A complex microbiome, your gut is a rich ecosystem that houses trillions of bacteria - the good, the bad, and the ugly. You might even be surprised to learn there are more bacteria in your gut than there are cells in your entire body! A bustling city of microscopic “bugs,” our gut microbiome is originally determined by our DNA. With exposure to microorganisms during birth (c-section or vaginal delivery) and through the mother’s breast milk we continue to develop our unique microbiome. As we grow up, environmental factors and diet also change the composition of our gut. Although there are many contributing factors that compose our gut microbiota, nutrition is one way you can actively influence (and change) your gut health.
As it turns out, the old-adage is true! You are what you eat. If we want to have a vibrant, healthy body, we must consume foods that contribute to the biodiversity of bacteria in our gut. Less biodiversity in our gut is linked to autoimmune disease, diabetes, and neurodegenerative disorders, as well as mood and anxiety disorders. This is because poor eating habits prohibit your body from getting the necessary nutrients it needs to stay healthy.
In relation to the gut, eating poorly also damages and even negatively alters the composition of the gut microbiome. This makes it very difficult for the body to breakdown nutrients properly. Without proper nutrients, your body struggles to repair, rejuvenate, and maintain healthy functioning. So, if you eat fatty, processed, artificial foods, it is unsurprising that your overall health suffers as well. One fascinating discovery recently revealed that gut microbiomes might even impact the severity of COVID-19 symptoms. The study found that individuals with a healthier gut were less likely to experience severe symptoms caused by the COVID-19 virus!
Benefits of a Healthy Gut
The gut microbiome is an incredible indicator of overall health, and a healthy gut has tremendous benefits. Some of these benefits include strong immunity response, improved digestion and gastrointestinal issues, reduced inflammation, lower blood sugar, and decreased risk of diabetes, heart disease, and other chronic diseases. Nutrition and a healthy gut microbiome also shows immediate results such as increased energy, improved sleep, clearer skin, and weight loss! One study found that when a microbiome from an obese patient was passed to a lean mouse, the mouse started gaining weight (without a change in diet). This is one of many experiments that highlight the impact of our gut microbiome.
There is much research to support the fact that a healthy gut microbiome leads to better long-term physical health. There is also evidence to suggest gut health contributes to better mental clarity and improved emotional wellbeing. Have you ever noticed that you feel nauseous or sick when something stressful happens? Have you every felt dizzy or get butterflies in your stomach when you are nervous or overwhelmed? This is due to the incredible relationship between the brain and the gut–our emotions influence gut health, and vis versa. According to one study, exposure to stress results in alterations of the brain-gut interactions leading to the development of gastrointestinal disorders including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and other functional gastrointestinal diseases, food antigen-related adverse responses, peptic ulcer, and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
How to Improve your Microbiome
The good news is that research confirms nutritional intake from diet alters the human gut microbiome, which means there is still an opportunity to make a positive change! In one study, several healthy individuals were fed either a plant-based or animal-based diet for five days. Within the first few days of this experiment, changes in microbial gene expression and community structure were observed. When the participants stopped the diets, their gut microbiota quickly changed in response. This is reassuring because it proves that a change in diet can result in a changed microbiome (for the better!).
Nutrition is key to positively change your gut microbiome. Here is a list of nutritional rules to live by if you want to improve and maintain a healthy gut microbiome:
- Avoid artificial sweeteners, red meat, processed foods, and alcohol.
- Sweeteners like aspartame stimulate the growth of dangerous bacteria, like Enterobacteriaceae, in the gut. Excessive alcohol consumption is linked to intestinal inflammation, heartburn, and other gastrointestinal issues that negatively affect the microbiome.
- Eat a wide variety of vegetables, legumes, and whole grains.
- A diverse range of foods promotes the growth of healthy Bifidobacteria. Some studies even suggest a vegetarian diet may improve gut health because of high levels of prebiotic fiber.
- Incorporate more fermented foods.
- Fermented foods contain healthy bacteria, mainly Lactobacilli, and can reduce the amount of disease-causing species in the gut. Sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, miso, and yogurt (without lots of added sugars) are all great probiotic-packed options to add to your diet.
- Enjoy more healthy fats and lean proteins.
- Nuts and avocado are great sources of healthy fat. Chicken and fish are both excellent lean protein options as well!
- Avoid unnecessary use of antibiotics.
- Although antibiotics are sometimes the best option for certain medical conditions, they can damage the gut microbiome. Therefore, it is important to avoid over-using them and discuss possible alternatives.
Conclusion
Science continues to support the intricate relationship between nutrition and gut health. Fortunately, simple attention to nutrition and ways to diversify your diet can dramatically improve gut health. So, if you are looking for ways to improve overall health, nutrition for a healthy gut is a great place to start!
References
Alvaro, E., Andrieux, C., Rochet, V., Rigottier-Gois, L., Lepercq, P., Sutren, M., Galan, P., Duval, Y., Juste, C., & Doré, J. (2007). Composition and metabolism of the intestinal microbiota in consumers and non-consumers of yogurt. The British journal of nutrition, 97(1), 126–133. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0007114507243065
David, L. A., Maurice, C. F., Carmody, R. N., Gootenberg, D. B., Button, J. E., Wolfe, B. E., Ling, A. V., Devlin, A. S., Varma, Y., Fischbach, M. A., Biddinger, S. B., Dutton, R. J., & Turnbaugh, P. J. (2014). Diet rapidly and reproducibly alters the human gut microbiome. Nature, 505(7484), 559–563. https://doi.org/10.1038/nature12820
Dahl, W. J., Rivero Mendoza, D., & Lambert, J. M. (2020). Diet, nutrients and the microbiome. Progress in molecular biology and translational science, 171, 237–263. https://doi.org/10.1016/bs.pmbts.2020.04.006
Dudek-Wicher, R. K., Junka, A., & Bartoszewicz, M. (2018). The influence of antibiotics and dietary components on gut microbiota. Przeglad gastroenterologiczny, 13(2), 85–92. https://doi.org/10.5114/pg.2018.76005
Ferraris, C., Elli, M., & Tagliabue, A. (2020). Gut Microbiota for Health: How Can Diet Maintain A Healthy Gut Microbiota?. Nutrients, 12(11), 3596. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12113596
Heiman, M. L., & Greenway, F. L. (2016). A healthy gastrointestinal microbiome is dependent on dietary diversity. Molecular metabolism, 5(5), 317–320. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molmet.2016.02.005
Konturek, P. C., Brzozowski, T., & Konturek, S. J. (2011). Stress and the gut: pathophysiology, clinical consequences, diagnostic approach and treatment options. Journal of physiology and pharmacology : an official journal of the Polish Physiological Society, 62(6), 591–599.
Lew, L.-C. and Liong, M.-T. (2013), Bioactives from probiotics for dermal health: functions and benefits. J Appl Microbiol, 114: 1241-1253. https://doi.org/10.1111/jam.12137
Palmnäs, M. S., Cowan, T. E., Bomhof, M. R., Su, J., Reimer, R. A., Vogel, H. J., Hittel, D. S., & Shearer, J. (2014). Low-dose aspartame consumption differentially affects gut microbiota-host metabolic interactions in the diet-induced obese rat. PloS one, 9(10), e109841. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0109841
Ridaura, V. K., Faith, J. J., Rey, F. E., Cheng, J., Duncan, A. E., Kau, A. L., Griffin, N. W., Lombard, V., Henrissat, B., Bain, J. R., Muehlbauer, M. J., Ilkayeva, O., Semenkovich, C. F., Funai, K., Hayashi, D. K., Lyle, B. J., Martini, M. C., Ursell, L. K., Clemente, J. C., Van Treuren, W., … Gordon, J. I. (2013). Gut microbiota from twins discordant for obesity modulate metabolism in mice. Science (New York, N.Y.), 341(6150), 1241214. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1241214
Ursell, L.K., et al. Defining the Human Microbiome. Nutr Rev. 2012 Aug; 70(Suppl 1): S38–S44.
Yeoh YK, Zuo T, Lui GC, et alGut microbiota composition reflects disease severity and dysfunctional immune responses in patients with COVID-19Gut 2021;70:698-706.
