Trust Your Gut
** DISCLAIMER: The information on this website is only intended to be general information for public use. This information does not replace professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. If you have questions about a medical condition, always seek the advice of a doctor or other qualified health professional**
A few weeks ago, Kasey and I were on the trails behind our house taking the dogs on a much-needed walk. It was about 2 days after I posted the first blog on this website, and I was rearing to go to write the second one. I was throwing out ideas about what I should write about next: Chronic conditions? Hormones? The pandemic of obesity? Mental health? Then I stated some random tidbit I learned in school that 90% of serotonin is created in the gut. She just said, “Well, I think you got your answer. All the ideas you threw out there would be wonderful, but I think people need to know how important the gut truly is.”
She was right. All the ideas I threw out there—mental health, obesity, hormones, etc—can be traced back to what some people call the ‘second brain.’ The lovely gut.
Honestly, if you want to know what each one of my master’s classes has taught me to do as a future nutrition professional, here it is: Treat the gut and many, if not all, symptoms will improve. There’s the answer. That’s the key. That’s all you gotta do! Easy right? Nah. But worth it? Yes!
Here’s an oversimplified analogy for y’all to truly understand why a healthy gut is vital to our overall health. So, imagine your intestines as a long water pipe that runs from your mouth to your bum. A pipe in good order should transport water from one place to another, just as healthy intestinal function should do with food. Ideally and very generally, food should go in through your mouth, do its processes in the intestine, and result in poop. Well, let’s say a pipe is leaky. Rust and grime over time has caused holes to form. Rather than going from point A to point B, water leaks out of the pipe and into places where water should not be. This can wreak havoc on a home whether its water damage or mold growth.
The same can happen to the intestine. It can become permeable by eating inflammatory foods such as excess sugar, processed foods, alcohol, or gluten; by chronic stress; or even by taking certain medications repeatedly1. The substances can scrape down the lining of the intestine, causing the tight junctions of the cells to degrade and allowing foreign objects into the bloodstream. This process catalyzes systemic inflammation and damage in the body. Just like a leaky pipe would cause damage to a house.
Unfortunately, we cannot just call up a plumber and replace our “pipe” with a new one. So how do we improve our guts as they are right now? Luckily, epithelial cells that make up our gut lining regenerate every 5-7 days, allowing the body to withstand the wear and tear we have put it through and create change if we want it. But before I lay out some tips as to how to replenish the gut lining, I need to explain some more about what the gut is housing.
Ever since I started taking science classes back in what, third or fourth grade? All I ever heard about bacteria was that it was bad, and we needed to avoid it as much as we could. Never did I learn that there are beneficial bacteria. Very simply put, the gut is lined with both beneficial and pathogenic (bad) bacteria.
Think of a parking lot—there’s only a certain number of spaces. If pathogenic bacteria take over most of those spaces, an individual can experience a sickly state of being—whether that is chronic inflammation, having an immune system that can’t keep up, or conditions such as metabolic syndrome. On the flip side, if beneficial bacteria have the majority, one’s immune system can fight illnesses more efficiently and deplete systemic inflammation. Ideally, we want the good bacteria to take the spots of the bad bacteria to provide a healthy gut microbiome, but more so, balance. Balance is the key to healthy living.
Now what makes bacteria good or bad? Let’s put it in terms of dogs. Think of each strain of bacteria as a breed of dog. Just as every breed has an inherent job, every bacterium has a specific purpose. Golden retrievers are great therapy dogs due to their even-tempered and gentle nature. Huskies are working dogs and can pull sleds for miles upon miles because of their active nature and stubbornness to stop (I know this all too well). Dachshunds love to burrow under blankets because their ancestors were trained to dig, wriggle underground with their long bodies, and hunt badgers (although our old, grumpy dachshund would definitely get stuck with his plump body.)
Good bacteria examples:
Bifidobacterium lactis makes tryptophan readily available in the gut, which is responsible for increasing serotonin (the ‘happiness’/ ‘good vibes’ hormone) production6.
The Lactobacillus family of strains induce anti-inflammatory pathways, while shutting down the inflammatory ones.
Pathogenic bacteria examples:
Increased levels of Clostridia are found in the guts of those with autism spectrum disorder. Species of Clostridia produces lots of propionic acid, which is toxic to the brain. It affects cellular signaling, alters mitochondrial function in the brain, and depletes antioxidants and omega 3 fatty acids, which ultimately leads to systemic inflammation.
Firmicutes strains of bacteria negatively alter gene expression, often leading to conditions resulting in obesity and/or inflammation.
To put it as easily as I can with these examples (as I’m trying to do this whole post because I know it can be heavy and lots to take in), we want to have more Lactobacillus bacteria than Firmicutes or Clostridiabacteria to lower inflammation in our bodies.
This explanation is oversimplified due to the complex nature of the universe living within your gut. I say universe because just as there are an abundance of stars in the sky, there are approximately 100 trillion bacteria living just within the digestive system alone5. Also, the vastness and mystery behind these microbes will continue to be studied more and more. The information here and what is out there, I believe, is just the tip of the iceberg as to what is going to be a targeted paradigm shift in the medical world.
I’m sure you have heard of the term ‘probiotics,’ which are simply a concoction of live, good bacteria. Probiotics can be taken in capsule or powder form—there are lots of options out there on the market today. The type we take is Seed. No, I’m not an influencer for them. Just did my research from what I know, and really liked what I found!
Anyways, probiotics can also be naturally found in foods such as cottage cheese and yogurt. One reason why breastmilk is seen as the gold standard for infant feeding is because of the probiotics it naturally feeds your baby. Studies have shown that breastmilk feeding can lead to decreased incidence of offspring allergies, obesity, type II diabetes, and asthma (to name a few). Other bioactive compounds such as human milk oligosaccharides, lactoferrin, and human milk globules play a role in this too. Luckily, for those who are unable to feed their babies breast milk (for any reason), formulas are now incorporating these bioactive substances, including probiotics, to promote improved gut health in infants.
Alongside probiotics, there are ‘prebiotics.’ Prebiotics feed the probiotics in the gut. I know terminology can get tricky in this landscape! When I think of prebiotics, I think of kombucha, kimchi, sauerkraut (craving a brat now), and any food with fiber. The active compounds created from fermented foods give good bacteria energy to do their thang. Other sources that are *listen to this* not sold in the United States, include galactooligosaccharides (GOS) and fructooligosaccharides (FOS). It just *slightly* pisses me off. Why is high fructose corn syrup (liver-killing), food dye (brain-neuroticizing), potassium bromate (cancer-inducing) allowed to just be floating willy-nilly around in our US food chain supply, while FOS and GOS is impossible to get?
Get this.
FOS in children
Researchers administered 1g FOS daily to children aged 4-24 months old and compared to controls, the FOS-fed group had a 32% reduction of antibiotic use, 61% decrease absenteeism, 34% reduction of fever + cold symptoms, and a 61% decrease of fever + diarrhea over the course of the day care/school year8.
GOS in those with metabolic syndrome
Over the course of just 12 weeks, administration of 2.75g/day of GOS significantly reduced serum CRP (inflammation marker), insulin, total cholesterol, and triglycerides in subjects with metabolic syndrome.
Possible effects of GOS + FOS
In an animal study, researchers found that FOS+GOS:
Reduced the number of stress-related bowel movements
Inhibited release of pro-inflammatory cytokines
Increased GABA (the ‘calming’ hormone) and serotonin in the brain
Reduced depression and anxiety-like behaviors
Protected the good bacteria populations (Lactobacillus and Bifidobacterium) from the impact of chronic stress
I mean, like I said, TIP OF THE ICEBERG. This stuff is amazing to me—just hope we can get our hands on it before I die. It’s not all impossible to get though. And this is probably the most important point of this whole post.
Whole foods and nature’s bounty can provide these substances for your body.
Microbial diversity, probiotics, prebiotics, all of it. To answer the question I exhibited way up at the top as to what you can do to start helping your gut in the next 5-7 days (and beyond) instead of harming it is this: Try to aim for 35-40 different species whole foods per week. This is fun because it’s all about variety. For instance, eating 3 granny smith apples is equal to ONE whole food. BUT, having a granny smith, red delicious, and honey crisp apple counts as THREE. Each type of apple, or any type of food has its own microbe and genetic makeup. Kind of like humans—we’re all different and unique! Just don’t eat humans, please…
To simplify this even further, try to eat a rainbow of whole foods a day. Raspberries, carrots, summer squash, avocado, blueberries, plums—woah, getting fancy here! These don’t have to be a serving of each, just a handful of blueberries will do. Included in whole foods are beans, legumes, leafy greens, and potatoes (which are my favorite). Anything that was once in the ground, grown, or not processed are all options!
For those awesome prebiotic compounds, FOS and GOS, you can get that too in real foods. Just not as easy as a supplement would do.
3.0 grams/day of GOS is considered a therapeutic dose (how much is needed for effect). Legumes such as chickpeas (1.08g per ½ cup), lima beans (1.22g per ½ cup), split peas (1.7g per ½ cup), and red kidney beans (1.33 per ½ cup) are abundant in GOS.
3.0 grams/day of FOS is the therapeutic dose, but you can go up to 10.0 grams daily if your body can handle it (remember, these compounds are considered fiber so too much of it can cause GI discomfort and gas!). Asparagus (4.3g per ½ bunch cooked), onion (3.5g per ½ raw chopped onion), and bananas (0.6g per one medium banana) are options to obtain FOS in your diet.
To put it altogether, the Western diet—which is high in processed foods, food additives, high fructose corn syrup, environmental chemicals, and low in polyphenols, total fiber, and fiber diversity—starves the microbiome itself and could be a cause of the rise of chronic conditions we see year after year, in our country specifically.
Further, antibiotics have been widely overprescribed since they were first put on the market. Antibiotics are not targeted toward only the bad bacteria causing illness or disease. It goes after pathogenic and beneficial bacteria alike, which is why each round can wreak havoc on the microbiome. We, as a society that expects instant results, lean on antibiotics for ear infections, bronchitis, cold symptoms even though testing does not rule out viral infections—which antibiotics will not touch.
Antibiotics for life-saving measures such as sepsis and pneumonia? Yes, please!
But to take antibiotics after 2 days of uncomfortability? That can cause more damage in the long run than good in the present.
Once the gut is in good working order, you can start letting that beneficial bacteria protect you from the harmful bacteria and prevent that respiratory infection from even happening. If prevention doesn’t occur, our body has line after line after line of defense to knock out whatever is going on. But then again, we live in a society where we need to ‘get back to work,’ kids get sick and can’t go back to school until they’re 48 hours symptom-free, etc. So we’re damned if we do, damned if we don’t!
I could go on and on, per usual, but I think this is a good place to stop for this post. I know I didn’t include everything on this subject—I’m pretty sure that’s impossible. Just know I’m always open for questions if you have them and I will answer them the best I can!
In the meantime, think prevention. Eat real food. And most importantly, take care of your literal shit.
Cheers,
Katie
References
1. Audo, R., Sanchez, P., Rivière, B., Mielle, J., Tan, J., Lukas, C., Macia, L., Morel, J., & Immediato Daien, C. (2022). Rheumatoid arthritis is associated with increased gut permeability and bacterial translocation which are reversed by inflammation control. Rheumatology (Oxford, England). https://doi-org.uws.idm.oclc.org/10.1093/rheumatology/keac454. Retrieved on October 19, 2022 from: https://uws.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=mdc&AN=35947472&site=ehost-live
2. Bakshi, S., Paswan, V. K., Yadav, S. P., Bhinchhar, B. K., Kharkwal, S., Rose, H., Kanetkar, P., Kumar, V., Al-Zamani, Z. A. S., & Bunkar, D. S. (2023). A comprehensive review on infant formula: nutritional and functional constituents, recent trends in processing and its impact on infants’ gut microbiota. Frontiers in Nutrition, 10, 1194679. https://doi-org.uws.idm.oclc.org/10.3389/fnut.2023.1194679
3. Burokas, A., Arboleya, S., Moloney, R. D., Peterson, V. L., Murphy, K., Clarke, G., Stanton, C., Dinan, T. G., & Cryan, J. F. (2017). Targeting the Microbiota-Gut-Brain Axis: Prebiotics Have Anxiolytic and Antidepressant-like Effects and Reverse the Impact of Chronic Stress in Mice. Biological psychiatry, 82(7), 472–487. https://doi-org.uws.idm.oclc.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2016.12.031
4. de Waal, G. M., de Villiers, W. J. S., Forgan, T., Roberts, T., & Pretorius, E. (2020). Colorectal cancer is associated with increased circulating lipopolysaccharide, inflammation and hypercoagulability. Scientific Reports, 10(1), 8777. https://doi-org.uws.idm.oclc.org/10.1038/s41598-020-65324-2. Retrieved on October 19, 2022 from: https://uws.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=mdc&AN=32472080&site=ehost-live
5. Harvard Health (2016). Can gut bacteria improve your health?. https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/can-gut-bacteria-improve-your-health#:~:text=About%20100%20trillion%20bacteria%2C%20both%20good,and%20bad%2C%20live%20inside%20your%20digestive%20system
6. Perlmutter, D. Brain maker: The power of gut microbes to heal and protect your brain – for life. London: Yellow Kite; 2017.
7. Porro, M., Kundrotaite, E., Mellor, D. D., & Munialo, C. D. (2023). A narrative review of the functional components of human breast milk and their potential to modulate the gut microbiome, the consideration of maternal and child characteristics, and confounders of breastfeeding, and their impact on risk of obesity later in life. Nutrition Reviews, 81(5), 597–609. https://doi-org.uws.idm.oclc.org/10.1093/nutrit/nuac072
8. Saavedra, J. M., & Tschernia, A. (2002). Human studies with probiotics and prebiotics: clinical implications. The British journal of nutrition, 87 Suppl 2, S241–S246. https://doi-org.uws.idm.oclc.org/10.1079/BJNBJN/2002543
9. Vulevic, J., Juric, A., Tzortzis, G., & Gibson, G. R. (2013). A mixture of trans-galactooligosaccharides reduces markers of metabolic syndrome and modulates the fecal microbiota and immune function of overweight adults. The Journal of Nutrition, 143(3), 324–331. https://doi-org.uws.idm.oclc.org/10.3945/jn.112.166132
