It’s no secret that what you put in your body affects your overall health. But did you know that the food you eat has an impact on your immune system? Recent research has uncovered a connection between gut health and immunity, showing us just how important it is to fuel our bodies with proper nutrition. Let’s break down what this means for our everyday health.
The Gut-Immunity Connection
The digestive system is home to trillions of bacteria, known as the gut microbiome. This microbiome works in a symbiotic relationship with the rest of the body, providing essential functions like nutrient absorption and immune response regulation. When we eat healthy foods, we feed those beneficial bacteria and help them thrive.
When it comes to immunity, studies have shown that having an abundance of diverse microorganisms in your gut can help protect against infections and other illnesses. This means that eating plenty of fruits and vegetables—which are packed with beneficial micronutrients—can support this balance of good bacteria in the gut, helping to keep your immune system strong when it needs to be.
Foods for Optimal Gut Health
In addition to eating plenty of fruits and veggies, there are certain foods you should consider adding into your diet if you want to boost your immunity through gut health optimisation. Fermented foods like yogurt or kimchi can help increase the diversity of organisms in the gut while probiotics provide essential vitamins and minerals that can help keep things running smoothly. Eating organic whenever possible also helps reduce exposure to harmful pesticides which can damage both the microbiome and our own cells, making us more prone to infection or illness.
Gut health is as important as any other aspect when it comes to keeping our bodies functioning properly. Recent research has shown that there is a link between gut health and immunity – meaning that what we eat has an effect on our ability to fight off infection or illness. By adding healthy probiotic-rich foods into our diets, eating organic whenever possible, and making sure we get plenty of fruits & vegetables every day, we can make sure our bodies are getting all they need for optimal immunity performance!
Below are a few links of some real sciencey stuff Check them out:
- "The Microbiome and Immunity": https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4073857/
- "Gut Microbiota, Metabolites and Host Immunity": https://www.nature.com/articles/nri.2016.42
- "Role of the gut microbiota in nutrition and health": https://www.bmj.com/content/361/bmj.k2179
- "Diet-induced dysbiosis of the intestinal microbiota and the effects on immunity and disease": https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3448089/
- "Probiotics: What You Need To Know": https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/probiotics-what-you-need-to-know
- "The Truth About Fermented Foods": https://www.eatright.org/food/vitamins-and-supplements/nutrient-rich-foods/the-truth-about-fermented-foods
- "Dirty Dozen™ and Clean Fifteen™": https://www.ewg.org/foodnews/dirty-dozen.php