Chances are you already know that looking after your gut is key to transforming your overall health and wellbeing. Gut health is linked to a whole host of benefits, ranging from how you look and feel, to how well your immune and cardiovascular systems function. But, what does good gut health really mean? And what steps can you take to get there?
Many different factors affect your gut health, and when it’s running smoothly, your gut and how well your digestive system is functioning probably hasn’t demanded much attention. When your gut is healthy, your digestive system is able to break down food into useful nutrients and get rid of any waste with ease. Signs that your gut is functioning well include regular, pain free bowel movements, with limited gas, bloating and digestive discomfort.
The good news is that when things become unbalanced, your gut will let you know that it needs your attention. The most obvious signs of poor gut health include pain and bloating, followed by changes in your stool pattern and consistency. Others can be less obvious, such as feeling low on energy, changes in your mood and also your skin health.
Following The Institute for Functional Medicine’s 5R gut health framework can help you kickstart your digestive health, improve your wellbeing and relieve the symptoms of an unhealthy gut.
Remove The first step in restoring a healthy gut is to refocus on stressors, and remove anything that is negatively affecting the environment of the digestive system. This includes identifying and removing foods that cause gut irritation such as allergic foods, high sugar and highly processed food and also high amounts of alcohol. It also involves removing potentially problematic bacteria and yeast. This can be achieved with the help of antimicrobial ingredients, including caprylic acid, oregano, garlic and thyme.
Replenish After removing gut health stressors, the next step is to replace digestive enzymes. Digestive enzymes play a critical role in the digestion of food by speeding up the reactions that turn food into absorbable nutrients. The three main enzymes are amylase, protease and lipase. Replenishing the levels of hydrochloric acid is also important at this stage, as the acid aids food digestion, and also kills any unwanted bacteria and viruses in the stomach, protecting your body from infection. You can find digestive enzymes in food supplements, along with betaine hydrochloride, which forms hydrochloric acid in the stomach.
Repopulate The next step in the 5R gut health framework is to reinoculate the beneficial bacteria, known as the gut microflora, that live happily in the gut. The gut microflora is unique to each of us and is made up of trillions of live microorganisms of varying species. The make-up of the gut microflora has been linked to digestive health as well as immunity, mental health and other health outcomes. It’s possible to promote a beneficial balance of bacteria by regularly consuming probiotics. Probiotic food supplements and fermented foods like yoghurt, miso and tempeh, contain strains of beneficial bacteria that live in the gut. Such bacteria thrive on prebiotics, such as inulin and fructooligosaccharides. Consuming prebiotic foods with probiotics can support the reinoculation of the beneficial gut bacteria.
Repair Maintaining the lining of the gut is important for digestive health as it forms a barrier between what is inside the stomach and our bloodstream. Its integrity is essential for absorbing nutrients from food and preventing pathogens from entering the blood. This step in the 5R framework focuses on repairing the lining of the gut wall and retaining its ability to provide a protective barrier. Micronutrients zinc and vitamin A help the body to make the gut lining, while l-glutamine and the botanicals marshmallow root, turmeric, artichoke and slippery elm also play a role in repairing the gut lining.
Rebalance The final step in the 5R gut health framework is to continue with a good gut health regime. This requires balance, paying attention to daily lifestyle choices. A good gut health regime includes a healthy diet full of fibre, fruits and vegetables, supported with intakes of probiotics, and antioxidant rich ingredients such as spirulina and acai. Plenty of sleep, regular exercise and actively managing stress also contribute to a good gut health regime.
Using evidence-based ingredients, the Lifeplan team have developed five different supplements, addressing the five key stages in the gut health framework, to support a variety of gut health needs. The supplements can be taken to support the 5R framework, or individually as part of a whole package of advice about dietary and lifestyle choices for good gut health.
To read more about Lifeplan’s guide to gut health, visit the website.
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