods (kefir, kimchi, kombucha, sauerkraut)
– eat prebiotic fibre (garlic, bananas, asparagus)
– eat less sugar and sweeteners
– reduce stress levels in ways you know they’re effective for you
– avoid taking antibiotics unnecessarily (as they damage microbiome and research has shown that after 6 months of their use, the gut still lacks several species of bacteria)
– exercise regularly
– get enough sleep
– use cleaner/green cleaning products
– avoid smoking
– reduce meat
So how do you know what foods you should be having, limiting, or avoiding, and what supplements do you need?
One word.
VIOME.
Viome is a company that analyzes your blood and stool sample to generate personalized food recommendations and shows you over 30 health insights based on your unique biology and microbiome.
After submitting my samples, I was able to see what my biological age is (I’m 31 years old inside and out – woo!), my stress response health, and digestive efficiency just to name a few. The scoring is divided into good, average, and not optimal to paint an easy to read picture of the current statu of your health, with detailed explanations of what those results mean for you.
In addition to those results, I was given supplement recommendations and a food list that contains various foods that I should avoid, limit, can enjoy and which superfoods work for me.
There is a questionnaire to be completed after shipping out the samples, that gives the VIOME team more information on your health concerns, sleep patterns, digestion patterns etc so they can match up with their test results.
The questionnaire takes your dietary needs into consideration for recommendations too.
After I received my results, I was absolutely floored seeing that almost my entire list of foods I should avoid, are foods that I love and eat on a regular basis! I had an epiphany because for the last couple of months prior to submitting my samples, I was having abnormal bowel and skin issues and couldn’t figure out why. As of now, I have eliminated consuming all but 2 foods on my avoid list for the past month, and I’ve seen a noticeable difference in my bowel health and skin which is much faster than the 90 days expected.
Looking into my recommended supplement list, I had cross referenced what I’m currently taking and made changes on the dosage so that I’m ensuring I’m giving my body exactly what it needs.
Getting the extensive results I did through VIOME was more cost effective then a food sensitivity test through my family doctor as that was around $500!
You can purchase the VIOME Gut Intelligence test or the VIOME Health Intelligence test which contains instructions and tools needed for both blood and stool samples.
Purchase a kit through viomehq.sjv.io/thehonestypolicy and use my promo code thehonestypolicy for an additional discount!
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