How To Improve Gut Health Naturally

Ready to feel your best from the inside out? Start by giving your gut some love! Simply put, taking care of your gut is one of the most impactful things you can do for your overall wellbeing.

They say health starts in the gut, and we couldn’t agree more. Our gastrointestinal (GI) systems are not only central to the digestion of food, but they also significantly impact the body’s immune system, nervous system and more.

Here we’ll explore the science behind gut health and offer practical tips and strategies you can incorporate into your daily routine to help nourish, improve and maintain your digestive system. .

What Is the “Gut?”

When it comes to gut health, it’s important to think beyond just your stomach or your large intestine (also called the colon). In fact, the ‘gut’ is a term that includes several organs and structures that work together to digest and absorb nutrients – your stomach, small intestine, large intestine and the rectum. 

One of the key aspects of the gut is that it holds the microbiome — a collection of trillions of bacteria and various microorganisms. The makeup, balance and harmony of these microscopic “bugs” are what gut health truly hinges on. 

There are good bacteria and bad bacteria, and the ultimate goal of maintaining optimal gut health is to have good gut microbiota dominating the digestive tract, leading to a healthy gut microbiome. 

Why Is the Gut Microbiome Important?

Your digestive system plays a vital role in your overall health and wellbeing. Specifically, the health of your gut microbes has far-reaching effects throughout your body. Let’s explore some of the key ways in which your gut health impacts your full-body health. 

Digestion and Nutrient Absorption

Every piece of food you eat passes through all components of the gut. The beneficial bacteria in your GI tract helps to break down these foods into nutrients that your body can absorb and use.

A poorly functioning gut microbiome can lead to malabsorption, nutrient deficiencies and potentially bloating, irritable bowel syndrome and inflammatory bowel disease.

Immune System Function

Our immune systems help us fight off outside intruders like viruses and bad bacteria. They comprise a vast network of cells that communicate with each other to locate and rid the body of unwanted outsiders. 

So how does the gut impact the immune system? Many of the cells that make up the immune system live within the gut. They are “trained” and supported by the bacteria that make up the gut microbiome. When the good strains of bacteria are thriving, the immune system can do its job.

Mood and Mental Wellbeing

It’s not just your physical health that depends on a healthy gut — your mental health is intimately connected as well. Recent studies have uncovered a complex network of communication between the gut and the brain, or the gut-brain axis, revealing a powerful connection that can impact everything from your stress levels to the quality of your sleep.

Many neurotransmitters that the neurons in our brains use to talk to each other, like serotonin and dopamine, are produced and regulated by the bacteria of the microbiome. 

How Can I Improve Gut Health Naturally?

Let’s take a look at some effective strategies to naturally balance gut bacteria and achieve a healthy microbiome:

Eat Different Types of Foods

There is a strong correlation between solid gut health and a highly diverse microbiome. The microbiome thrives when it has many different strains of bacteria co-existing and serving different purposes — some may be good at breaking down a specific type of food, while some may be good at supporting immune cells.

To diversify your gut microbiome, make sure you're eating a wide variety of different types of healthy foods each day. As a general rule, you should strive for a balanced diet with lots of veggies and whole foods for weight loss and other health care benefits. 

Prioritize Foods High in Fiber

Your gut cannot digest fiber, which is a type of carbohydrate found in certain foods. However, many strains of healthy bacteria in the microbiome feed on fiber as it passes through, helping them to grow stronger. 

Some of the best sources of fiber include:

• Apples
• Wholegrains
• Bananas
• Beans
• Quinoa
• Lentils
• Legumes
• Chickpeas
• Broccoli
• Artichokes
• Raspberries

Consume Fermented Foods

Fermentation is a process in which yeast or bacteria break down sugars in foods, creating a high concentration of probiotics. Probiotics are beneficial strains of bacteria that, when consumed, help to fortify the gut microbiome.

 Below are some examples of common probiotic-rich foods:

• Plain, unsweetened yogurt or coconut yoghurt 
• Sauerkraut
• Kimchi
• Kefir
• Kombucha
• Tempeh

The probiotics found in fermented foods not only introduce good bacteria in your gut, but they also fight off bad strains of bacteria in your gut.

Consume Prebiotic Foods

Probiotics introduce and seed good bacteria into your gut, while prebioticsfeed those healthy strains of bacteria and help them grow stronger. The specific type of bacteria that prebiotics are often linked to is called Bifidobacteria. 

Prebiotics are mainly fiber or complex carbohydrates in foods such as whole grains, bananas, onions, garlic, and soybeans.

Avoid Processed Foods

While some foods impact your gut health in a positive way, there are also many foods in the modern Western diet that can impact your gut health negatively. 

Processes often contain high amounts of artificial sweeteners, oils and unhealthy fats. These substances counter the effects of probiotics, promoting the growth of bad bacteria and throwing off the balance of good bacteria. 

Exercise Regularly

When you exercise daily, you drastically increase blood flow and blood supply to the gut area. This helps digestion by promoting peristalsis, which is the contraction of intestinal muscles that move food through the gut. 

Aiding digestion in this way takes some pressure off the bacteria, allowing them to rest and regenerate.

Improve Sleep

When you sleep, you give the good strains of bacteria in your gut a chance to rest as well. When the bacteria aren’t working, they can better regenerate and self-balance — this is why sleep is such an important part of cultivating gut health. 

Gut bacteria also thrive on rhythms and cycles, so keeping a consistent sleep schedule will help support a healthy and diverse microbiome.

Stay Hydrated

Drinking enough water is crucial if you want to consistent and healthy bowel movements. The intestines need hydration to move the food through your body — when they don’t get it, it can lead to constipation, which can throw off the balance of the gut microbiome.

Limit Alcohol Consumption

While your gut can usually handle and recover from occasional consumption of alcohol, drinking too much or too often wipes out good bacteria, such as lactobacilli, in your gut.

Avoid Antibiotic Use

Your gut health is a delicate balance, and unfortunately, antibiotics can play a part in disrupting that balance. While they may be necessary in certain situations, it’s important to approach them with caution and only use them when truly needed. By working with your doctor to explore alternative treatment options and taking steps to support your gut health, before, during and after a course of antibiotics, you can help minimize the damage and protect your gut health. 

Antibiotics are great at killing the target infection-causing bacteria in your body. But at the same time, they also can kill many beneficial bacteria in your body, weakening the state of your gut microbiome as a side-effect.

Use Probiotic Supplements

Another popular option to boost gut health is supplementing with a probiotic product. They usually come in capsule form and contain healthy strains of bacteria introduced into your gut when you take them.

Probiotic supplements are especially helpful when you cannot incorporate enough fermented foods into your daily diet. For example, if you have type 2 Diabetes and need to monitor blood sugar, supplements can help you get the probiotics you need.

How JSHealth Vitamins Can Support Your Gut

If you need a boost to your gut health and are considering incorporating a supplement into your daily wellness routine, our probiotic formula is a great option. The shelf-stable capsules contain a blend of key ingredients that nourish your body from the inside out.

The backbone of our probiotic is two highly beneficial strains of bacteria — Bifidobacterium Lactis and Bifidobacterium Longum. They set the stage for healthy digestion, support immune system function and can soothe occasional constipation, all while building a good bacterial balance in your gut.

Our probiotic capsules, along with all JSHealth Vitamins products, are vegan, non-GMO, dairy-free, gluten-free and nut-free.

Why JSHealth Vitamins Is Different

Today, the probiotic supplement market can be difficult to navigate — often, it feels like there are too many options and a lot of conflicting information.

Our team of health experts at JSHealth Vitamins have assembled a probiotic containing all the essential elements. In addition, we’ve made our formula shelf-stable, allowing for utmost convenience. Unlike the JSHealth Vitamins probiotic, many probiotic brands require their capsules to remain refrigerated to maintain potency and effectiveness.

JSHealth Vitamins is committed to a holistic approach to health and wellness. We take great care in sourcing the highest quality ingredients and ensure that each of our targeted formulas is effective in its indications.

Improving Gut Health Naturally

Good gut health is a key component in good overall health. Not only does the gut allow you to extract essential nutrients from food, but it also plays a big part in regulating your immune system and nervous system. Fortunately, there are several natural ways to positively impact your gut microbiome, including supplementing with probiotics.

JSHealth Vitamins’ probiotic formula is the perfect choice if you want to jumpstart your gut health regimen today.

Sources:

The Brain-Gut Connection | Johns Hopkins Medicine

Fermented foods for better gut health | Harvard Health Publishing

Research Says Exercise Also Improves Your Gut Bacteria | Healthline