They say that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Well, actually, recent scientific research has found that the way to everyone’s whole health is through their stomachs. Your microbiome, the bacteria or flora in your gut, has a strong influence on you not only physically but also mentally and emotionally too – if it’s in bad shape it could actually be the reason you’re feeling low, sad or anxious. Purify your gut flora… and you could be looking at a whole new bouncy you!!

We all have residing within us a complex network of bacteria, fungi and microbes – a whole ecosystem of about 1,000 different species that together weigh 1-3lb which, it is now believed, have an impact on the health of virtually every system in our bodies. Called our microbiome, it accounts for 90% of the cells that create you, yet only 10% of the cells in your body contain your DNA.

As three-quarters of these blighters live in your gut, the quality of your microbiome has, of course, a profound effect on your gastrointestinal tract. So improving it can help with all those gut problems like IBS, Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis – plus benefit your metabolism, immunity and allergies. That has been known for some time. But what is most exiting about the latest research is that scientists have discovered that your microbiome can also influence your brain function – in other words, your moods and even anxiety and depression could be closely linked to the state of your gut. Which brings a whole new meaning to ‘having that gut feeling…’

Research into the microbiome is in its early days, but we reckon this is the future of enlightened medicine: forget drugs, working preventively on maintaining your gut flora could be the route to longlasting good health.

 

Posted in Gut health, Happiness, Micro biome