Your Gut Microbiome & Why Prebiotics Are Essential

Image of gut microbiome with trillions of microorganisms that influence human health.

Your gut microbiome impacts every cell and system in your body.

Almost every disease is connected to the state of the trillions of microorganisms (microflora, microbiota) that live in your gut.

YOUR GUT MICROBIOME & DISEASE

As a naturopath, I help my clients learn how to rebuild, maintain, and protect their health.

And the ability to protect your health begins within your gut.

In a healthy gut, you have rich and diverse numbers of beneficial microflora.

BUT when there is an imbalance between healthy and unhealthy microbes in your gut (gut dysbiosis), you become more susceptible to sickness and disease.

I liken gut health to our solar system.

Imagine Earth as it revolves around our sun.

The sun powers all life processes on Earth.

Your body functions in a similar way.

Your gut microbiome is like the sun to the systems that maintain your life.

Your health is directly affected by the trillions of microorganisms living in your gut.

Like the sun, your gut microbiome powers your life processes.

Image of intestines with cross sections comparing healthy gut flora with unhealthy gut flora.GUT HEALTH EQUALS STRONGER HEALTH

Your immune system is your defence against sickness and disease.

And the strength of your immune system is totally dependent on your gut microbiome.

Gut dysfunction is a driver of disease because your gut microflora and immune system are inseparable.

Beneficial gut microorganisms (microbiota, microflora) regulate both your innate and adaptive immune balance.

A healthy gut microbiome communicates with your immune cells and controls how your body responds to infection.

Having ‘optimal’ gut microflora increases your resistance to disease-causing pathogens and reduces your risk of cancer too.

Image depicting 70% of your immune system is located in your gut.FOOD HEALTH BENEFITS

The food you eat every day (your diet) is critical to your health.

The nutrients in food enable your cells and systems to perform their vital functions.

Food health focuses on giving your cells the ingredients they need to function properly.

If you don’t get the right balance of nutrients from your diet, metabolic processes decline, and health deteriorates.

Imagine the diet-related diseases and disorders we could change if we treated the food we eat as our medicine.

A healthy diet is related to a flourishing microbiome, a strong immune system, and a lower risk of disease.

Diet is also a key factor of healthy longevity in cultures where people live long lives.

Studies found that our gut microbiome is causally associated with how long and how well we live.

The relationships between your diet, gut microbiome, health, and disease are obvious.

Feeding your gut microbiome the right nutrition is essential for health and healing.

Image showing the vitamins and minerals essential for human health.PREBIOTICS FEED YOUR MICROBIOME

Using targeted nutrition to induce microbial change in your gut offers promising health benefits.

Eating prebiotic food improves your intestinal health and immune status by increasing the population of protective microorganisms.

Chart depicting the role of prebiotic food in human health.PREBIOTIC POWER FOODS

Prebiotic research originally focused on non-digestible, fermentable dietary fibres that could boost the growth and activity of beneficial gut microflora.

It’s now recognised that a wide variety of foods and herbs have prebiotic properties that benefit your gut microbiome.

The following lists are some of the foods beneficial gut microflora thrives on.

To promote better gut health, include 5-7 serves of prebiotic foods in your daily diet.

Organically grown food is always best.

FRUIT & VEGETABLES

Asparagus

Apples

Artichokes

Arugula

Avocado

Bananas

Beet greens

Beetroot

Berries

Broccoli

Cabbage

Celery

Dandelion greens

Dark leafy greens

Eggplant

Endive

Fennel

Garlic

Grapefruit

Green beans

Green peas

Heritage potatoes

Jerusalem artichoke

Kale

Kiwi fruit

Leeks

Mango

Mushrooms

Onion

Pomegranate

Radicchio (Italian chicory)

Seaweed

Snow peas

Spinach

Spring onion

Sweet potatoes

Swiss chard

Tomato

Unsulphured dried fruit

Watercress

Watermelon

RAW NUTS

Almonds

Brazil nuts

Cashew nuts

Chestnuts

Hazelnuts

Macadamia nuts

Pecans

Pistachio nuts

Walnuts

WHOLE GRAINS

Amaranth

Barley

Black rice

Brown rice

Buckwheat

Chia seed

Linseeds (flaxseed)

Oat bran

Psyllium

Quinoa

Rye

Spelt

LEGUMES

Black beans

Chickpeas

Kidney beans

Lentils

Pinto beans

Soybeans

White beans

HERBS & SPICE

Black pepper

Burdock root

Cayenne pepper

Chicory root

Chillies

Cinnamon

Curcumin

Ginger

Ginseng (red ginseng extract)

Licorice root

Marshmallow root

Oregano

Panax ginseng (berries extract)

Rosemary

Slippery Elm

Turmeric

DRINKS

Cacao

Green tea

Jiaogulan (gynostemma) tea

Pu-erh (fermented black tea)

SWEETENERS

Monk fruit

Raw honey

Foods that can act like medicine for improving gut microbiome health and preventing disease.

GUT HEALTH RECIPES

Eating a healthy diet can be delicious when you know how to create dishes you fall in love with.

The good news is there are some amazing chefs that freely share healthy plant-based recipes on YouTube and their blogs.

If you want recipe ideas for creating better gut health, visit our Healthy Eating Directory blog.

We also share recipes and a delicious Boost Porridge on our blog that are ideal for nourishing beneficial gut microorganisms.

You can also join our Pinterest page, which has folders full of inspiring recipes.

Explore the many ways food can delight your taste buds and be good for your health.

And if you haven’t seen my blend created to promote beneficial gut bacteria, click on the link to NOURISH Prebiotic Breakfast Drink.

All the very best,

Lisa Rieniets ND

REFERENCES

We have included live links in our references so you can explore gut microbiome and disease, diet and longevity studies, and the role of prebiotic foods in human health.

GUT MICROBIOME & DISEASE

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Najmi N, Megantara I, Andriani L, Goenawan H, Lesmana R. Importance of gut microbiome regulation for the prevention and recovery process after SARS-CoV-2 respiratory viral infection (Review). Biomed Rep. 2022 Apr;16(4):25. doi: 10.3892/br.2022.1508. Epub 2022 Feb 14. PMID: 35251612; PMCID: PMC8889546.

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DIET & YOUR MICROBIOME & LONGEVITY

Badal VD, Vaccariello ED, Murray ER, Yu KE, Knight R, Jeste DV, Nguyen TT. The Gut Microbiome, Aging, and Longevity: A Systematic Review. Nutrients. 2020 Dec 7;12(12):3759. doi: 10.3390/nu12123759. PMID: 33297486; PMCID: PMC7762384.

Clements SJ, Carding SR. Diet, the intestinal microbiota, and immune health in aging. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2018;58(4):651–61.

Ekmekcioglu C. Nutrition and longevity – From mechanisms to uncertainties. Crit Rev Food Sci Nutr. 2020;60(18):3063-3082. doi: 10.1080/10408398.2019.1676698. Epub 2019 Oct 21. PMID: 31631676.

Fadnes LT, Økland J-M, Haaland ØA, Johansson KA (2022) Estimating impact of food choices on life expectancy: A modeling study. PLoS Med 19(2): e1003889. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.1003889

He, D., Liu, L., Zhang, Z. et al. Association between gut microbiota and longevity: a genetic correlation and mendelian randomization study. BMC Microbiol 22, 302 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12866-022-02703-x

Khine, W.W.T., Haldar, S., De Loi, S. et al. A single serving of mixed spices alters gut microflora composition: a dose–response randomised trial. Sci Rep 11, 11264 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-90453-7

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PREBIOTICS

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Chen, Lei & Tai, William Chi Shing & Hsiao, W.L.Wendy. (2015). Dietary saponins from four popular herbal tea exert prebiotic-like effects on gut microbiota in C57BL/6 mice. Journal of Functional Foods. 17. 892-902. 10.1016/j.jff.2015.06.050.

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