What’s In My Gut?

When you think of healthy, you usually think of what you eat and how much you exercise right? Well, yes, but much more than just that. The microbiome, which is attributed to many factors since you were born, is basically the ecosystem of our body.  According to Leeming, diet plays a 50% role in our microbiome, soooo sticking to the leafy greens and lean meats, might do you well. Along with diet, the microbiome is vastly composed during birth and breastfeeding. At age 3, a child’s microbiome is in full effect. This means that his immune system is now functioning as anyone else’s would, then he can adapt it as he goes throughout life.

If your microbiome is happy, that probably means you are… well your body is with you. The microbiota changes daily, such as with hunger and anything you put into your body, but that doesn’t mean it is changing drastically. To make a real impact in your microbiota, and your health you have to change your lifestyle, BUT with a healthy microbiota, you’re in for endless advantages. Our microbiota controls our “metabolism, body weight, propensity to illness, immune system, appetite, and mood,” therefore if we take care of ourselves, and have a good inheritance, our chances of a healthy life are much higher.

With a diverse microbiota, meaning an abundance of (nice) bacteria, our chances of having any sort of chronic diseases and allergies goes down by a landslide. Chances of getting a few points deducted in this occur during caesarean section as well as not being breast fed. We inherited all of those healthy bacteria during birth and with our mom’s breast milk, enhancing our immunity and giving us a boost at life. So, all in all, thank your mom if you’re free from diabetes, obesities, allergies, and any sort of disease basically (and your diet). Some ways to increase your chances at life include: eating more fiber, eating lots of fruits and vegetables, getting lots of antioxidants in your diet (blueberries!), and snack less (a problem for most of us).