Good health starts in your gut, but the digestive system is so often overlooked as the most important starting point for improving our overall wellbeing.
We might choose to focus on a healthy diet, exercise and generally living well, but if our gut is out of sync (which is often for reasons beyond our control), these efforts can be to limited avail. For example, did you know that a shortage of ‘good’ bacteria in the gut can prevent you absorbing certain nutrients in food? Equally, too much ‘bad’ bacteria can have knock on effects on your energy levels and concentration.
According to Nutritionist Pippa Campbell, ‘sometimes many symptoms can be resolved just by improving gastro-intestinal health. It’s encouraging to see that more and more people are paying attention to their gut health and how to look after it, as it so important to our overall wellbeing.”
In case you needed further persuasion about the importance of putting your gut first when it comes to bettering any aspect of your health (from weight loss to sleeping better), keep in mind that digestive balance is crucial in maintaining equilibrium in hormones and blood sugar, and due to its role in detoxification (or re toxification if its not working properly) there are even knock on effects for our skin and other organs when the break down, absorption and excretion processes don’t run as they should. It's a delicate balance, and one that there is no better time to focus our attention on than LOVE YOUR GUT WEEK. To celebrate Love Your Gut Week, why not take the #7daydigestivechallenge?
We’ll be posting a tip a day to help improve your gut health... Day 1: Kefir Kefir is a fermented yoghurt that is packed full of gut friendly probiotics that can help improve digestive health, as well as vitamins and minerals that contribute to improved energy levels as well as healthy skin, teeth and bones. Biotiful Dairy Kefir is made with the very best of British milk and authentic 2,000-year-old live cultures. READ MORE
Day 2. Probiotics Taking a high quality probiotic is an effective step towards correcting imbalances in gut microflora. READ MORE
Day 3: Mint tea
Mint has been shown to help soothe the abdomen and relax digestive discomfort.
Day 4: Artichoke
Artichokes are high in a prebiotic fibre called Inulin which can help to promote healthy digestive balance by stimulating the growth of ‘friendly’ bacteria in the bowel.
Day 5:Oats
Oats can help to remove toxins and wastes efficiently from the digestive system, and they also contain a form of fibre which feeds the ‘good’ bacteria that naturally reside there. These two actions make oats a particularly good food to eat to help keep your gut healthy.
Day 6: Sauerkraut and pickled vegetables
Pickling vegetables in salted water (not vinegar) is a way of fermenting them - a process which produces live probiotics which then help to support digestive health.
Day 7: Bone Broth Bone broth is rich in glutamine, which helps restore the integrity of the intestinal wall. This is important as stress, poor diet and antibiotic use can make the gut wall ‘leaky’ which in turn can result in allergies and nutritional deficiencies.
