Why Gut Health Determines Immunity
Our gastrointestinal tract, more commonly known as "the gut," is composed of organs involved in digestion, absorption, and excretion processes. These are your mouth, esophagus, stomach, liver, pancreas, small intestine, gallbladder, colon, and the rectum.
While the gut does play a major role in how the body responds to the presence of food, toxins, and nutrients, recent studies have made a case for the gut to be considered the most vital part of what makes our body strong against foreign bodies and immune challenges.
How does the Gut determine our immunity?
Our gut health is considered a prime determinant of how healthy we truly are. Since it's the system that directly interacts with the food we eat, it's only natural that it's also the exact system that can affect our immune system's strength.
It all starts with the fact that our gut is home to ten times more bacteria than all the cells in the entire human body, technically making us more bacteria than we are human. Why are all these bacteria in the gut? It's simply a case of logistics. Nutrient distribution is centered around the gut, so naturally, bacteria will thrive as close to the food source as possible.
And by the way, these bacteria aren't the same ones we've been taught to avoid or be afraid of. No, these are the good bacteria, the same bacteria that the body relies on when it comes to training the immune system for actual invaders and letting the body know that not all new substances are bad.
In fact, more than ⅔ of our immune system is actually more about the gut than any other part of our body. So essentially, maintaining a healthy gut means you are also actively making sure ⅔ of your immune system is running smoothly.
Caring for your gut
The best way to maximize gut health is by making sure you eat only what is best for your body. Consider the following dietary adjustments.
Eat more prebiotic foods. Prebiotics are basically nutrients that "set the table" for good bacteria to thrive. High fiber foods are a good example of prebiotics as they are the primary sources of nutrition for gut bacteria. Some good foods for our gut health are bananas, artichokes, chicory root, and spinach.
Reduce meat consumption. Mix in a few vegetables or fruits as gut bacteria aren't as good with meat than they are with plants.
Eat fermented foods. These are your tempeh, kimchi, and kefir. These all contain natural probiotics or actual live bacteria healthy for the gut.
Let ProbioPure Help You Have better Immunity*
As we mentioned, probiotics are actual live bacteria that you can "eat" and add to your own. However, foods rich in probiotics aren't exactly for everyone. They can be scarce or just not for your palate. In those cases, we recommend taking a probiotic supplement such as ProbioPure.
ProbioPure contains the Morinaga BB536, a bacteria that can help with constipation, diarrhea, bloating, and abdominal discomfort - all symptoms of poor gut health. It can also help reduce harmful compounds in the digestive tract while also raising the ratio of good bacteria in your gut.*
About Morinaga BB536
Bifidobacterium longum or Morinaga BB536 is a proprietary strain of B.longum, a family of probiotics that have been known to be beneficial to gut health. It was developed by one of Japan's biggest dairy companies and is actually the best-selling probiotic in their country.
Many studies have alluded to how it positively alters gut microbial community as well as how the body generally responds to foreign bodies. It also influences how the body absorbs nutrients, especially when it comes to B vitamins. *
Takeaway
Our gut is at the center of everything that makes us strong against immune challenges. To make sure our immune system is always up and ready, it's best that we only eat foods high in gut-friendly nutrients and probiotics. Probiotic supplementation has also been cited to help with gut health and could be key for those who find it inconvenient to eat some pre and probiotic foods.