6 reasons why you should listen to your Gut.

Do you ever get that gut feeling? 

Our gut is responsible for putting our body into working order. 

As it breaks down the foods we eat, the gut absorbs the nutrients that support our body’s daily functions from skin and mental health to hormone balance, energy production, and even toxin and waste elimination.

Did you know the gut is home to around 70% of the immune system?

Therefore making sure our digestive system is in top condition is very important to address many of our issues.

How do we translate our gut feelings into health solutions?

Although your gut can't actually talk, its functions do communicate with us in a form of code. From silence to moaning about hunger and certain bathroom habits, we discuss 6 main issues that could be affecting your daily tummy troubles.

Discover what’s really going on inside...

Research suggests that processed foods can cause inflammation in the lining of your GI tract, which is where food get absorbed.

The gut can not always recognise what you’ve eaten as digestible food and therefore treats foods with artificial ingredients as an intruder.

This often causes an inflammatory response in which our bodies are literally fighting those artificial foods as if they were an infection. 

By consuming more whole foods, such as whole fruits, veggies, and unprocessed meats, we can avoid the different forms of stress this has on our body.

Average bowel movements can occur three times a week to three times a day. Each gut is different, but a healthy gut often has a pattern. 

It should take around 24 to 72 hours for your food to move through your digestive tract. Food doesn't get to your large intestine/colon until after 6-8 hours, so it's normal to visit the toilet after that.

If your schedule seems slightly off, you could actually be constipated. Constipation can have triggers, low fibre and dehydration to thyroid issues, but your best option is to always check your diet first. Make sure you’re staying hydrated and consume enough fruits and vegetables.

If you’re not popping to the loo regularly, you could be hanging onto foods you consumed days or even weeks ago. Having built up waste 'sticking' around longer then it should can mean it putrefies in your body longer, which has potential causes of bad gas and other health issues.

A popular treatment for clearing backed up waste, getting back on schedule and overall digestive health is Colonic Irrigation.

Scientific evidence clearly shows that gluten increases intestinal permeability / leaky gut. 

This means that the particles from undigested food and waste, and pathogens such as bacteria, can pass through the affected lining of your gut, enter your bloodstream, and can cause inflammation and chronic illness.

The best way know if gluten is bad for you is to eliminate it from your diet completely for at least 4 weeks and then see what your gut thinks when you try to consume it again.

Always remember to read ingredient lists/labels. Wheat can be found in a lot of unsuspecting foods (as a binder or filler, etc.), so always be vigilant with your groceries.

When we take antibiotics, we often need to help our gut make new friendly bacteria again.

Unfortunately, antibiotics wipe out all bacteria, including the positive bacteria known as probiotics.

Prebiotics, like garlic, asparagus, onions, and bananas, play an alternative role from probiotics. They’re dietary fibres that feed our good bacteria, help strengthen the microbiome, and avoid the negative effects of an unbalanced gut flora.

The food we eat has a serious impact on our daily mood. When the digestive system is affected, our bodies can under-produce neurotransmitters, like serotonin.

Did you know 95 percent of serotonin is produced in the small intestine?

Low serotonin levels are closely linked to depression, anxiety and other mental health issues.

It may not be the case for everyone, but cleaning up your diet can specifically clear brain fog, optimise energy, and reduce sadness.

If you haven’t heard or felt a response from your gut in a while, and you’re eliminating correctly, and haven’t had any bloating or random abdominal pain, you’re more than likely doing fine. 

If the gut could talk, it would thank us for keeping it nourished and healthy, especially for creating an environment that is stress free, controlling your daily stress levels is one of the best ways to optimise gut health, so sit back, relax and look after your insides!