5 things you never knew about your gut!

There’s so much talk of gut health these days.

With all the buzz words and jargon around gut health, it’s hard to know what’s right for you and your microbiome. We’re here to make it easier for you to digest, with 5 simple facts so you can better understand gut health and why it’s vital to your overall wellbeing.

1. Your gut acts as a second brain 

THERE ARE MORE THAN 100 MILLION NERVE CELLS IN YOUR GUT and some scientists have nicknamed it the ‘second brain’.  Studies show that our gut health can drastically impact our mood and wellbeing. Your gut is said to produce 80% of your body’s total serotonin (the happy hormone). Therefore, keeping your gut healthy and making better food choices may relieve brain fog, feelings of sadness and low energy.

2. The microbiome has more biodiversity than a rainforest 

Genetically, human DNA is 99.9% the same, however, this is not true for your gut microbes. Your microbes may only share 10% similarity with others around you.  This is because everyone’s microbiome is so diverse and therefore can drastically differ.

3. Your gut is a very hard worker

Around 70 to 80% of your immune system is in your gut! On any given day, your gut immunity will do more work than the rest of your immune system in your entire life!

4. Your gut isn’t the same one you were born with 

In fact, people aren’t born with much of a gut microbiome at all. During the first years of life, your microbiome is shaped by multiple factors such as how you were born (vaginal vs. caesarean delivery), where you live, the food you eat, and much more. This will develop throughout your life. However, your gut will keep a sort of microbial fingerprint that is unique to you.

5. Diet is the most important tool for shaping your gut microbiota

When you eat, you are not just eating for yourself but also for your gut microbiota. So a poor diet will encourage harmful gut bacteria to proliferate and can even cause you to crave more of the bad foods such as sugar and refined carbs. The good news is that it takes under a week of eating right to improve your gut bacteria.

This is done in two ways:

. Eating more probiotics, such as fermented foods and Table of Plenty all-natural Kefir Range

. Eating more prebiotic fibres such as our Balance+ Muesli, whole grains and fibre-rich vegetables.