Scientific support acknowledges the therapeutic benefit of probiotics for leaky gut, IBS, IBD, SIBO and mood. Add prebiotics and resistant starch for gut health management.
Prebiotics: Prebiotics are compounds that help beneficial gut microorganisms grow and survive-they can’t be digested. Prebiotics are essentially carbohydrates with dietary fibres that resist digestive processes in the stomach and small intestine. They pass undigested into the small bowel and are fermented by good bacteria. To be considered a prebiotic, the food must clinically improve the microorganisms in the gut. Prebiotics are now in the spotlight for their role in promoting the growth and activity of beneficial bacteria while inhibiting pathogenic bacteria in the colon. Prebiotics arrive at the colon intact, there they act as ‘fertilisers’ and food for the live organisms that are beneficial to the colon…probiotics! Some prebiotic food sources are: apples, artichokes, barley, berries, cashews, dates, figs, garlic, green vegetables, honey, leeks, lentils, legumes, oats, onions, pomegranate, rye, seaweed, soybeans and whole-wheat pasta. Resistant Starch: Another type of prebiotic is resistant starch-a type of starch found in foods that are resistant to digestion and absorption in the small intestine. They become fermented by resident bacteria in the large intestine and develop into short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). Resistant starch doesn’t spike blood sugar or insulin. It is referred to as the ‘super fertiliser’. SCFAs nourish cells in the intestinal lining and keep the lining of the bowel healthy. They also aid metabolism, immunity and colon health. Resistant starch forms when some types of starchy foods are cooke, then cooled. Some resistant starch food sources are: . Lentils, kidney beans and chickpeas . Firm, slightly unripe bananas . Pasta, legumes, white rice and potatoes- by cooking and cooling these foods resistant starch levels can rise as much as three times! You can eat these foods cold as leftovers or hot. Re-heating them doesn’t reduce their resistant starch content. This is a good reason to cook these foods in bulk, refrigerate and use them in meals over the coming days. Just like cooking and cooling, if you take frozen bread from the freezer and toast it, the starch will turn into resistant starch, not only will it feed good bacteria, it will lower GI. Be mindful that resistant starch can cause gas and bloating if you introduce too much to your diet too quickly. Prebiotic fibre foods may often not agree with IBS sufferers. I'm a fan of partially hydrolysed guar gum and love its ability to repair gut lining. Researchers consider partially hydrolysed guar gum (PHGG) to be a prebiotic. It grows probiotic bacteria, balances gut flora and is a wonderful fibre that encourages production of SCFAs. It helps improve constipation, bloating and flatulence. Probiotics: Probiotics are living microorganisms that can influence a patient’s gut microbial community to improve gut health, enhance mucosal barrier function, minimise gut permeability, increase nutrient absorption, increase satiety, reduce allergic and inflammatory responses and improve immune function. Sticking to a low inflammatory diet increases the benefits of pre- and probiotics. Management of the human gut microbiota through probiotics, prebiotics and dietary fibre are now recognised strategies to prevent disease and improve health. The challenge is that your microbiome is always changing - a dietary change will change your microbiome within 24 hours. Perhaps this is a coping mechanism that helps us survive? Perhaps that’s how our hunter/gatherer ancestors survived when human food supply was uncertain? Therefore, in today’s terms, a probiotic supplement that worked really well once, may not work at another time due to microbiome changes. Always change the type/brand of your probiotic regularly to keep the gut bacteria diverse. I feel the greatest benefit of probiotics is that they bring transient bacteria that increase the variety of bacteria in the gut. Some probiotic food sources are: fermented vegetables, kefir, kimchi, miso and sauerkraut.
Commentaires