We spend so much time looking after our horses we forget to look after ourselves. In this series of blogs, I will be looking at ways we can care for ourselves a little more.
I have just finished my first bottle of aloe Gel, I really wasn't expecting much im very cynical, even though I sell supplements and herbs for horses, for a living I still have to see it to believe it, I did with the horses and now I am with the Aloe, It wasn't a quick decision to start my Forever living business, in fact, there were 18 months of conversations with Alison. Anyhow I digress this blog is about Gut health and it stems from me seeing a difference in myself after using the Aloe Gel and the research I did to find out the whys.
Firstly what did I notice when using the Gel?
For the first couple of days nothing, but then I noticed that
I had more regular bowel movements, and along with this I felt less bloated and wasn't getting that heavy feeling after eating.
I had more energy
I didn't get the usual PMT spots, Normally a couple of days before I get spots around my lips on my chin and my cheeks, and this month nothing, I have been using the Moitsurers so this may have helped there but other brands have never stopped them.
So what did I find from my research, The digestive system, starting at our mouth and finishing at our Anus digestions over 100 tons of food, by this we mean it breaks it down absorbing the good bits and removing the waste, it was never designed to break down half the ingredients we put into it and therefore we should be looking after our gut. NHS says 40% of people suffer from gut health.
Here are some basic steps that are mentioned on several health websites.
Chew your food, Take your time with your meal and ensure you chew it, this not only gives you time to enjoy the meal but is the start of the breaking down process, therefore allowing better absorption in the gut.
Eat less wheat - from my understanding it is the process the wheat goes through on a commercial basis that causes gut irritation.
Reduce the intake of Sugar - this has several health benefits sugar is one of the products our bodies were never designed to digest
Enjoy Plenty of Fibre rich, fruit and veg
Live yogurt can be a beneficial addition to your gut health
Consider supplementary digestive enzymes ie Prebiotics & probiotics
Vitamins C & D are important for gut health.
I found this website particularly useful for creating the above list https://www.patrickholford.com/topic/digestive-health/ There are some really good blogs.
So what are prebiotics and probiotics, researching this led me to https://drchatterjee.com/ website, which looks to have some very interesting podcasts I will be having a listen to. He states that gut health is as important as brain health and I have to agree if we aren't looking after our gut how can we expect it to fuel our body, we wouldn't expect our car to run on the wrong fuel or unclean oil.
Prebiotics cant be digested by the body so they go straight to the lower digestive tract ( our Instenstines) and help with the growth of healthy bacteria, think of these as the fuel the gut needs to allow the probiotics to thrive.
Probiotics are the live yeast, friendly bacteria that live in the digestive tract and help to break down food.
What are the signs you may need to consider taking a gut supplement?
Irregular bowel movement - I follow Jennifer Jefferies on social media according to her we should be visiting the bathroom after every meal.
Frequently feeling unwell, your gut is not being able to fuel your immune system
Digestive issues
Skin problems
Low energy
Low mood - did you know 90% of the happy hormone serotonin is made in the gut?
So how did the Necter Berries Aloe Gel give me the benefits mentioned at the start, it is a prebiotic therefore giving my gut the fuel to produce the probiotic needed to break down the food I am putting in and it has Vitamin C. I was taking 60ml a day working out at a daily cost of £1.60 half the price of my morning coffee.
Hope this helps, please seek advice from a medical professional if you are all worried.
For the horse owners reading this watch out for my blog on the equine gut.
