Blueberries and gut health
In our day to day lives, we spend so much time avoiding bacteria. What a lot of people don’t realise is that some bacteria are actually good for you. Inside of us lives a place called our Gut Microbiome, which is literally filled with trillions of microorganisms made up of mainly bacteria, viruses and fungi. These little guys are found in your digestive system, predominately inside your intestinal tract. In fact, these microbes weigh as much as 1-2kg, and function as an extra organ in your body and holds 10 times more bacteria than all the human cells in the body. It’s home to over 1,000 known diverse bacterial species.
Grossed out yet? Don’t be. These microbes are super important and positively play a huge role in your health. They are not to be avoided.
How does the gut microbiome affect your body?
Around 2,500 years ago, Ancient Greek physician Hippocrates – the father of modern medicine – made a bold statement: “all disease begins in the gut”. He wasn’t far off from being right! Without the gut microbiome, it would be very difficult for us to survive.
Research over the past two decades has revealed that gut health has been found to be intricately linked with the development of a wide range of diseases including diabetes, depression, obesity, eczema, autoimmune diseases, rheumatoid arthritis, suppressed immunity, chronic fatigue syndrome, and mental health concerns, to name a few.
Although we are only beginning to understand to what extent our gut microbiome has a role in human health and disease, we do know it plays a vital role in so many things. It promotes digestive function, helps to regulate our metabolism, and accounts for around 80 percent of our body's immune response.
Signs of an unhealthy gut
There are many signs and ways an unhealthy gut may show itself. Here are the most common signs:
- Upset stomach and leaky gut
Signs such as bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea, cravings for sugar, skin rashes, anxiety and depression can all be signs of an unhealthy gut.
When the bacteria in your gut are not kept healthy, the lining of your gut can become damaged. This can cause undigested food particles, bacteria, and toxic waste products called endotoxins to “leak” through and enter your bloodstream. When this happens, an autoimmune response in the body can trigger inflammatory and allergic reactions such as migraines, irritable bowel, eczema, and chronic fatigue.
When the gut leaks, your body is unable to absorb essential nutrients which can lead to hormonal imbalances, unstable blood sugar levels, and a weakened immune system.
Leaky gut is caused by your diet and exposure to certain medications over long periods of time. It can be healed through changing your diet and eliminating the foods that your body treats as toxic and adding foods that repair your leaky gut.
- Sugar cravings
Research has discovered that gut bacteria actually secrete substances that are similar to the hormones leptin and ghrelin, which regulate our hunger. These substances affect both your food cravings and mood. When you consume a diet full of sugar, you are feeding the unhelpful bacteria that thrive on it, and they secrete more of these substances that in turn increase your sugar cravings even more.
- Anxiety and depression
The gut microbiome of individuals who suffer from depression and anxiety have been found to show a different profile of gut microbiota than healthy people. Depression and anxiety are not just mental disorders – a lot of the time, the leading cause is from brain dysfunction, immune system regulation, and disturbances in stress hormones. Research has found that the gut microbiome plays a vital role in immunity, hormonal balance, and nervous system function.
It has been found that when there are imbalances in the gut microbiome, conditions associated with anxiety and depression are created. Things such as excess cortisol (a stress hormone), cytokines (regulate immunity), serotonin (neurotransmitters associated with depression), and GABA levels (a brain chemical involved in calming anxiety) are all created to contribute to anxiety and depression.
- Food intolerances
Food intolerances are not to be confused with food allergies - that is caused by an immune system reaction to certain foods. Food intolerances are the result of difficulty digesting certain foods and are thought to be caused by the poor quality of bacteria in the gut. When we have difficulty digesting certain foods, symptoms such as bloating, gas, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and nausea are clear signs of an unhealthy gut.
- Skin problems
Skin irritation and conditions like eczema are related to a damaged gut. This can be caused by a poor diet or food allergies that further contribute to a “leaky gut” as mentioned earlier.
- Sleep disturbances or constant fatigue
Gut damage can impair your ability to sleep well. Serotonin is the hormone that affects mood and sleep and is produced mainly in the gut. When our gut is unhealthy, it can often lead to insomnia or poor sleep, which over time can contribute to chronic fatigue.
How to nourish your gut health
Although it is not always possible to completely restore the gut microbiome and damaged intestinal barrier to its most optimal healthy state if it is extremely damaged due to illnesses and infection, it is always possible to improve it.
- Avoid foods that irritate the gut
You know your body more than anyone. Think about how you feel when you eat particular foods and avoid or eliminate those foods that cause you discomfort. Foods like sugar, gluten, dairy, and alcohol are extremely common for gut irritation.
- Manage your stress
High stress levels are hard on your body as a whole, including your gut. Lowering your stress levels through physical activity, meditation, relaxation, laughing with friends and family, reducing caffeine intake, and doing things you enjoy can all help you to take control of your stress levels.
- Eat fermented foods and a lot of fibre
High fibre foods such as kumara, pumpkin, whole grains, oats, bananas, blueberries, asparagus, beans and legumes all have positive impacts on gut health.
Fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, tempeh, and kefir are great natural sources of probiotics. The benefits of their wellbeing on the gut have been well studied and proven to have many benefits in restoring gut microbiome to its optimal state.
- Take supplementary gut support like prebiotics and probiotics
Adding either into your diet is a great place to start improving your gut health. Prebiotics supply food for the good bacteria, probiotics. Pairing it with the right diet can ensure you are feeding the beneficial bacteria in your gut so they can live, thrive, and restore your gut health.
Blueberries for gut health
Blueberries are packed full of anthocyanin which has been proven to improve the health of the gut by improving the integrity of the gastrointestinal tract and reducing the leaking of endotoxins into the blood. A study was conducted to see the benefits of consuming blueberry powder (HYPERLINK TO PRODUCT PAGE) with reducing damage to the gut microbiome. It was shown to boost levels of certain bacteria in the gut, reducing inflammation and insulin sensitivity.
They are also extremely high in fibre, which is the best source of food for promoting the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut microbiome.