Optimize Your Gut Health

An Integral Study Guide

Greetings, dear reader, and welcome to the Integral Fitness guide to optimizing gut health!  This article, like my others, is written as a “Cliff Notes” or “SparkNotes” style study guide.  It is a distillation of those elements which current research has determined to be most integral to health of the microbiome. Enjoy!

It is critical that we comprehend the fact that the gut microbiota is an endocrine gland in itself and is as essential to health as is any other organ of the body. Because of this fact, although none of the following information is earth-shattering, applying these simple concepts in a consistent manner will bring huge benefits to the vast majority of people. It’s not simply knowing what to do. It’s actually doing it, consistently.

Imbalance of the microbiome, or dysbiosis, has been linked to a number of health issues such as:

• Asthma

• Allergies

• Metabolic Syndrome (See the Integral Guide to Metabolic Syndrome)

• Malnutrition (see Optimize Your Vitamin D Levels)

• Obesity

• Type 2 diabetes

• IBS

• Colon cancer

• Anxiety, depression and other mood disorders

• Rheumatoid arthritis

• Susceptibility to infections as well as increased severity of outcome

It’s important to note right from the beginning that if you are attempting to heal an unhealthy gut more rest, and thus, less frequent feedings is required. Digestion, although natural, is a stress on the digestive system. Consider eating only 1-2 and certainly no more than 3 times per day. Just be sure that your meal(s) nutritionally balanced and calorically adequate following the guidelines below. You may also benefit from fasting.

As for recommendations, this can be a challenging topic on which to provide generalized advice as the microbiome is very complex and research is still in the early stages. Further complicating matters is the fact that, like our fingerprints, everyone’s microbiome is unique . It’s somewhat easier to advise what NOT to do, however based on current research, we can make some positive generalizations for apparently health individuals as well:

Factors Having a Negative Impact on Gut Health

• foods treated with broad-spectrum systemic herbicides and crop desiccants (i.e. glysophate aka Roundup - see my post glyphosate: Guilty as Charged

• antibiotics and foods that contain antibiotics

• other medications (proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), metformin, antibiotics, and laxatives, SSRIs, oral steroids,

• alkaline water (particularly pH 9 and above)

• excessive sugar and processed/manufactured foods

• potential sensitivity to FODMAPs (Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides, and Polyols found in specific fiber-rich foods and which some people may be sensitive to)

• coffee (particularly more than 2 cups daily )

• alcohol

• smoking

• stress, anger, negative emotions in general

• lack of sleep

Factors Having a Positive Impact on Gut Health

• Get adequate fiber from natural foods. Fiber helps feed the beneficial bacteria. (If you’re not feeding your bacteria they will feed on YOU!) Specifically, the types of nutrients found in fiber rich foods that strengthen the good bacteria (Bifidobacteria and Lactobacillus ) are known as prebiotics. Include a variety of these prebiotics in your diet daily. Some of the best sources include:

• Bananas, berries, and legumes (fructooligosaccharide sources)

• Garlic, onions, Jerusalem artichokes, and leeks (inulin sources)

• Non- GMO whole grains (wheat dextrin source)

• Nuts and seeds (arabinose sources)

• chew your food thoroughly

• choose organic foods when possible to avoid further glyphosate contamination

• daily multivitamin

• aside from a multivitamin many people may require extra vitamins and minerals such as:

  • Vitamin D (current research suggests a blood level above 50),

  • Vitamin C,

  • Zinc (Caution: many forms of zinc may cause gastric discomfort. Take with food or find a from that works for you) and

  • Glycine (some researchers currently hypothesize glycine helps to detoxify glysophate)

    • All can be purchased through my Thorne affiliate account. Discount available for my substack readers upon request. Simply contact me through my coaching site linked at bottom.

• probiotics should preferably come from fermented foods as these survive stomach acid better than probiotic supplements (especially look for Bifidobacterium):

  • kefir,

  • kombucha,

  • sauerkraut,

  • pickles,

  • miso,

  • tempeh,

  • kimchi,

  • raw (aged) cheese,

  • yogurt,

  • apple cider vinegar (particularly important as, like glycine, current hypotheses suggest ACV may break down glysophate),

  • sourdough bread (not a source of probiotics but may be otherwise beneficial)

• get adequate omega-3 Fatty Acids (important for cellular stability)

• peel fruits and vegetables or clean with vinegar and water

• clean meats with salt water

• achieve/maintain a healthy bodyweight

• get adequate sleep

• spend time outdoors

• stress management

• cultivate positive emotions

Side note on Probiotic supplements: Research does support supplementing with probiotics, however, some current concerns are quality, getting past stomach acid, not providing live bacteria, and whether or not they even the correct strains for you. Feel free to experiment, however, best to emphasize probiotics from natural food sources.

Again, research shows Bifidobacterium to be of particular importance, therefore, if supplementing be sure to use a product which contains these microbes such as Thorne FloraSport 20B.

If you want to eliminate the majority of the guess work begin by having your microbiome tested. Testing will give you a full report on your individual microbiome. From there you will be given personalized recommendations with better ways to optimize your gut health and overall wellness. Find a qualified professional or use this link to purchase your Gut Health Test Kit through my Thorne affiliate account.

A final point of interest: our microbiome health may prove as a useful analogy to the health of humanity as a whole. Humanity needs diversity of thought, speech, culture and more in order to thrive. Likewise, diversity within the microbiome is proving to be integral to health whereas lack of diversity is linked to disease.

I hope you find this “cheat sheet” useful and, with further exploration, are able to integrate these ideas into your personal, integrated wellness routine.

Thank you for reading and I welcome your comments below!

This information is not meant to be comprehensive but rather to be used as a foundation and study guide to support your own further research and experimentation. See link below if you’d like to consider personalized fitness & nutrition guidance.

Finally, always consult with a qualified medical and/or nutritional professional well versed in this subject. Maintain regular checkups. Never attempt to self-diagnose.

INTEGRAL FITNESS – UPLIFT YOURSELF AND UPLIFT OTHERS

TO BE HEALTHY, HAPPY AND HELPFUL!

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