We are already halfway through our Month of Motivation! We have covered “Getting Motivated and Making a Plan”, “Juicing, Cleansing and Detoxifying” and “Stabilizing Blood Sugar/Preventing Inflammation”. I hope you are learning and putting some of that new knowledge to use!
Today we are talking about “Healing Your Gut”
This is a fascinating topic that can change your life. I know many of you are probably unfamiliar with the term “healing your gut” so I will give you the ‘101 version’ of everything we discuss and link to posts that cover each topic more in depth for those of you that want to delve deeper. Please, please delve deeper! I do recommend you read my entire post first, then come back to the links.
“Why Would I Need To Heal My Gut?”
Medical science has linked your overall health, physical and mental, to the condition of your gut. Quite literally your gut health determines the state of your physical body and your mental and emotional well being! More and more studies are showing a link between the state of your belly and chronic diseases of the body as well as anxiety, depression and other mental illnesses. Healing your belly may be the first step toward increased energy, vitality, disease reversal and/or prevention, a brighter mental outlook and freedom from mental illness!
For more information on the gut/mental illness connection read this fascinating article “Gut Feelings and The Future of Psychiatry” and “GAPS: Gut and Psychology Syndrome” by Dr. Natasha Campbell McBride
It All Starts at Birth…
When we are born we travel through the birth canal and are exposed to billions of bacteria. These bacteria populate our mouth, throat, belly, intestines etc…known as our ‘gut’. These bacteria support our immune system, aid in digestion and the ‘escorting’ out of toxins that are made during the digestion and elimination process. Scientists are just beginning to realize the far reaching importance of these bacteria to our overall health.
So what’s the catch? Well, we can only get the bacteria our mother provides as we slide into the world. If her gut health is not optimal, ours won’t be either. And here is another thing…your great-great grandma ate a natural diet and depending what country she came from she also ate some kind of cultured foods that supported a healthy gut; sauerkraut, pickles, kimchi, fermented tea, cultured dairy like yogurt or kiefer…these cultured and fermented foods are high in friendly bacteria that populate the gut and keep it and you mentally and physically well! And great-great grandma was alive before the age of antibiotics. Antibiotics while they save countless lives, can really mess with your gut health. The word “Antibiotic” literally means “against life” because it kills bacteria, good or bad. That means when it’s killing your strep infection it’s also killing the healthy bacteria in your belly. No bueno amigos!
So basically each generation born after great-great grandma has taken a hit in the gut…so to speak. Our diets of processed foods don’t support a healthy gut, we no longer eat the cultured and fermented foods our ancestors ate (again…not good for gut health) and we were exposed to less of the bacteria at birth because our mother’s didn’t have it to pass along! Lastly, who the heck hasn’t been prescribed antibiotics many, many times?
For more information read:
“5 Ways to Heal the Gut After Antibiotics” from Natural Family Today
“Create a Healthy Gut Plan” from Mindful Meals
So what does all this mean? Well according to Dr. McBride the Author of GAPS: Gut and Psychology Syndrome, it means many of us have a “Leaky Gut”. This means that because we lack good bacteria from birth, eat poorly and are exposed to a myriad of toxins our intestines aren’t functioning the way they should. They become inflamed and literally ‘leaky’, leaking microscopic food particles into our blood stream. Our immune system, sensing invaders, sends antibodies on a search and destroy mission. The problem being these aren’t bacteria or virus’s antibodies are programmed to find so they attack whatever they decide upon, creating an immune response resulting in autoimmune diseases, inflammation, mental and emotional disruptions. Please read more here.
How do I know If My Gut Needs Healing?
If you were born after 80 years ago, if you have taken antibiotics, if you were raised on a processed food diet, if you don’t regularly eat cultured and fermented foods, if you suffer from digestive upset (gas, bloating, constipation, diarrhea etc…) have gluten intolerance, lactose intolerance, an autoimmune disease, eczema, mental disorders (depression, anxiety, ADHD,and more) picked up a parasite while traveling in a foreign country or feel constantly fatigued, you my friend are a good candidate for a nice healing of the gut!
To read more about the relationship between autoimmune diseases, allergies and eczema to “leaky gut” read “Four Steps to Heal Leaky Gut and Autoimmune Diseases”
“How Do I Heal My Gut?”
The simple answer? By weeding out the bad and adding in the good! Let’s talk weeding out the bad first. I highly recommend the book “The Virgin Diet”. This book will teach you how to weed out foods that might be causing you problems and then add back in the foods that don’t. The usual gut ‘offenders’ are gluten, dairy, corn, artificial sweeteners, peanuts, soy and eggs. By weeding these out of your diet and then adding them back in methodically, you can determine which foods bother your belly! Once you have determined which foods to avoid, you stay off of them till your belly heals BUT that is not enough…
It is important to remember the food isn’t the problem…your gut is the problem! Once you remove the foods you can’t tolerate you need to add in the good stuff and repopulate your belly with ‘good’ bacteria. Eat real food, juice at least once a day and add probiotics to your diet. Probiotics are those healthy bacteria we discussed above. Add fermented and cultured foods, probiotic supplements, broths and probiotic rich drinks into your daily regimen. These will heal your belly over time. As your gut heals your digestive problems disappear, your energy returns, your depression and/or anxiety fades, you sleep better, feel better, look better and are happier overall!
“14 Steps to a Healthy Gut” from Heal Thyself
“Probiotics: Gut Superfood” from Green Boot Living
“20 Ways to Heal Your Gut Today” from Libby Louer
So let’s take a look in my fridge…this should be fun…not really, but I will take one for the team. I like to get my probiotics in a variety of ways….
Top Shelf Right: Kombucha! This is a fermented drink that is loaded with gut healthy bacteria. It comes in different flavors and strengths. I highly recommend this drink. It helped me when I experienced terrible gut issues after taking antibiotics 7 years ago. (Next to the Kombucha is my homemade almond milk, no probiotics but it’s delicious!)
Second Shelf Left: Raw cultured vegetables, not my favorite way to get my probiotics but it is definitely one of the best ways! I am a baby when it comes to taste and these vegetables are quite strongly flavored. I only manage to eat a tablespoon every three days or so. Luckily cultured vegetables have a log shelf life. Like I said, not my favorite, but totally worth it. Next to the cultured veggies is a yogurt high in probiotics that I add to my smoothies, and next to that, homemade bone broth (blue lid). Bone broth is great for the belly!
Third Shelf Right: ‘Bio K’ is a strong ‘shot’ of high probiotic yogurt. It is expensive so I use it only once a week when I am in a hurry. Behind that in the yellow tub is creme fraiche, similar to sour cream, again very tummy friendly, and last that white bottle with the yellow label is probiotic pills. Basically, back up. Pills are the least effective way to get probiotics because they completely bypass the mouth and throat and can lose a lot of their potency during travel. But I do take them everyday as a safety net! Not photographed (because it was in the door and I forgot!) the ever important Apple Cider Vinegar! High in probiotics and easy to add to salad dressings! My point is, get probiotics, everyday, in a variety of ways. Everyone of these things can be purchased at the store and many can be made better and cheaper at home . If you are a DIY’er…have at it with the recipes below!
“Make Your Own Kombucha” from Live Simply
“The Health Benefits Of Bone Broth” by Real Food RN
“Homemade Chicken Broth” from me, The Organic Kitchen
Get a Free Bone Broth PDF from Paleo Diet Basics
Homemade Kefir from Richly Rooted
Fermented Vegetables from Divine Health from The Inside Out
Probiotic Pills vs. Fermented Food from Pickle Me Too
Make Your Own Apple Cider Vinegar from Learning and Yearning
“What Can I Expect As I Heal My Gut?”
You can expect to feel fantastic! And then… you can expect setbacks. Either from mistakes you make or the process of the body purging all the bad stuff. Sometimes we change our bad eating habits and add in the good stuff and we feel great! We believe our work is done and then lo and behold some of our symptoms return. Don’t give up. This is a normal part of the healing process and is to be expected! Just remember to move forward in the event of a set back and read this: “Three Signs You Are Healing Even Though You Feel Lousy” from 20 Something Allergies.
Update! After years of fatigue, eczema, anxiety and mood swings my daughter finally took her health in her own hands and began a “heal your gut” program. Within a week she experienced mental and physical health changes that are nothing short of miraculous! Six weeks in her belly problems are gone, her eczema (which has plagued her since she was born) disappeared and her anxiety is non existent! That said, I know this is a lot of information. If you feel overwhelmed, don’t worry, everyone feels that way when they change a lifestyle that isn’t working for them. Read through this post several times, each time you do you will pick up something new. Read the links provided when you have time and let the information soak in. Make 2014 your best year yet!
~Linda Spiker
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Original article and pictures take www.theorganickitchen.org site
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