Looking after your gut health – By Dr Harold Gunatillake
Website: www.Doctorharold.com
Modern lifestyle harms our digestion, causing health issues. But, we can improve our gut health and overall well-being by making smarter food choices and simple lifestyle changes.
Gut health is often overlooked in our daily lives. The healthy gut’s primary function is to break down the food we eat and absorb nutrients that keep our body functioning correctly. Research in the medical community has shown that the gut plays a crucial role in our overall health. Specifically, the gut microbiome in our large intestines is essential for maintaining good gut health and can impact every organ in our body.
Further, the gut connects with the brain through the long vagus nerve. Hence, the gut is referred to as the second brain.
Hidden in the walls of our digestive system are marshalling neurons and supporting cells. The Enteric Nervous System (ENS) is sometimes called “the 2nd brain”. This independent thinker is connected through a system of nerve fibres of over 100 million nerve cells stuffing your gastrointestinal tract, from the oesophagus to your rectum!
According to the Director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Neurogastroenterology, Jay Pasricha, M.D., whose research on the ENS has hoarded global attention, the central role of this “second brain” is to control digestion, from swallowing to the release of enzymes that break down our
food, and to control blood flow, from nutrient absorption to elimination.
This is why, in particular brain disorders like migraine, you could get gastric symptoms like nausea and vomiting.
When your gut is healthy, you have a regular bowel movement pattern. Your stools are well-formed and healthy. You have a good transit time after you eat your food. You do not feel discomfort during bowel movement and are not bloated and gaseous.
One of the most common bowel problems is heartburn. It is also referred to as GERD or gastroesophageal reflux disease.
In this situation, acid gastric juice seems to reflux into the lower oesophagus or gullet. It causes a burning sensation behind the heart due to a valvular dysfunction at the lower oesophageal gastric junction.
In a healthy gut situation, the valve at the oesophagus-gastric junction prevents acid juice from refluxing into the gullet.
GERD starts frequently with heartburn and may include a sour taste in the mouth, Regurgitation, meaning stomach contents back up into the mouth, nausea, burping, dry cough or throat clearing repeatedly.
This is a physical defect and not a biochemical dysfunction. Hence, you should be able to remedy this by simple methods rather than going on antacids and other medications.
Doctors will prescribe proton pump inhibitors and antacids H2 antagonists. Long- term use of these drugs has severe side effects except antacids.
Sleep with two pillows at the head end, or sleep on a reclining chair. Sleep on your left side and avoid turning onto your right side. Have a light, nonspicy meal for dinner two hours before you retire to sleep. Avoid acidic alcohol as much as possible.
If you get heartburn, keep a glass of cool milk and sliced Lebanese cucumber by your bed. Stay slim.
Now, let’s discuss the worst foods for gut health. They include Processed foods. Processed foods are high in additives, preservatives, and unhealthy fats, which can harm your gut microbiome.
Refined sugar, Gluten, Dairy products, Fried foods, and Red meat. Artificial sweeteners, Alcohol.Diet Soda. Some researchers say that artificial sweeteners in zero-calorie drinks may mess with the beneficial microbes in your large gut.
Eat less red meat. It is bad for your gut. What’s bad for your gut can be bad for your heart.
It has been scientifically proven that red meat contains high levels of fat and cholesterol, which can increase the risk of heart disease. Additionally, N-nitroso chemicals in red meat can damage the bowel’s lining. You should limit your intake of red meat to the recommended serving per week to avoid experiencing gout attacks, indigestion and bloating.
White Meat Poultry. Chicken and turkey breasts are highly accessible animal protein sources and are gut-friendly.
Fatty Fish. Salmon, tuna, sardines, and herring are all excellent protein sources and are gut-friendly.
Are eggs good for your gut?
Eggs. Boiled, poached, or scrambled eggs are easy to prepare, eat, and digest. They are suitable for recovering from a stomach virus or nausea. The white contains less fat and is easier to digest, but many people with digestive problems can also tolerate the yolk.
Now, let’s talk about probiotics.
Probiotics are foods (or supplements) that contain live bacteria sufficiently to provide a health benefit. Eating foods containing probiotics makes their way down into your gut, where an ecosystem of bacteria works hard to help your body stay well. You have more bacterial cells in your gut than human cells in your whole body!
Nourishing the complex ecosystem of bacteria in our gut with the right food can help it function optimally, leading to a healthier and happier life.
Today’s industrialised food system has damaged the community of beneficial bacteria living inside you. This is where a good knowledge of probiotics and prebiotics will help you to rebuild your microbiome back to good health.
Superfoods for your gut are-Probiotic sources include yoghurt, kefir, sauerkraut, and some aged cheeses. Eating various probiotic foods and at least one probiotic source daily is the best way to balance your microbiome and support good gut health.
Now, let’s discuss briefly the best friends you have within your body. They are the microbiota in your gut. Your gut microbiome is a microscopic world within the world of your larger body. The trillions of microorganisms that live there affect each other and their environment in various ways. They also appear to influence many aspects of your overall health, both within your digestive system and outside of it.
Your gut bacteria are influenced by what you eat. It is essential to give them the right fuel to have a balanced gut microbiome. The best way to maintain a healthy microbiome is to eat a range of fresh, whole foods, mainly from plant sources like fruits, vegetables, legumes, beans, nuts and whole grains.
Probiotics may manipulate intestinal microbial Communities and suppress the growth of pathogens by inducing the host’s production of β-defensin and IgA. Probiotics may fortify the intestinal barrier by maintaining thigh junctions and inducing mucin production.
Now, let’s talk about Prebiotics. Prebiotics include fibre-rich foods like whole grains, beans and legumes, fruits and vegetables. Inulin is a prebiotic and a type of soluble fibre. It is found naturally in
high amounts in chicory root and smaller amounts in foods like Jerusalem artichokes, onions and a kind of Mexican turnip called jicama.
Sri Lankans eat a lot of onions in their curries. Onions are a great source of fibre-rich prebiotics. Now, how is gut microbiota formed?
Multiple factors contribute to the establishment of the human gut microbiota during infancy. Diet is considered one of the main drivers in shaping the gut microbiota across the lifetime. Intestinal bacteria play a crucial role in maintaining immune and metabolic homeostasis and protecting against pathogens.
What can you do to support the good bacteria in your gut? Eating a plant-based diet that includes fermented foods and fibre from colourful fruits and vegetables, having healthy sleep habits and managing stress levels are other ways to support a healthy gut.
How do you know that you have an unhealthy gut? Signs of poor gut health
Autoimmune problems, such as thyroid issues, rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes.
Digestive issues, such as irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, diarrhoea, heartburn or bloating.
Sleep issues. Skin rashes and allergies.
Sugar cravings. Unexplained fatigue or sluggishness.
So, viewers, I hope this video article explains the importance of keeping your gut healthy by eating certain foods and avoiding others.
So, until we meet again, goodbye for now.
Inflammatory Foods harming your gut
- Red meat, such as steak and
- Processed meat, such as bacon and sausages
- and lunch meat
- Commercial baked goods such as snack
- cakes, pies, cookies and
- Bread and pasta made with white
- Deep-fried items such as French fries, fried
- chicken and
“Join the global movement for good health promotion and let’s make a positive impact on the lives of Sri Lankans worldwide.
Together, we can create a healthier future for everyone.”
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