Gut Health

Hi,

It’s Martha.

In my first blog post, I will be looking at the gut.

The gut has recently become an emerging area of science. Why the sudden interest in the gut, you may ask? Research has shown that 70% to 80% of our immune system is held in the gut. That is huge, because your ability to ward off disease and stay healthy is connected to having a healthy gut. If other words, if your gut in unhealthy, you are more prone to become sick.

The extensive lining in your digestive system serves as a barrier, to control what is absorbed into the blood stream. When it is compromised, then the potential for partially digested food and toxins to penetrate tissues is very high and the results can be disastrous.

These things can compromise the gut:

• anti-biotics
• stress
• a high-sugar diet
• a low-fibre diet.
• drinking too much alcohol
• lack of regular physical activity
• cigarette smoking

They can change the composition and diversity of the gut, and have been linked to weight gain, inflammation, and insulin resistance.

Symptoms of an unhealthy gut include:

• stomach upset (bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, heartburn)
• inflammation (where the body fights itself rather than foreign invaders
• hormone imbalance

Next time, I’ll be sharing on how to care for/heal your gut, so see you then.

Marta For Life (MFL)