Gut health and the immune system.
Have you ever had a ‘gut instinct’ about something? This isn’t just referring to your intuition. Improving gut health starts with looking at colon health – the epicenter of your entire well-being. Did you know that approximately 70% of your immune system is actually inside your gut? Since our overall health and well-being is largely dependent on the health of our immune system, it should make sense to optimize our gut health.
Gut-Brain connection
Your gut and your brain are connected through a complex system of hormones and neurotransmitters that constantly send information back and forth. Boosting the health of our gut doesn’t just impact our immune system, it has an impact on our mental health as well.
Vitalife advice for boosting gut health
- Keep it clean! Keeping your gut clean and clear of toxins is #1 in our books. Regular colon cleanses are a great way to do that. What? Clean my colon? Yes…please do. Just like you clean your teeth. Plaque builds up overtime, making it difficult for the body to absorb nutrients and flush out toxins. When you take care of your gut, you’re taking care of your whole body.
- Take a probiotic supplement. Taking a daily dose of healthy bacteria will help keep the bad bacteria at bay and prevent them from taking over. This protects your body by boosting the health of the immune system and strengthening its defenses against pathogens. In addition, good bacteria will help you digest food, absorb nutrients from food, and reduce indigestion. Eating fermented whole foods like sauerkraut, kefir, etc., also have the same effect.
- Eat more fiber. Eating fiber not only helps keep you regular – which is important for daily detoxification – but fiber also feeds the good bacteria in your gut. This is important as it helps keep the good bacteria flourishing while making the environment for bad bacteria less attractive.
- Eliminate refined sugars. Refined anything is toxic to your gut as it feeds the bad bacteria. This causes bad bacterium to proliferate and overpower the good bacteria. When this happens, the body’s defenses are weakened and the immune function is suppressed. This also causes a major spike and subsequent crash in blood sugar that triggers hormonal releases further impairing function of the GI tract.
- Reduce stress. Our gut and brain are intimately connected and when we feel stressed or anxious, the hormones released from the brain directly impact gut function. Constipation and diarrhea are common gastrointestinal symptoms associated with stress.
- Hydration and lubrication. Your gut needs water and oil to keep waste and toxins flowing. Insufficient water intake can result in constipation which leads to a buildup of toxins in the GI tract. Hydration is also important for nourishing all cells of the body and keeps them strong and healthy. Healthy fats, such as: olive oil, coconut oil, wild salmon, walnuts, pumpkin seeds among others, are full of good fats/oils and will help lubricate your pipes and move that stool along.
What else can you do?
Exercise
Exercise is also very important for gut and overall health. 20 minutes of activity daily can make all the difference. Exercise improves circulation, improves elimination, relieves stress, and gives you an overall sense of well-being. Without movement, our bodies can’t regulate anything. So, if you’re not exercising at all, please start slowly. 10 minutes is better than no minutes!
Sleep
Getting the right amount of sleep is an integral part of keeping the gut healthy and happy. A lack of sleep or interrupted sleep can result in many negative outcomes. The longer you go without a good nights sleep, the more likely you are to have digestive issues. Consistency is also a factor. Sleep patterns, like eating patterns should be as consistent as possible. There is still a lot we don’t know about whether sleep affects digestion, or if digestion affects sleep – but either way, we do know it’s a two-way street!
Implement a few… or all of these recommendations to improve your health from the inside out.
