Healht Health. And to do that, oferall need to reflect that in our diets. Lverall we Weight loss support groups Joint health protection called a Westernized ovreall. Many of Joint health protection microbes in your gut are types of good bacteria that aid in digestion, nutrient absorption and other functions. I find that that can kind of help bring out different flavors and textures that you might prefer over raw vegetables. For Example- atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, dermatitis herpetiformis and gluten sensitivity.

Gut health and overall well-being -

Indeed, poor gut health and obesity are linked. Compared to healthy individuals, the gastrointestinal microbiota of overweight people exhibit patterns of dysbiosis. Ultimately, since there is greater absorption of energy from food due to dysbiosis, this correlates with inflammation and high blood sugar.

This puts into perspective that maintaining a healthy gastrointestinal balance can affect blood sugar levels and intestinal inflammation, reducing the risks associated with obesity and diabetes.

As illustrated in point 2, the microbiome in the gut is closely linked to brain development, mental health and behavior. Probiotics can improve your gut health in addition to improving your mood. They may, in fact, indirectly benefit your overall brain health. A number of studies in recent years have shown that the central nervous system CNS and the enteric nervous system ENS have significant bi-directional connections, linking emotional and cognitive centres of the brain with peripheral intestinal functions.

By influencing neural and immune processes, the billions of bacteria that live in the gut play a key role in gut-brain communication. Home How Gut Health Can Improve Your Overall Well-Being In 5 Unexpected Ways!

Gut Health. Gut health can affect your mood The intestinal microbiota will indeed induce changes in the response of our brain. For a balanced mood, exposure and consumption of good bacteria are essential.

It can help you sleep better The microbiota, sleep and brain activity are closely linked to each other. And this is Healthy UH. Gut health, microbiome, good and bad bacteria. Understanding how these factors affect our health, even cancers and brain function, requires a deep dive.

Joining us today is Lizzy Traxler, Outpatient Clinical Dietician with the Digestive Health Institute at University Hospitals in Cleveland, Ohio. Thanks for being with us. So, there's been an increased interest in all of this lately.

Let's start with the function of the gut. And how does it work? Our gut refers to the gastrointestinal tract that does digestion for our bodies, starts in our mouth, goes through our esophagus, the stomach, small intestine and large intestine.

And we also have some assistance from other organs like our gallbladder, liver and pancreas. But starting in the mouth is when physical digestion happens through chewing and swallowing, travels through our esophagus and ends up in our stomach where chemical digestion happens.

And that uses gastric juices, and that mixes together with the food and helps break it down because it's so acidic. The pre-digested food travels along the small intestine.

And there is when the majority of nutrient absorption happens. Once that has occurred, it goes to the large intestine, and that prepares it for waste excretion.

And also there is a lot of bacteria. So, bacteria can really only live in the colon, the rectum and the large intestine, because it's less acidic than the other parts of our bodies. So, bacteria, they can thrive in this type of place.

They can't live in acidity. So, here bacteria actually has some features. They can actually make vitamins like vitamin K, which is good for blood clotting. They can also ferment foods. So, some foods are undigested, usually fiber foods.

We can't digest those. So, the fiber actually act upon them, and they do something called fermentation.

And during fermentation, they produce metabolic byproducts that have a lot of effects on our overall health. So, you mentioned bacteria during that. And is that the same as this microbiome that we're talking a lot about today? Like what role does that play in our gut health?

And I guess what happens when we have bad gut health? So, it's a little bit different. The bacteria just in our gut alone does not comprise our gut microbiome. What are we talking about when we say gut microbiome? That refers to all the different organisms and each organism…they're made up out of cells… so there's bacteria, viruses, any single celled organism like that, they all have genes from the cells they're made out of.

So, collectively all these organisms and their genes make up our gut microbiome. So, it's going to be totally different person to person. It's really individualized. There are many variables that go into how our gut health develops and changes.

It's really dependent on our own environment. So, there's many factors that can change this over our lifetime. It starts at birth, and that's when colonization of bacteria occurs. There are some early life practices that are associated with better gut health or immunity, such as being born through the birth canal or being breastfed over other things like being born through a Cesarean section or even being formula fed.

However, we don't have clear evidence how much should these practices change our gut health over time. Other environmental factors regularly discussed is medication usage, specifically antibiotics and antacids.

Those are used directly to change our gut function, but likely even just short-term use of these things can have a longer term impact on our gut health. Life stressors can disrupt the gut microbiome, too, not only the stress we encounter day to day, but things like our sleep quality, physical activity levels, physical illnesses, and even aging.

When our gut health becomes disrupted and we have imbalances of the good bacteria with the bad bacteria, that can have some major consequences on our health over time, like developing chronic diseases, even obesity.

Can we go a little deeper into that? And is there some science that backs up that connection to these medical issues and it going back to our gut?

So, some people, they like to use a comparison of our gut microbiome to an ecosystem. So, like if you think back to like biology class, an ecosystem is a community of shared organisms living together.

Each organism can affect the other ones. So, you know, ecosystem might be filled with like plants and animals, all different types of things. So, when we think of a healthy ecosystem, it's one that has a lot of diversity, a richness. A disordered ecosystem, when would be when there's an overpopulation of one type of organism, like weeds.

So, when we have an overgrowth of one type of species like weeds, then that prevents other organisms for coming in and flourishing in that ecosystem. So, like the gut microbiome, imbalance in the microorganism community can occur when we see an increase in the bad microorganisms that prevent variety and diversity and only allows the bad microorganisms to flourish there.

So, this can cause increased inflammation, and that just triggers our immune response to go off. And our body's kind of in a state of inflammation that can later on trigger chronic diseases. I have read about potential links between an altered gut microbiome to pretty much anything from Type 2 Diabetes to cardiovascular disease, autoimmune conditions, inflammatory bowel disease, neurological disorders, like Parkinson's Disease and even cancer.

And obesity, like I said before is heavily being researched. And we can't say that gut dysbiosis causes the disease, but it could be that increased organisms that promote inflammation might just create an environment for those diseases to onset because there's a lot of just inflammation.

Things are occurring, like metabolic dysfunction or brain functioning isn't as clear. And it can even affect things like our appetite.

This is some pretty deep stuff. I mean, before we talk about how to get rid of the weeds in our gut, how do we even know they're there? That's a great question. I wish there was an excellent test out there to tell us if we have good or poor gut health.

There are some tests like you could take a stool sample and you could get some information on what species or organisms are inside your gut health. Basically, they just show us at a glance what is happening inside of us. And there isn't much useful information from these fecal samples, because there isn't a lot of evidence to say that this microorganism will cause this chronic disease along the road or if you need this amount of these good microorganisms to promote good health.

Even if there are traces of bad microorganisms in these tests, for most microbe strains, we don't know at what levels these microorganisms can cause issues. If you are somebody who's experiencing abnormal GI symptoms, if you were recommended to get more reliable diagnostic tests like colonoscopies, endoscopies are specific tests to rule out things like inflammatory bowel disease or Celiac Disease.

So, we don't necessarily know if we have bad gut health, but my guess is there are things we can look for, right? Like, obesity would be a sure sign that something's going on inside of us. And it doesn't necessarily have to be bad gut health, but it can be. But are there other things that could signal that we have bad gut microbiome?

I think there's a lot of physical signs that there could be some type of gut dysfunction going on. I mean, look at our bathroom habits.

Some people, they find that they don't go very regularly. It could be a few days before they have a bowel movement. And other people might be the opposite end where they go too frequently and have more watery types of stools.

There isn't an ideal number of times we should be going to the bathroom per day. But if you are unpredictable and the number of times are going, or if it seems too frequent, that could be a sign that there's something wrong.

Some other physical signs, too, are things like bloating, increased gas, indigestion, even things like having symptoms with certain foods. For example, some people might find that dairy foods, they can no longer tolerate as well.

So, the lactose in milk, we need certain types of bacterial species to help us digest that. And if there is gut alterations occurring, then we might not have the right bacterial species there to help us digest those certain foods like lactose anymore. So, that is very common. Some other lesser known signs but they could be indications, is poor energy during the day.

Maybe your sleep quality is disturbed. So, it's hard for you to fall asleep or maybe stay asleep. You might find that you have increased cravings for high energy foods like greasy, fat foods or sweets. It can even cause like mental fogginess or unclarity.

You might not be able to think as well as before. So, you mentioned foods. And obviously that's where it all starts, right? Chronic inflammatory diseases are often supposed to be initiated due to abnormal microbes present in the guts.

This often results in an increased inflammatory state of the body and more prone to acquiring rheumatoid arthritis and low bone density in form of osteoporosis.

There are ongoing studies, in which probiotics can help absorb calcium better and promote bone-forming cells. Gut microbes can affect your fertility status. Indeed, new studies have revealed how poor gut health can cause an estrogen imbalance, which may lead to infertility issues ranging from endometriosis and polycystic ovary syndrome to testicular dysfunction.

That is, it may affect both males and females. There are scientific studies that show how a leaky gut may prone an individual to develop dry eye, Uveitis and Glaucoma.

By consuming a good variety of fresh fruits and vegetables, including nuts, seeds, whole grains and legumes in the diet one can improve the overall health of the gut to a great extent.

It has also been proved that Antibiotics can wipe out good and bad bacteria from our bodies. Therefore, reducing the consumption of antibiotics and taking more pre and probiotics, can help maintain a healthy gut.

Making small changes to our diets can have a big impact in the long run. Certain foods that you can take daily and are excellent probiotics are curd, greek yoghurt, buttermilk, lassi, overnight soaked rice with its water, smoothies, onions, whole wheat, cottage cheese, garlic, apple, soy milk etc.

Eat right to stay fit. Now that you know how important is your gut health, be mindful of keeping it healthy. Also Read: What Is Leaky Gut: Exploring the Facts and Debunking the Myths.

Wwll-being Apple Podcasts Google Well-belng Stitcher Spotify. Gut health and overall well-being gut Joint health protection is like an well-beingg in your body — a community of shared organisms living together. An altered gut microbiome has been potentially linked to medical conditions ranging from type 2 diabetes to cardiovascular disease, autoimmune conditions, inflammatory bowel disease, neurological disorders and even cancer. How do you know the state of your gut health and what can you do to keep it in good shape? Elizabeth Traxler, RD, LD, a clinical dietician with the Digestive Health Institute at University Hospitals, explains.

Gut health and overall well-being -

Taking probiotics and limiting antibiotics can also be beneficial. The gut microbiome plays a very important role in your health by helping control digestion and benefiting your immune system and many other aspects of health.

An imbalance of unhealthy and healthy microbes in the intestines may contribute to weight gain, high blood sugar, high cholesterol and other disorders.

To help support the growth of healthy microbes in your gut, eat a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains and fermented foods. Our experts continually monitor the health and wellness space, and we update our articles when new information becomes available.

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By Ruairi Robertson, PhD — Updated on April 3, Share on Pinterest. What Is the Gut Microbiome? How Does It Affect Your Body? The Gut Microbiome May Affect Your Weight. It Affects Gut Health.

The Gut Microbiome May Benefit Heart Health. It May Help Control Blood Sugar and Lower the Risk of Diabetes. It May Affect Brain Health. How Can You Improve Your Gut Microbiome? The Bottom Line. How we reviewed this article: History. I mean, before we talk about how to get rid of the weeds in our gut, how do we even know they're there?

That's a great question. I wish there was an excellent test out there to tell us if we have good or poor gut health. There are some tests like you could take a stool sample and you could get some information on what species or organisms are inside your gut health. Basically, they just show us at a glance what is happening inside of us.

And there isn't much useful information from these fecal samples, because there isn't a lot of evidence to say that this microorganism will cause this chronic disease along the road or if you need this amount of these good microorganisms to promote good health.

Even if there are traces of bad microorganisms in these tests, for most microbe strains, we don't know at what levels these microorganisms can cause issues. If you are somebody who's experiencing abnormal GI symptoms, if you were recommended to get more reliable diagnostic tests like colonoscopies, endoscopies are specific tests to rule out things like inflammatory bowel disease or Celiac Disease.

So, we don't necessarily know if we have bad gut health, but my guess is there are things we can look for, right? Like, obesity would be a sure sign that something's going on inside of us.

And it doesn't necessarily have to be bad gut health, but it can be. But are there other things that could signal that we have bad gut microbiome? I think there's a lot of physical signs that there could be some type of gut dysfunction going on.

I mean, look at our bathroom habits. Some people, they find that they don't go very regularly. It could be a few days before they have a bowel movement.

And other people might be the opposite end where they go too frequently and have more watery types of stools.

There isn't an ideal number of times we should be going to the bathroom per day. But if you are unpredictable and the number of times are going, or if it seems too frequent, that could be a sign that there's something wrong.

Some other physical signs, too, are things like bloating, increased gas, indigestion, even things like having symptoms with certain foods. For example, some people might find that dairy foods, they can no longer tolerate as well.

So, the lactose in milk, we need certain types of bacterial species to help us digest that. And if there is gut alterations occurring, then we might not have the right bacterial species there to help us digest those certain foods like lactose anymore.

So, that is very common. Some other lesser known signs but they could be indications, is poor energy during the day. Maybe your sleep quality is disturbed. So, it's hard for you to fall asleep or maybe stay asleep.

You might find that you have increased cravings for high energy foods like greasy, fat foods or sweets. It can even cause like mental fogginess or unclarity. You might not be able to think as well as before. So, you mentioned foods. And obviously that's where it all starts, right?

That's where the whole digestive tract starts is with what we eat. So, are there foods that are good for our gut? And what's the research behind that? And then how do we get more of that and less of the bad bacteria?

And is that a one size fits all, right? Is that true for everyone? Or are there broadly, these are the good foods; these are the bad foods? So, the most talked about food connected to good gut health is fiber. Fiber is non-digestible carbohydrates.

Those are the foods and plants. And fiber has a lot of importance to our guts. One is that fiber is not digested. It is fermented upon by the bacteria in our guts. So, as I mentioned before, during bacterial fermentation, the microbes produce very important metabolic byproducts called short chain fatty acids.

And these short chain fatty acids have a ton of great health benefits. One of these is that they can help reinforce the gut barrier that protects against the bad microorganisms or pathogens from coming in and wreaking havoc. And this helps decrease gut inflammation and builds up our immune response.

A lot of research goes into looking at different dietary patterns across the world, and they often look at what we do here in the United States.

What we follow is called a Westernized diet. That's typically high in animal protein, foods high in saturated fat that we really want to decrease.

Also increased in refined carb foods, grains made with heavily processed flours and added sugars. And it's typically low in plant foods. In other parts of the world like Asian countries, they're typically eating more plant-based, so things like fruits and vegetables, whole grains, legumes, grains and seeds.

Some studies have looked at what happens when people from a plant-based eating part of the world moves to the United States. So, one study I found, looked at people who moved from Thailand to the United States, and they found just over a few months of living in the United States and adapting to our Western diets that they saw some major changes to their gut.

What they found was that certain microbial species that help break down fiber foods…they do the fermentation…they decreased, and they see increases of other types of microorganisms that might cause inflammation.

And they do not have the ability to help us use fiber. So, with the decrease in the fiber fermenting bacteria groups, and an increase in those microorganisms that may cause inflammation and don't actually use fiber, they're likely going to see a decrease in their production of those super healthy, short chain fatty acids that have a lot of great health benefits.

So, that could have some longer-term implications on the gut and our health. The biggest takeaway I see from studies that look at diet and our gut health is diversity of foods. Like you said before in asking about if there are specific foods, you know, that should be prescribed to different people to help with our gut health, we really don't have clear research showing us that now.

So, it's more about eating variety. And I think about what a plant-based diet includes. It includes variety of foods from whole grains, you know, brown rice, quinoa, oatmeal, fruit, and vegetables, beans, nuts and seeds.

And I think of like the Westernized diet when it's just like pizza, cheeseburger and ice cream. So, you can kind of see the difference between the two, not much variety. So, we do have recommended target intake for fiber set by the dietary guidelines.

And it's about 25 grams a day for adult women, 31 grams per day for men. But this guideline isn't heavily stressed in our society. And cause a lot of people just don't think of fiber as an essential nutrient.

So, though we might not see physical signs of deficiencies if we don't eat fiber, like we would if we were deficient in like iron or calcium, I think the more we learn about the gut microbiome on how important fiber is that we might realize that it's really essential that we're meeting our fiber needs.

So, you're talking a lot about fiber, but what I'm hearing, I don't want our listeners to walk away from this saying, okay, I just need to increase my fiber, because what I'm hearing from you is that it's more about decreasing other things like processed foods, fatty foods.

And am I on the right track here? And what else other than high fiber? Is there anything else we're missing as far as beneficial foods for our gut?

There are a few others. So, anti-inflammatory fats are going to be Omega-3 fatty acids. Those are found in fatty fish like salmon, mackerel, tuna, also in some nuts and seeds like walnuts, chia seeds, flax seeds.

And those anti-inflammatory fats, they do what their name says; they fight inflammation. And that helps promote a better gut environment. Some other foods would be prebiotics and probiotic foods.

When I talk about prebiotic foods, those are the foods that feed the good bacteria. So, those include certain foods like bananas, garlic, onions, artichokes and asparagus.

And the good bacteria in our gut, they like to use those foods, they ferment them, they produce those healthy metabolic byproducts. And it helps keep those good microorganisms abundant in our gut. Probiotics are a little different. They're actually the live microorganisms added to food.

So, you might see some foods labeled with live cultures added to food products in things like yogurt, fermented foods, kombucha, pickles. So, they do add live microorganisms to these foods during the fermentation process. And we can see some health benefits by actually eating these microorganisms and just adding them back into our gut health to help maintain a healthy gut environment.

So, you mentioned the prebiotics, the probiotics, fermented foods. Can we get the same results by supplements? Because you can find these on any shelf these days in the form of a capsule.

So, be mindful of probiotics. They're like any dietary supplement out there. A slightly alkaline environment supports the growth of beneficial bacteria while inhibiting the growth of harmful ones.

Aim to include a variety of alkaline-rich foods in your meals. Sprouts and Gut Health: Sprouts, such as alfalfa, broccoli, and mung bean sprouts, are not only nutrient-dense but also aid in digestion. They contain enzymes that assist in breaking down food, making it easier for the body to absorb nutrients.

Consider incorporating sprouts into salads, sandwiches, or smoothies to support gut health. Increase Fiber Intake: A high-fiber diet is essential for maintaining a healthy gut.

Fiber acts as a prebiotic, providing nourishment to beneficial gut bacteria. Whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables are excellent sources of dietary fiber.

Gradually increase your fiber intake to avoid digestive discomfort and drink plenty of water to aid digestion.

Mindful Eating: Adopting mindful eating practices can significantly impact gut health. Slow down and chew your food thoroughly, allowing the digestive enzymes in your saliva to initiate the digestion process.

Avoid distractions during meals and listen to your body's hunger and fullness cues. Stay Hydrated: Drinking an adequate amount of water is crucial for maintaining a healthy gut.

Water helps soften stools, prevent constipation, and supports the overall digestive process. Aim to drink at least 8 cups 64 ounces of water per day, and adjust your intake based on your activity level and climate. The Role of Digestive Aid by A. Vogel In addition to incorporating gut-friendly foods, certain supplements can support and enhance gut health.

Conclusion Taking care of your gut health is crucial for overall well-being. Vogel Digestive Aid Complex - Relieves Digestive Disturbances Digestive Aid Complex is a combination of Artichoke, Milk thistle, Boldo and Dandelion. Echinaforce® protects the entire family!

Learn more about Echinaforce®. Vogel Blog — Natural and Healthy Inspiration for a healthy life! click here for the blog.

Digestion Healthy Eating. This Resting metabolic rate will delve Ehalth the importance of gut health, Gluten-free athlete nutrition impact Resting metabolic rate well-being, and provide natural and overzll tips healtu improve gut health, including the incorporation of specific foods and supplements. The gut, often referred to as the "second brain," is home to trillions of bacteria, collectively known as the gut microbiota. These bacteria aid in digestion, produce essential vitamins, regulate metabolism, support immune function, and even influence our mood and cognitive abilities. When the balance of gut bacteria is disrupted, it can lead to various health issues, including digestive disorders, immune system dysfunction, mental health problems, and more. But what does it truly mean Gut health and overall well-being have a healthy gut? Michele Helfgott, MDPPG — Integrative Medicine, Well-beijg answer this Spicy grilled chicken breast while well-ebing the healht of Resting metabolic rate aell-being gut microbiome and the steps we can take to improve it. Believe it or not, your gut microbiome is the foundation of your health. Good gut health occurs when you have a balance between the good helpful and bad potentially harmful bacteria and yeast in your digestive system. As previously mentioned, your gut is the foundation of everything.