Tips to Optimize Your Gut Microbiome

You may have heard a lot of talk lately about the gut microbiome and its influence on our health, but with so many things promising wellness and anti-aging potential, it can be hard to know what to believe. It turns out that the gut microbiome does influence our health and does so in a multitude of ways. While the science around it is relatively new and still emerging, the current discoveries hold real promise for not only better health and disease prevention, but also for the treatment of disease.

What is the gut microbiome?

Think of your gut as an active community filled with a variety of microorganisms each busily doing their assigned jobs. These microorganisms include bacteria, parasites, viruses, and fungi. If These microorganisms are in balance, things run smoothly and the “host,” which is you, is relatively healthy. Most of these microorganisms live in your large intestine where undigested fibers from the foods you eat go through fermentation. Here's where things get exciting! These microorganisms and their metabolites (products that the microorganisms make) play important roles in our physical and emotional well-being and can even impact sleep.

Research has found that an unbalanced microbiome impacts sleep quality and poor sleep quality can create dysfunction in the microbiome. It’s a bidirectional relationship and it can feel like you are caught in a vicious cycle. Let me explain a little bit about that relationship. The gut microbiome is responsible for the production of compounds that influence sleep and wakefulness as well as stress and anxiety. The neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine, the hormone cortisol, and adrenaline which is both a neurotransmitter and a hormone are key players in the promotion of wakefulness. On the flip side, the neurotransmitter GABA and the hormone melatonin are sleep-promoting. When the gut isn't functioning optimally, we don’t create the necessary compounds for quality sleep. And, when we don’t experience quality sleep, we end up with gut dysfunction which creates an environment where these compounds aren’t produced effectively.

What can you do to improve your gut health?

• Exercise - This is a simple way to keep the gut microbes in balance and diverse. Even low intensity exercise can be beneficial.

• Reduce Stress - Chronic stress can alter the gut microbiome in negative ways through the impact of stress hormones on gut function and increased inflammation.

• Eat More Fiber - Fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and seeds are rich in fiber. Many of these fibers are indigestible by our bodies. They travel to the colon where instead of being digested they ferment. This fermentation results in what are called short chain fatty acids (SCFAs), particularly butyrate, propionate, and acetate. SCFAs have been shown to improve sleep quality and mood. In addition, SCFAs can help reduce the stress hormone cortisol, improve melatonin production, and impact the production of the neurotransmitters that we discussed earlier. I would recommend making a goal to eat at least 30 different plant foods every week in order to give the good gut bacteria plenty of diverse fibers for fermentation. It’s especially important to include prebiotic foods because they are particularly useful in feeding good gut bacteria. Prebiotic foods are things like garlic, onions, leeks, bananas, and asparagus.

• Try a Probiotic Supplement - Look for a probiotic supplement with at least 40-50 colony forming units and multiple types of species for the farthest-reaching effects.

• Eat Fermented Foods - Fermented foods contain beneficial microorganisms that help populate the gut and increase the diversity of the gut microbiome. Studies of fermented foods have found that consumption can decrease anxiety and stress, and improve sleep.

Sources:

1. Photo by Nadine Primeau on Unsplash

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