Why Gut Health is So Important for Immunity
What is the Gut Microbiome?
The gut microbiome is the collection of trillions of bacteria, fungi such as yeasts, viruses, and (in some cases) parasites that live inside the gut. 90 percent of the microorganisms that make up the entire human microbiome are found in the gut.
Most of the flora that’s found in the gut are beneficial and symbiotic, so both humans and their gut bacteria enjoy numerous health benefits from their presence. Not only can these gut-microbiota assist with digestion and other important bodily processes, but they can outcompete and help to reduce populations of bacteria that cause disease.
How Gut Health Affects Immunity
Good gut health is essential for a robust immune response because the gut microbiome is heavily involved in regulating our immune system. This is due to the fact that 70 percent of the immune system is located in the gut; microorganisms interact with the gut’s immune cells and train the immune system on how to respond to pathogens.
Balance vs. Imbalance in the Gut
Balance is an essential part of overall gut health. To be more specific, an imbalance in gut bacteria in which beneficial microorganisms are outweighed by their non-beneficial counterparts is known as dysbiosis and can cause numerous health issues. Dysbiosis is even associated with IBS, colitis, leaky gut syndrome, colon and rectal cancer, and celiac disease. It’s for this reason that resolving dysbiosis is crucial for overall health, including immune health.
Signs of Poor Gut Health
Signs that one’s gut health could be poor may include gastrointestinal symptoms, such as bloating, diarrhea, gas, constipation, and heartburn; fatigue and sleep disturbances; mood disturbances such as anxiety and depression; and frequently getting infectious illnesses such as colds and other viruses.
Tips for Improving Gut Health
The following are the top evidence-based recommendations for improving the health of the gut and thereby improving immune health and function.
Consume Fiber-Rich and Fermented Foods for Gut Support
Get Plenty of Prebiotic Fiber to Feed Probiotic Organisms
Some of the best foods for gut health are those that are high in fiber, which feeds gut bacteria and helps to tip the ratio of “good” to “bad” bacteria in one’s favor by increasing populations of the beneficial microorganisms. The non-digestible fiber that is thought to feed beneficial microorganisms (also known as “probiotics”) is sometimes referred to as “prebiotic,” meaning that it is a precursor to these probiotic organisms.
Some of these compounds include arabinoxylan oligosaccharides (AXOS), fructooligosaccharides (FOS), and inulin, which cannot be broken down in the human stomach or small intestine and so reach the colon without being digested. When they arrive in the colon, these prebiotic compounds feed beneficial bacteria, such as those in the Bifidobacteria and Lactobacilli genera. These microorganisms can then metabolize the prebiotics into short-chain fatty acids such as butyrate and acetate, which may then fuel colon cells with energy and may even help to increase immunity.
A truly effective gut health diet is one that incorporates considerable amounts of these prebiotics. The top five foods with the highest concentrations of prebiotics by weight are dandelion greens, Jerusalem artichokes, leeks, onions, and garlic. Other beneficial foods for the gut that are high in prebiotic fiber include apples, asparagus, chicory root, cocoa, flaxseeds, jicama root, oats, and wheat bran.
Ingest Fermented Foods with Live, Active Cultures
In addition to foods that are rich in prebiotics, the most gut-healthy foods may also include fermented foods that contain their own “doses” of beneficial probiotic microbes. Probiotics and gut health are thought to be strongly linked. Some of the most common and popular forms of these foods include fermented soy products such as miso, natto, and tempeh; fermented dairy products such as milk and kefir; fermented vegetables such as sauerkraut and kimchi; and kombucha, which is a beverage made from fermented tea. Not all fermented products contain living probiotics, however (for instance, shelf-stable sauerkraut is typically pasteurized and thus devoid of probiotics). Make sure to check the label before purchasing a fermented food to confirm the presence of live and active cultures.
Or Take Probiotic Supplements for Healthy Gut Flora
For those who don’t prefer the taste of many fermented foods that contain live bacteria, or those who are hoping to target specific symptoms and/or goals, taking probiotic supplements on a regular basis may be another excellent strategy to improve gut health.
These supplemental products can often provide similar benefits to fermented foods that contain live active cultures, as described in the previous section. However, high-quality probiotic supplements typically contain specific species and strains of bacteria at more exact concentrations, ensuring consistency and confirming exactly what you are purchasing and ingesting each time you take a probiotic capsule.
Some probiotic supplements even have targeted benefits based on the species that they contain, as particular probiotics have been shown to have various effects on health. While certain probiotics might be formulated for general gut health, others may aim to improve mental health through their influence on the gut-brain axis or improve reproductive health for women through the vaginal microbiome, for example.
As a rule, look for a probiotic that contains specific species/strains of bacteria that have benefits supported by high-quality research (ideally in humans and not animals alone). Certain probiotic supplements may also include prebiotics, which can typically help encourage the proliferation of beneficial bacteria to maximize their health effects. High-quality probiotic supplements also tend to include a minimum of one billion colony forming units (CFUs) with each dose, as even the most beneficial bacteria cannot do much in very small quantities.
The Best Gut Health Supplements
Now that you better understand the link between gut health and immune function, it’s fairly easy to understand why one of the best supplements for gut health is, by extension, also one of the best probiotics for immune health: Body Kitchen’s Gut Balance.
Body Kitchen Gut Balance Prebiotic/Probiotic Combo
Body Kitchen Gut Balance includes three strains of probiotics that have specific benefits that are backed by plenty of strong, well-designed research studies: Bacillus Coagulans, Bacillus Clausii, and Bacillus Subtilis.
In addition, Gut Balance contains significantly more than the recommended minimum of one billion CFUs of probiotics. In fact, each two-capsule dose of Gut Balance contains a total of six billion CFUs. This ensures that the probiotic actually has enough bacteria to have an effect.
In addition to these probiotics, Gut Balance incorporates potent prebiotics to help them grow in your digestive tract. These are a combination of citrus-derived flavonoids called MicrobiomeX®. Supplementation with 500 milligrams per day of MicrobiomeX® was shown in a study to increase populations of beneficial, butyrate-producing bacteria. Butyrate is believed to strengthen the gut barrier by causing the gut lumen to secrete more antibodies, and it may also reduce biomarkers of gut inflammation like calprotectin.
Talk to Your Doctor Before Starting Gut Balance
Before adding a prebiotic/probiotic supplement such as Gut Balance to your daily supplement routine, it is crucial to discuss this decision with a qualified medical professional to ensure that it is the right choice for your unique health situation and needs. For the majority of healthy people, taking prebiotics and probiotics is a relatively low-risk intervention, but those who are immunocompromised, elderly, or otherwise suffering from poor health may suffer from side effects as a result of these supplements. Those with additional health concerns should, therefore, be particularly careful and should prioritize consultation with their doctor.
References
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1756464619305675
- https://journals.lww.com/jcge/abstract/2004/07002/bacillus_clausii_probiotic_strains__antimicrobial.10.aspx
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1532045623001679
- https://microbiomex.com/
- https://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/probiotics-risks-benefits
- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S175646461630175X?via%3Dihub
- https://nutrition2023.eventscribe.net/index.asp?posterTarget=579788
- https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/19-best-prebiotic-foods
- https://www.forbes.com/health/nutrition/best-foods-for-gut-health
- https://www.uclahealth.org/news/article/want-to-boost-immunity-look-to-the-gut
- https://www.healthline.com/health/digestive-health/dysbiosis#outlook
- https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/gut-health#signs-of-an-unhealthy-gut