With the right foods, you can boost your gut flora and improve your well-being. Sounds good? Then learn here exactly how it works and what you need to eat to be physically and mentally fit.
Table of contents
1. The connection between intestinal bacteria and your well-being
When you're in love, you get butterflies in your stomach, after a big breakup, chocolate helps (temporarily) with the grief, and when you're under too much stress, it upsets your stomach.
Most people can probably agree with these statements and are of the opinion that the emotional world and the gut are somehow connected .
Some even go so far as to claim that the gut is our second brain , because gut feeling often decides and rational decisions made in the brain take a back seat.
Your intestine covers a surface area 100 times larger than your skin and is approximately 5.5–7.5 meters long in an adult. It also has its own nervous system and contains a variety of intestinal bacteria as well as most of your immune system.
A full 88% of your immune cells are located in the gut . It's no wonder, then, that the gut has a strong influence on human well-being . It can communicate with your brain through its complex nervous system and immune system, and is thus also responsible for your emotions and performance.
The following will be about how you can support your gut with proculture capsules and how you can use simple tricks to positively influence your intestinal flora and thus support your mental performance.
Take-home message #1: Your well-being is significantly influenced by your gut, because it is constantly in contact with your brain.
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2. What are probiotics?
Gut bacteria have a direct influence on your mood and motivation. Most processes in the intestinal tract are regulated by the cranial nerve, the vagus nerve , which runs from the brainstem through the digestive system.
There is therefore a direct connection between the microorganisms in the intestine and the central nervous system . A healthy and natural intestinal flora (the totality of microorganisms that colonize the intestine) is therefore essential for a good mood and full energy .
An imbalance in the intestinal flora can occur when the " good bacteria " in the intestines are destroyed and the " bad bacteria " take over . This can have many causes. Stress, unhealthy eating, and taking antibiotics are just three of them.
Probiotics can restore balance in the gut. Never heard of probiotics? No problem! Probiotics are viable microorganisms that are added to various foods. [1]
In most cases, lactic acid bacteria such as bifidobacteria and lactobacilli are used as probiotic cultures and added to foods. These also occur naturally in a healthy intestinal flora.
Probiotics can have a health-promoting effect if they reach the intestine in sufficient quantities and thus ensure a majority of “good bacteria” there.
Take-Home Message #2: Your gut flora has a strong positive influence on your mood and motivation when "good bacteria" predominate in the gut. With the help of probiotics, you can ensure a healthy and natural balance in your gut flora.
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3. How do probiotics work?
To get through the day full of energy, it's essential to take preventative measures every day by consuming probiotic foods. Probiotic foods are typically fermented dairy products .
For example, yogurt, cheese, and other foods contain high levels of probiotic bacteria. For a probiotic effect to occur, a certain number of probiotic bacteria must be present in the food.
For enough living bacteria to reach the intestine, a quantity of one million or more bacteria per gram is required. However, many foods are already naturally probiotic.
For example, regular yogurt also contains a high number of probiotic bacteria cultures. To ensure your gut benefits from these probiotics over the long term, you need to consume them regularly with your diet.
As soon as the probiotic supply levels off, the number of probiotic bacteria in the gut also decreases and a majority of “bad bacteria” can develop in the gut.
Take-Home Message #3: To do your gut flora a favor, you should make sure you eat probiotic foods. There are a wide variety of foods that have been supplemented with probiotic bacteria, as well as some that naturally contain high numbers of probiotics. Generally, these should contain at least one million bacteria per gram.
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4. The difference between probiotics and prebiotics
Be careful! Many people confuse probiotics and prebiotics, unaware that they are very different.
While probiotics are living microorganisms which, in sufficient quantities, can promote digestion, prebiotics are a substrate that serves as a nutrient for the " good intestinal bacteria " to keep them alive and multiply.
The good intestinal bacteria can thus keep the bad, putrefactive bacteria in check and inhibit their growth. Prebiotics are non-digestible food components that have a positive effect on microorganisms already present in the intestine.
Probiotics and prebiotics are both essential for a healthy gut flora and should be included in a balanced daily diet. Prebiotics are found in the following foods:
- Artichokes
- Garlic
- Onion
- leek
- Bananas
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5. With these probiotic foods to a healthy intestinal flora
The term probiotic comes from Greek and means " for life ." To ensure your life is brimming with energy and contentment, you should know which foods contain particularly high levels of probiotics and consume them regularly. Below are some foods to which probiotics are often specifically added:
- baked goods
- yogurt
- Cheese
- Muesli
- Fruit preparations
- certain drinks
As already mentioned, you will also find plenty of products in your weekly grocery shopping that naturally contain a high proportion of probiotics :
- Sauerkraut and sauerkraut juice
- sourdough
- pickled cucumbers
- kefir
- Miso (Japanese seasoning paste)
- Kombucha (Japanese tea drink)
In general, anything fermented is good for your gut flora and contains a high proportion of lactic acid bacteria , and therefore also probiotics. You can actually ferment any food and thereby increase the lactic acid bacteria in it, but some foods simply taste better than others.
Fermented vegetables, for example, are something that many people enjoy. Fermentation describes the conversion of organic substances into acids, gases, or alcohol. The term "fermentation" is often used synonymously here.
During fermentation , for example, sugar is converted into lactic acid, thus preventing the proliferation of "bad bacteria." Fermentation was originally a process for preserving food for longer periods.
Today, this is rather irrelevant. The wholesomeness of fermented foods is what makes them so appealing. So, if you want to make your own probiotic foods, all you have to do is ferment them.
Take-Home Message #4: Fermented foods, in particular, contain a high proportion of probiotics, because fermentation converts sugar into lactic acid. Fermented foods like sauerkraut and sourdough are therefore true benefactors for your gut.
Want to learn more about making your own probiotic foods? Check out this video where Summer Bock talks about fermented foods and how they can improve your health:
Do you want to learn more about your intestines, how they work, and what makes them the most important part of your digestive system?
Then listen to our podcast with gut expert Dr. Emeran Meyer . The US researcher and author of "The Second Brain" tells you what the gut has to do with your mood and why its health is so important.
6. Talking Brains Podcast - Episode #05: Your Second Brain Has a Mind of Its Own - Interview with Gut Expert Dr. Emeran Mayer
7. Conclusion
Many rightly call the gut our second brain. Depending on your diet, your important gut bacteria will be better or worse off.
If you inadvertently feed the "bad" bacteria cultures through an overly one-sided diet, this can have a negative impact on your long-term well-being. Probiotics serve the purpose of increasing the supply of "good" bacteria cultures to your body.
8. Sources
[1] Hahn, A., Wolters, M. & Hülsmann, O. (2006). Dietary supplements and complementary balanced diets . Stuttgart. Scientific Publishing Company.
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