Look after your gut
To coincide with gut week this week, we've decided to provide you with all the information that you need to know about what happens in there and how you can treat it the best way, with getting nothing but benefits for yourself.
With the help of registered dietician and nutritionist Dr Sarah Schenker we have the information to show you just how much of a crucial part your gut plays in keeping you healthy and what goes on in there.
Far from being a simple tube devoted to digestion, the human gut is the largest immune organ in the body. It's an extremely complex living system which plays a major role in helping to defend the body from external challenges.
To help stay healthy, the number of beneficial bacteria need to prevail and under normal circumstances these friendly bacteria far outnumber the bad.
However, a small shift in the balance can allow the growth of a potentially pathogenic baterica, which may effect how well the gut functions. This bacteria can lead to bloating, stomach cramps and a change in the consistency and smell of faeces. These symptoms are often confused with 'picking up a stomach bug' or a bout of food poisoning.
Comsuming probiotic dairy products, such as yogurts and yogurt drinks is one of the most effective ways to boost levels of good bacteria in the gut. There are loads available, but you must ensure that they contain large numbers of live bacteria that already occur naturally in the gut.
"The health benefits of probiotics have been known for several decades in South Asia," says professor Jeya Henry, registered Public Health Nutritionist and Fellow of The Institute of Food Science and Technology.
"It is a welcome sign that the Western Worl now recognises the important role that probiotics may play in enhancing the immune system. The fusion of such scientific ideas epitomises the globalisation of science."
A well balanced diet and healthy lifestyle are important in boosting levels of friendly bacteria in the gut. For example, research shows that a varied diet that includes a good probiotic product could be the best way to improve the immune system's ability to protect the bosy from infection.
Ensuring the gut environment is able to create beneficial bacteria can be achieved by:
Eating foods containing prebiotics: leeks, bananas, artichokes, garlic and Bimuno supplements
Eating foods containing vitamin C: orange juice, kiwis and peppers
Eating foods containing vitamin E: olive oil, whole grains, almonds
Include probiotics in your diet: drink a probiotic yogurt daily, like Actimel
Top 3 myths surrounding your gut
Problems with your gut are the cause of bad breath
You should not swim immediately after eating
Ulcers in the gut are caused by stress
Top 3 truths surrounding your gut
The gut is home to much of the immune system
If flattened, the gut is the same size as a football field
It is the easiest entry point for pathogens in the body
What's the difference between pro and pre Biotics?
Probiotic foods contain living beneficial bacteria. As part of a healthy diet they help boost the natural population of health - protecting gut bacteria in your body. The most commonly used probiotics in food products come from two groups of bacteria - Lactobacillus or Bifidobacterium
Prebiotic foods contain oligofructose and inulin which are dietary fibres which cannot be digested in the small intestines, but can stimulate the growth and activity of strains of bacteria in the large intestines. If you consume them as part of a healthy diet it helps feed the good bacteria in the digestive tract