How to Prepare and Protect Your Gut Health During Christmas and the Bullshit Season

It’s that time of year again, with Christmas parties, year-end get-togethers, and holiday updates on the horizon for many of us – all safe for Covid, of course. However, all that party food and takeout can have consequences for your gut health.

Gut health matters. Your gut is a crucial part of your immune system. In fact, 70 percent of your entire immune system is located around your gut, and a significant part of that is what’s known as gut-associated lymphoid tissue (GALT), which houses a large number of immune cells in your gut. intestine.

Good gut health means taking care of your gut microbiome – the bacteria, fungi, viruses, and tiny organisms that live inside you and help break down your food – but also the cells and function of your gastrointestinal system.

We know that gut health can affect mood, thanks to what’s known as the gut-brain axis. But there is also a gut-lung axis and a gut-liver axis, which means that what happens in your gut can also affect your respiratory system or liver.

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Here’s what you can do to boost your gut microbiome in the weeks and months to come.

How do silly indulgences of the season affect our gut health?

You can change your gut microbiome in a couple of days by changing your diet. And over a longer period of time, such as the Christmas and New Years season, your diet pattern can change significantly, often without you even realizing it.

That means that we may be changing the organisms that make up our microbiome during this time. Whatever you put in it will favor certain bacteria in your microbiome over others.

We know that fatty and sugary foods promote bacteria that are not as beneficial for gut health. And if you indulge yourself for days or weeks, you are pushing your microbiome into an imbalance.

Is there anything I can do to prepare my gut health for the attack that is coming?

Yes! If your gut is healthy to begin with, it will take more to get it out of control. Prepare now by making decisions that feed the beneficial organisms in your gut microbiome and improve gut health.

That means:

• Consume prebiotic foods such as Jerusalem artichokes, garlic, onions, and a variety of inulin-enhanced cereals and yogurts (inulin is a prebiotic carbohydrate that has been shown to have extensive benefits for gut health)
• Eating resistant starches, which are starches that pass undigested through the small intestine and feed bacteria in the large intestine. That includes whole grain granulated bread, legumes like beans and lentils, firm bananas, starchy vegetables like potatoes, and some pasta and rice. The trick to increasing resistant starches in potatoes, pasta, and rice is to cook them but eat them cold. So consider serving a cold potato or pasta salad over Christmas.
• Choose fresh and unprocessed fruits and vegetables
• Avoid added sugar whenever possible. Excess amounts of added sugar (or fruit sugar due to high fruit consumption) flow rapidly into the large intestine, where it is engulfed by bacteria. That can cause increased gas production, diarrhea and potentially upset the balance of the microbiome.
• remembering that if you increase the amount of fiber in your diet (or through a supplement), you will need to drink more water, or you may become constipated.

For inspiration on how to increase resistant starch in your diet to improve gut health, you might consider checking out a cookbook that I am a co-author of (all proceeds funds research and I have no vested interest).

What can I do to limit the damage?

If Christmas and New Years mean a higher intake of red meat or processed meat for you, remember that some studies have shown that diets rich in red meat can introduce damage to the DNA of the colon, making you more susceptible to colorectal cancer.

The good news is that other research suggests that including a certain amount of resistant starch in a diet rich in red meat can reduce or even eliminate that damage. So consider a helping of cold potato salad alongside a Barbie steak or sausage.

Don’t forget to exercise during the Christmas holidays. Even taking a brisk walk can get things moving and keep your bowel movements regular, helping to improve your gut health.

Take a look at the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating and remember which foods are in the “sometimes” category. Try to keep track of whether you are really only eating these foods “sometimes” or have gotten into the habit of eating them much more often.

The easiest and best way to check your gut health is to use the Bristol Stool Chart. If you’re close to a four, you should be fine.

Remember, there are no quick fixes. Your gut health is like a garden or an ecosystem. If you want good plants to grow, you must take care of them; otherwise, weeds can take over.

I know you’re probably sick of hearing the basics: eat fruits and vegetables, exercise, and don’t snack too often, but the fact is, good gut health is hard won and easily lost. It is worth the effort.

A preventive mindset helps. If you do the right thing most of the time and indulge in every now and then, your gut health will be fine in the end.

Claus T. Christopher is Senior Lecturer at Edith Cowan University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.