Why is it that over the past couple of years Gut Health has become such a big topic of conversation?
As we study and learn more about our Digestive System, we find that it is seemingly more important than ever.
Not only does it help break down food and absorb the nutrients that are in those foods...
But it plays a role in immune health, hormone production, and overall health.
With our Gut Health playing such a vital role in our daily lives, we want to make sure it is working optimally!
So, how do we protect it and keep it functioning properly?
I’m going to outline some of the best lifestyle changes we can make daily...
Along with specific ingredients and supplements to look for when improving Gut Health.
Exercise
I know what you’re thinking … how can working out help the gut?
However, research has shown that a regular routine of exercising improves gut health.
It improves your Gut Microbiome (Microorganisms that live in the gut).
Which in turn, can improve your immune system...
Since approximately 80% of your immune system lives in your gut.
Now, working out is amazing, but you know that old saying, “you are what you eat”?
That is definitely true when it comes to the health of your gut.
So don’t think you can out work a bad diet...
Which brings me to my next point...
What to Eat to Improve Gut Health
When it comes to your digestive system, what you eat has a huge impact.
Focusing on a few key things can aid in the health of your gut.
Increase the amount of whole grains, fruits, veggies, legumes, and beans in your daily diet.
These contain high amounts of fiber, which is not only great for regulating digestion...
But they are prebiotics, meaning they are fantastic food sources that feed probiotics.
A probiotic is a living microorganism In the gut. It’s basically a GOOD gut bacteria.
When we have a high amount of probiotics in our digestive tract, it will function optimally.
A properly functioning digestive tract helps increase the rate at which we can absorb the nutrients from the foods we consume.
Polyphenols are compounds found in plants that also contribute to gut health.
Foods such as blueberries, almonds, broccoli, and onions are all good sources.
These can have a positive effect on the balance of our good and bad bacteria in the gut.
Lastly, consuming a diverse range of foods, including fermented foods, can help your gut.
In most cases, we commonly eat similar foods day to day, which limits the diversity of our gut microbiome.
If we include a variety of whole foods in our diet, we may increase that diversity.
Along with eating fermented foods, like yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, kefir, tempeh, and kombucha.
Eating foods that are fermented and high in probiotics is not always convenient though.
This is where certain ingredients and products come in to play to help increase the health of your digestive system!
What Ingredients and Products Can Help Your Gut?
Not only did the topic of gut health become popular over the past few years, but so did the production of supplements.
There are some really good supplements out there to aid in overall gut health.
First is a high-quality probiotic supplement. Look for a supplement with a variety of strands and a high quantity of CFU’s.
CFU stands for Colony Forming Units, and you want the product to be “shelf-stable”, since we need the probiotics to be alive in order to get the benefits.
Our probiotic here at 1st Phorm is a great example of what to look for in a probiotic supplement.
Supplementing with this can help with bloating, gas or diarrhea, sugar cravings, and more.
Other products will contain specific ingredients that can also aid in gut health.
Things such as:
L-Glutamine
Licorice Root
Quercetin Anhydrous
Slippery Elm Bark
Dimethylglycine
Aloe Vera
Marshmallow Root
These ingredients have been shown to help with gut health, aid in healing the intestinal lining, and soothing the GI tract.
Now, do you need every single one to increase the health of your gut? No...
However, that is why we made it easy for you and put all these together when we created GI Advantage.
GI Advantage can aid in reducing bloating, heartburn, upset stomach, leaky gut, or other issues within the GI tract.
Lastly, there is something to be said about just breaking down the food we eat more efficiently.
Our bodies produce enzymes that have the sole purpose of breaking down the food we eat.
Sometimes we may need a little extra help though, which is where a supplement that contains these enzymes comes in.
This can lead to a higher absorption of the nutrients that are in the foods we eat.
Knowing that people struggle with this, we developed multiple products that contain digestive enzymes.
Our product, Digestive Enzymes, has a variety of enzymes to help our body break down the foods we eat.
This can aid in bloating, nutrient absorption, and even immune function.
In addition, we also have Opti-Greens 50.
Not only does Opti-Greens 50 have a digestive enzyme blend, it also has a probiotic blend. With this combo you will break down food and actually absorb the nutrients better.
This can help alleviate bloating, absorb nutrients better, improve digestion, and help boost your immune system.
In closing, you can’t outwork a bad diet, and gut health plays a vital role in how we feel on a day to day basis.
This in turn will affect how we perform, and our ability to reach our goals.
When facing any issues with your gut, you should make healthy lifestyle changes.
Then along with those changes, you can look into proper supplementation!
Here at 1st Phorm we believe in trying to fix the underlying issues and provide real solutions.
Our fully NASM Certified staff is always here to help and answer any questions you may have.
