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The probiotic path to a happy and healthy gut

Keeping our gut happy and healthy can be difficult with the endless processed foods in the stores and convenient fast food restaurants. With billions of dollars going into medical bills for treating digestive and digestive-caused disease, it is important to find ways to balance the bacteria in our stomachs. Probiotics are one of these ways to keep our body healthy and able to combat these diseases. 

Probiotics main function in our bodies is absorbing nutrients and fighting infections. More specifically they can aid in regular bowel movements, the inflammatory response, producing enzymes and B-vitamins, absorbing minerals, glucose, vitamins, and fatty acids, and also protecting against pathogens, toxins, and infections. The list of benefits goes on.

One of the most recommended reasons for ingesting probiotics by doctors is after taking antibiotics. Antibiotics are very harsh on the stomach. They disrupt the balance of the bacteria in your stomach and create a poor environment for the good bacteria to live in. If antibiotics are taken for too long, this can lead to the growth of Clostridium difficile, or C. diff. Probiotics are important at these times because it helps balance out the environment of your stomach, while also introducing more good bacteria. Other reasons to take probiotics are after eating a lot of sugar, GMO foods, high carbohydrate meals, high stress, and other chemicals/medications.

There are different types and forms of probiotics. The most well-known is yogurt. Others are vinegars/fermented foods, kefir, supplements, kimchi, kombucha, sourdough bread, miso, and tempeh. However, each form contains different strains of bacteria which in turn have different benefits. Yogurt does not contain all the necessary strains and cannot completely protect agains the harmful side effects of antibiotics. Supplements can help with this, however, it is important to know which kinds to get. Some probiotic strains are to combat C. diff while others combat diarrhea. Florastor is one that is often recommended. It is strong enough to survive against antibiotics and protects against C. diff and the harmful side effects of antibiotics.

References

Freuman, T. D. (2014, July 29). How (and Why) to Take Probiotics When Using Antibiotics. Retrieved from http://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/eat-run/2014/07/29/how-and-why-to-take-probiotics-when-using-antibiotics

B. (2014, March 3). Probiotics: Pros and Cons. Retrieved from http://www.berkeleywellness.com/supplements/other-supplements/article/probiotics-pros-and-cons

Dilonardo, M. J. (2015, December 14). What are Probiotics? Retrieved from http://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/features/what-are-probiotics#1

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Linking Diet and Gut Health

In the previous post, I discussed the importance of a person’s microbiota on their health, but what can we do to keep it healthy? There are many types of foods that improve your gut health, the main idea to keep in mind is to maintain a diet the is fresh and full of greens and whole grains. This leads to an optimal environment for the microbiota that benefit your body while also suppressing the harmful bacteria.

Fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are some of the best foods you can eat to support your microbiota. These are high in fiber which support the actinobacteria in our guts, which is a beneficial type of bacteria that can grow in our guts. Garlic and leeks are extremely high in this bacteria. Fiber also benefits the prevotella bacteria that I mentioned in the previous post, that aid in reducing inflammation.

Carbohydrates are also important for your microbiota to survive. They are the primary source for energy which shows just how important a balanced diet is. Certain diets that completely cut out carbohydrates (Ketogenic, paleo, juicing, high protein/low carb, etc.) are very dangerous to the gut and can starve our good bacteria.

One surprising food type that’s beneficial to our gut are fermented foods. Foods that are naturally fermented like yogurt, sauerkraut, and kimchi, all help introduce new beneficial bacteria to our gut, primarily the Lactobacillus bacteria. However, avoid pasteurized foods because the pasteurizations process, although allows foods to last longer, kills the good bacteria.

Most of these are examples of prebiotics which are specifically non-digestible foods that promote beneficial bacteria growth. These include the garlic and leeks as well as asparagus, artichokes, onions, almonds, wheat flour, bananas, etc. However, probiotics are just as important to add into our diets. They aid in recolonizing lost bacteria as well as balancing out our current bacteria systems. These are especially good to add into the diet after taking antibiotics, which kill much of our good gut bacteria. Probiotics can be gotten through supplements and also foods, which include yogurt, fermented foods as listed above, cheese, sour cream, and kefir.

One last tip for keeping a healthy gut is to focus on eating fresh foods. Many processed foods don’t contain the healthy nutrients that our gut bacteria need. Sugars and unhealthy fats also promote inflammatory microbiota and cause dysbiosis (microbial imbalance) in our microbiome.

 Citations:

Foroutan, R. (2015). Microbiome: The Garden Within. Food and Nutrition.

Selhub EM, Logan AC, Bested AC. Fermented foods, microbiota, and mental health: ancient practice meets nutritional psychiatry. Journal of Physiological Anthropology. 2014;33(1):2. doi:10.1186/1880-6805-33-2.

Conlon MA, Bird AR. The Impact of Diet and Lifestyle on Gut Microbiota and Human Health. Nutrients. 2015;7(1):17-44. doi:10.3390/nu7010017.

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I feel like people don’t realize how easy it is to eat whole foods. Like cookingconnections posted on the Cost of Convenience, it can seem harder than it really is. Although they can be slightly more expensive and more time consuming to make, it really is worth it. I know when I eat whole foods with less added sugars and fat, I feel full quicker and less hungry throughout the day. It makes maintaining weight much easier and it will really help out in the long run! 

Why Eat Whole Foods?

According to the Gale Encyclopedia of Diets, whole foods are any foods that don’t have added fats, sugars, or salt. These include whole grains like bran, unsalted or un-sugared meats, fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts and seeds. You shouldn’t automatically assume that whole foods are the same as organic foods, or foods that haven’t been sprayed with pesticides/fertilizers or have been genetically altered in some way. Even organic foods can have added sugars, fats, or salts (Frey and Porter 2013). 

Foods that are not whole foods include packaged foods like ready-to-eat hot meals, frozen or refrigerated foods with the added ingredients previously described, candy, packaged baked foods, frozen pizzas, TV dinners, pudding, single-serving applesauce, juices, some fast foods, soups, and flavored milk. The Gale Encyclopedia of Diets says that the risks of eating a diet consisting of mostly processed or packaged foods include heart disease, cancer, diabetes, high cholesterol, kidney disease, high blood pressure, and lowered intake of nutrients like Vitamin C, minerals, and fiber (Frey and Porter 2013).

The Gale Encyclopedia of Diets says that for a person eating 2,000 calories per day, no more than 3 ounces of processed grains like pasta and slices of bread should be eaten per day. The USDA says that 5-15% of total daily calories can be from added sugars, and no more than 10% of total daily calories may come from saturated fats. However, eating less than 7% in saturated fat is ideal (Frey and Porter 2013). These recommendations seem realistic, for saturated fat should be eaten as minimally as possible. This article also places emphasis in eating whole grains; specifically, it says that half of your grains should be whole grains. However, even though a large majority of the diet should come from plant-based carbohydrates, this article could have emphasized more on getting carbohydrates from vegetables and fruits more so than grains like wheat or bran. In fact, if you look at the MyPlate model (pictured at the top of this post) half of your plate should be vegetables and fruits and only a quarter of your plate should be grains.

Additionally, in order to eat processed foods at the recommended amounts in this article, it seems you have to know how many calories you should eat in a day. In order to make it easier and take the guesswork out of how many calories or specific ingredients you should eat in a day, I will be posting recipes that have low amounts of added sugars, fats, and salt that will be inexpensive and easy to prepare. In the meantime, here is a link leading to main dish recipes that are healthy and should be inexpensive to make:

http://www.blogilates.com/blog/category/recipe-index/healthy-main-dishes/

Works Cited: 

Frey, R. J., & Porter, M. (2013). Whole foods vs. processed foods. In K. Key (Ed.), The Gale encyclopedia of diets: a guide to health and nutrition. Farmington, MI: Gale. Retrieved from http://proxybz.lib.montana.edu/login?qurl=http%3A%2F%2Fsearch.credoreference.com%2Fcontent%2Fentry%2Fgalediets%2Fwhole_foods_vs_processed_foods%2F0

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I completely agree with what you’ve said here. With such a busy schedule, I have been fighting the urge to buy things due to convenience. However, I find it hard to find items even in grocery stores that don’t contain ingredients that are bad for you, like high fructose corn syrup or palm oil. The ingredient palm oil by itself has such a damaging effect on the environment. But learning to make your own food is important. Even by making it once, you realize what should go into it, and what ingredients are unnecessary. 

The Cost of Convenience

Americans LOVE convenience, in whatever form it has to offer us.  Why? Why do we rush through everything for the sake of “convenience”? What is it we are gaining?  When asked most people would say that they seek out convenience for time saving purposes.  This reveals itself in so many different forms of American culture.  We, as a society, are constantly demanding faster, easier routes instead of stepping back, taking a deep breath and collecting our thoughts.  While convenience can have its Pros, no doubt, there are also Cons that have consequences we don’t always realize. This craze has a price tag that most people are willing to face, from the effects on the environment to the cost of healthcare.

How is it that living a life of convenience is going to lead you to higher healthcare costs you ask?  Opting for a meal from a fast food restaurant for lunch can provide you with all (and often more) than the recommended calorie count and fat for the entire DAY! In one meal! Brown bagging it with a home made sandwich on whole wheat would be around a quarter of that fast food meal and significantly cheaper to make.  Those added calories and fats add up at rate that can incredibly difficult to work off and the added poundage can eventually lead to chronic diseases such as Diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and more.  Not to mention the effects on the brain of the added sugars and preservatives that made fast foods and other quick meals so dangerous for us.  So on the day that you skip packing your own lunch and decide to stop by the drive through, remember your $10 bill is going to end up being significantly pricier down the road.   That bill doesn’t just cost more in Doctors visits but there is an environmental price as well.  Every time we buy an individually packed product whether it be gas station nachos in their little compartmentalized plastic container or an individually plastic wrapped frozen burrito, we have to consider the environmental impact that product has.  The plastic nacho container and the wrap the burrito came in are not recyclable and go immediately to the trash once after the one time use.  It’s a complete waste of energy and resources.  This excessive obsession with plastic and packaging could be avoided by making and prepping meals at home with reusable products.  I made a dozen burritos at a time and freeze them in reusable silicone bags.  All I have to do is thaw them the night before and I can just heat them up in the morning without a single piece of packaging to discard.   By just taking the time to make my own, I have saved hundreds of pounds of waste from polluting out planet.  For some it can feel daunting to make everything yourself and for those folks, I would just recommend starting small, making little changes until you’re suddenly living a life without waste.

If the cost of healthcare or the environment are not enough motivation for you, consider the sense of accomplishment and pride that comes from making your own.  Suddenly for me, conventional yogurt has nothing on my homemade version.  And I can made a pot of dry beans better than any canned around.  Make it a game to see how many things you can make yourself as opposed to buying the more convenient version.  There’s a sense of therapy with making your own too. Not just that it tastes better but the going through the motion of creating something delicious is well worth the time invested.  

In the spirit of the slow food movement; slow down, take your time and make your own.  Over time you’ll see not only does it benefit the world around you but you’ll feel better too!

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Influences of Gut Flora

Gut flora are often overlooked in their influence on the digestive and immune systems in our bodies. They are completely different organisms from us, but play a huge part in our lives. They are the bacteria that live in our digestive systems and have many different functions. The main functions of these bacteria are destroying harmful pathogens, improve our immune function, and digest or synthesize nutrients that we cannot. Basically, the flora help maintain intestinal homeostasis.  This has been compared to species that do not have these enteric bacteria. Often these species have lower immune function and are more susceptible to infections and have reduced intestine function.

Our gut flora depend on what we eat. They survive on our nutritional intake. Because of this, the types of flora within us changes with what we eat. Simply said, if we eat healthy we will have good stomach bacteria, and if we eat poorly we will have bad stomach bacteria. This shows the importance of eating healthy. More specifically, there are three main types of flora: Prevotella, Bacteroides, and Ruminoccocus. Each type survives on specific nutrients what we intake. Prevotella survives more on carbohydrates, so the more carbs we eat, the greater environment we create for the Prevotella to live and survive in. On the contrary, bacteroides survive more on proteins and fats. Because of this, with increased protein and fat consumption, the greater ratio of Bacteroides will survive.

 Gut flora also influence brain function and activity. It has been found that gut flora has an effect on anxiety, depression, and brain disorders. It does this through control of hormones, nervous system, and immunologically. This is how they communicate with us. Each type will communicate with us to survive. Therefore, the Prevotella flora will communicate to us to eat more carbohydrates to improve their survival. Similarly, Bacteroides will communicate to us to eat more protein and fats.

 This all shows how important it is to pay attention to your diet. The flora in our body are influenced by everything we eat. The changing types and ratios of gut flora influence not only our digestive system but are connected to growing number of body functions as well.

 Citations

O’Hara AM, Shanahan F. The gut flora as a forgotten organ. EMBO Reports. 2006;7(7):688-693. doi:10.1038/sj.embor.7400731.

Mu C, Yang Y, Zhu W. Gut Microbiota: The Brain Peacekeeper. Frontiers in Microbiology. 2016;7:345. doi:10.3389/fmicb.2016.00345.

Kohn, D. (2015, June 24). When Gut Bacteria Changes Brain Function. Retrieved from https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2015/06/gut-bacteria-on-the-brain/395918/