Do you eat food just to satisfy your hunger and taste buds? Or are you eating with the purpose of filling your body with healthy vitamins and nutrients? To be honest, we all know the answer to these questions. Factors such as staying away from family, living a hectic life, and enjoying Friday night parties also contributes to people eating mindlessly. But, under any circumstances, one must not forget to feed their gut microbiome.
When it comes to maintaining good health, one aspect that is often overlooked is the gut microbiome. The gut microbiome is the complex community of trillions of bacteria, including good bacteria living in our digestive tract. They play a crucial role in maintaining our overall health, influencing everything from digestion to mental health and the function of immune system.
Why Does the Gut Microbiome Matter?
The gut microbiome helps break down food and absorb nutrients. It also helps regulate the immune system and produces vital vitamins like vitamin K and B12. Studies have shown that a healthy gut microbiome can lead to improved mental health, better heart functioning, regulates inflammation, creates digestive harmony, and a stronger immune resilience.
Mostly these days people eat selfishly without thinking about their gut health. They eat just to satiate their hunger and taste buds without thinking much about the consequences. Of course, you might not see the repercussions immediately but taking your health lightly in the formative years might have a compounding effect in the later years. Some of the symptoms of poor gut health includes heartburn, bloating, fatigue, and constipation. These indicators suggests that you might want to change your diet to improve your overall health.
How to Improve your Gut Health?
Improving your gut microbiome can be as simple as changing your diet. We all have heard the old saying that goes like “You are what you eat” and it still holds true today. Be mindful of what you are consuming and keep a check on nutrition.
Eating a diet rich in fiber can feed the good bacteria in your gut. Probiotic foods like yogurt, Sauerkraut, Kefir, Kombucha, Miso, and kimchi can also help increase the number of good bacteria in your gut. Include whole grains food, fruits and vegetables in your regular diet.
Importance of Eating a Balanced Diet
“Let food be thy medicine and medicine be thy food” is a popular quote by the Greek physician Hippocrates and holds a much deeper meaning. One must only consume food that provides some sort of value, i.e. vitamins, minerals, nutrients, etc.
A balanced diet is key to maintaining a healthy gut microbiome. This includes a variety of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, lean protein, and healthy fats. Avoiding processed foods and foods high in sugar can also contribute to a healthier gut. One can also master their microbiome with some must-try gut balancing recipes.
Things you can do to improve your gut microbiome.
- Focus on eating a plant-based diet, packed with soluble and insoluble fiber to keep your digestive health in top form.
- Try eating a rainbow diet to provide your body with a variety of essential vitamins and nutrients.
- Try to eat fermented food every day to promote your gastrointestinal health.
- Eating fresh produce is best. Reheating and eating leftover foods can also affect your gut health.
- Avoid eating processed food, canned produce, and artificial sweeteners.
Conclusion
Feeding your gut microbiome with a diet heavily focused on plant-based foods will help improve your physical as well as mental health. Let’s be honest, in today’s world and kind of lifestyle that we follow, it is impossible to completely avoid eating food that are on the don’t-eat list. But we can try to limit eating out and even if we have to, consume in moderation. As we all are aware of the fact that “too much of anything is not good”.
