Probiotics and fermented veggies

Everybody has a different kind of microbiome. It’s just as unique as your fingerprint.

Over the years, we have seen that the amount of different species in the microbiome is rapidly decreasing.  There are several reasons for this. Firstly, due to the use of antibiotics and other medicines,  also our good bacteria are killed. Secondly, an unilateral diet decreases the variety of the microbiome. And lastly, our good bacteria die because of long-term stress.

Studies show that with a disrupted microbiome – which we call dysbiosis – people will get ill quicker, and will experience all kinds of discomfort. On top of that, it is much more difficult for these people to sustain a healthy BMI.

So, how can you get or keep your microbiome healthy?

Feed your good bacteria and eat ready to use probiotics!

This is easier than it looks. You can start by eating a balanced diet, consisting of loads of veggies.

In order to really boost your microbiome, you can eat fermented vegetables.

The benefits of fermented foods

• fermented food is easier to digest (for example, the proteins are already cut into amino acids by fermentation, the lactose from milk is broken down and, moreover, we can digest foods that would otherwise be indigestible to humans);
• the nutritional value increases;
• improves acid-base balance; a good PH in your gut, for example, is essential to keep ‘wrong’ bacteria, parasites and molds out.
• fermented foods contain ready-to-use probiotics for you.
• With fermented vegetables you eat both pre- and probiotics: the probiotic micro-organisms also have direct food at their disposal, the prebiotic fibers.

Furthermore; healthy, sustainable, tasty and cheap go very well together. Pickling or fermenting seasonal vegetables is cheap and beneficial for both your own health and that of the environment.

The pizza, wrap and salad bar from The Farm Kitchen always have fermented vegetables. So choose healthy and enjoy the magical taste!

In the image above you can see an intersection of the intestine wall. Here you can clearly see how a healthy microbiome helps you keep diseases and other junk out of your blood system.

Some of the many benefits of a healthy microbiome:

• Digestion: It helps with the digestion of food.
• Immune system: There is constant communication between the gut bacteria and the immune system. The intestinal bacteria ensure that potential germs are less likely to settle in the intestinal wall. A microbiome that is out of balance is less able to stop germs, making it easier for them to implant in your body, which puts the immune system constantly at work cleaning up. This causes a lot of inflammatory substances in your blood, which can have an effect on other places in the body. Research has shown, for example, that this can even have an effect on the brain and therefore cause mild inflammatory processes in the brain, such as recurrent migraines or fatigue.
• Hormones: The microbiome produces hormones (neurotransmitters). An important hormone is serotonin, also known as the happiness hormone! More serotonin makes you feel happier and 90% of serotonin is produced by your microbiome, only 10% by the brain. Therefore, a bad microbiome influences behavior.
• Communication: the Gut-Brain connection: Have you ever ‘Gone with your gut’, of felt ‘butterflies in your stomach’? Well, this has everything to do with you microbiome. At the moment, there a many studies being done about this interesting subject. But it’s very clear that people that experience mental issues like depression and anxiety, also cope with stomach problems like constipation, diarrhea, bloating, pain and stomach upset – which are all clear indicators of a disbalanced microbiome.

So here is my advice: eat wholesome, varied food and add probiotics. Eat many different kinds of veggies. Try to eat from a ‘healthy ground’ (without pesticides and other junk that disturb our microbiome too) and add fermented foods. Avoid too much stress and take care of your gut!