I'm sure you've heard it before, but a healthy gut really is paramount for a healthy body. One way to foster a happy gut microbiome is to eat fermented foods. Fermented foods are rich in probiotics which support digestive health, immunity, detoxification and overall well-being. One of my favorite ferments is water kefir which is a probiotic beverage typically made using sugar water, coconut water or fruit juice. Water kefir is rich in amino acids, enzymes, vitamins and minerals so having a small cup each day is a delicious way to boost gut health! This suped-up version contains powerful anti-inflammatory ingredients, ginger and turmeric, for a truly medicinal and delicious bevvy!
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Let's get clear on one thing - you cannot 'out-supplement' a bad diet. Supplements are designed to be used as part of a nutrient-dense real food eating plan. In my practice, I have a 'food first' approach in which we get the person's the food on point first and then we fill in nutritional gaps using targeted supplementation. I've written a whole post on the five foundational supplements that just about everyone should be taking. You can check that out here. One of those must-have supplements is a probiotic.
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Hi there!
I wanted to share a recent eBook I wrote for BINTO on probiotic supplements for women's general and reproductive health. If you're a guy reading this, please pass this on to the ladies in your life! If you're a woman, this eBook is a worth a read....if I do say so myself :)
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Typically, when people talk about weight loss, they focus their attention on macronutrients: protein, fat and carbohydrates. Popular diets generally involve cutting out or cutting down on one of these (i.e. carbs or fat) while increasing another (i.e. protein). Truth is, when it comes to losing weight, there is a lot more going on with respect to the foods we eat than simply macronutrients. What these fad diets are missing is the critical importance of the microbiome - a topic of much emerging research! Our microbiome, the 100 trillion microbes living in our intestines, plays a massive role in determining whether we're fat or skinny or somewhere in between.
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This past weekend, I led a Gut Health workshop with my friend and colleague, Dr. Missy Albrecht. It was awesome teaming up with a physical therapist on this topic because she has a lot of education around how to heal the gut from a mobility standpoint, while I was able to talk to the nutrition piece of the equation. In our workshop, we addressed signs of an unhealthy gut, functions of the gut, factors that damage the gut, and what to do to repair and heal the gut.
Gut health is a very comprehensive topic, one with which I struggled to narrow it down and pick out the digestible (pun intended :)) bits for an hour long workshop. Cutting edge research on the digestive system, and in particular the microbiome, is coming out every day. It's something I am fascinated by and want to learn everything I can about in order to help my clients to the best of my ability.
As the workshop attendees seemed to be particularly engaged during the "What To Do" section of my talk, I thought you, my readers, might also be interested in getting some tips for keeping your gut healthy and functioning optimally! Check them out below....
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Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, said disease begins in the gut. True, and so does health. There is growing research showing that the state of your gut health impacts everything from your immune system to the glow of your skin. We know that having lots of good bacteria taking up residence in your gut leaves little room for the bad bacteria (i.e. candida) to proliferate. All this healthy gut flora inoculates your intestinal tract keeping you happy, healthy, balanced and beautiful.
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You may have heard of Candida albicans before, but perhaps you don’t quite understand the full picture or how this nasty little fungus could be at the root of your health problems. One reason for many people’s lack of understanding is the fact that it is not something traditional doctors acknowledge in their practice. Conversely, Candida albicans, often shortened to just candida, and its relationship to many chronic illnesses is very well established within the alternative and functional medicine communities. As I have had to rid myself of this extremely resilient yeast, I would like to shed some light on it for you as well as share my own experience with overcoming it.
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