Look After Your Gut Health

Gut microbiome guru Tim Spector recommends eating 30 different plants each week: “The wider diversity of fibre-packed plants you eat, the happier and more diverse your gut microbiome will be”.

Good, diverse sources of fibre, which help maintain the health of our gut, include nuts, seeds, pulses, whole grains, fruits (especially berries and brightly coloured varieties) and vegetables (especially leafy, dark-green varieties). They are packed with nutrients that support a healthy body.

Plant fibre can also be prebiotic, meaning that they assist with the development of healthy bacteria in the gut, and they are also rich in polyphenols, which ‘good’ gut microbes feed on (this is a good thing!). In addition, you could use extra virgin olive oil as your ‘good’ oil and dark chocolate as a sweet treat, which are rich in antioxidants.

Tips to improve your gut health:

• Try including small amounts of fermented foods, such as bio-live yogurts, kefir, kimchi, kombucha and sauerkraut. They all contain probiotics (or ‘live’ microbes) which live in your gut and increase the number and variety of bacteria that comprise your microbiome.
• Try to avoid eating too late at night to give your stomach time to digest and rest before you have breakfast. Tim says: “At night, there is a whole team of gut microbes that work to clean up your gut lining and keep it healthy. This regular cleaning is important for supporting a healthy gut and immune system. By giving your gut bugs a break, they'll have time to recover to do their job well.”
• Limit your intake of ultra-processed foods. Foods require a degree of processing to be safe to eat, but overprocessing can reduce the nutritious benefits of a product. Ultra-processed foods are not the best choice to maintain optimal health - they have been linked to ill health, including heart disease and type 2 diabetes. They also tend to have often have excess sugar, unhealthy fats and sweeteners added. Overconsumption of these additives may not contribute to optimal gut health.

‘Good Gut’ Granola by Alli Stables, Head of Remote Case Management at Health Partners

*Note that this recipe contains nuts and seeds – if you are allergic please omit them from the recipe

Ingredients

• 100 g mixed raw seeds (pumpkins seeds are a great choice as they contain iron, magnesium and Omega 3s)
• 400 g porridge oats (preferably jumbo organic plain oats, not instant or flavoured)
• 240 g mixed raw nuts (walnuts pack an Omega 3 punch, Brazil nuts contain selenium which boosts thyroid health and supports the immune system, and almonds and pecans are both great, too). 
• 2 tsp (heaped) cinnamon – you may also add other spices such as nutmeg or all spice if you fancy
• 1 TB vanilla extract – not the sweetened kind (you may add more of this if you like the flavour)
• 4 TB maple syrup or honey – you can reduce this if it is too sweet but try not to add more
• 1 ½ TB organic coconut oil or extra virgin olive oil. If you prefer, you could also try a good-quality rapeseed or avocado oil.

Method

1. Preheat oven to 180c.
2. Mix all ingredients together until everything is combined and put into a roasting tin.
3. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes – stirring every 10 minutes to make sure it bakes evenly (especially moving the edges in).  
4. Remove from oven after 30 minutes and let cool.
5. Let cool and store in an airtight container.
6. Serve with natural, bio-live yogurt or plain kefir and fresh fruit such as grated or chopped apple, kiwi, berries.