Good health is directly proportional to how well you maintain your body and take care of it the right way. Majority of your overall body health lies in your gut and taking care of it is very crucial. The question arises, how is one to take care of the gut? And how does, not taking proper care of it impact your health? There are multiple questions like these that I have tried to answer in this post and most importantly how the gut flora or gut microbiota affect your health?
It is a proven fact that there are microorganisms which reside in your intestines and these are responsible for the wellbeing of the health of the intestines. A good balance between the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ bacteria in your gut is essential and should be taken very seriously. The gut flora imbalance can cause many mild and severe illnesses like digestive disorders, constipation, diarrhea, bloating, gas, yeast infections, etc.
Understanding the basic concept of how the gut flora when maintained well, impacts your wellbeing positively is important. Let’s understand it better.
Unhindered Digestion
The food we eat needs to be digested well by our digestive system and if not, it can cause a lot of hindrances. What is digestion? The breaking down of the food in the stomach slowly and the body absorbing all the good nutrients from it to provide nourishment to the various other organs. The intestines are also involved in this process and they are also responsible for throwing out the not required material out of the body. The gut flora is responsible for processing the food and an imbalance in it can cause diarrhea and constipation issues. The ‘good’ gut bacteria have known to ease out such issues if occurred and maintain good gut health.
Inflammation Reduction
Certain inflammatory diseases can cause harm to your body. Certain strains of the ‘good bacteria’ have known to reduce the inflammation caused due to these diseases and bring your body back to normal functioning condition. Inflammations can be also due to over consumption of antibiotics and other high dosage drugs which have an ill effect on your health. These side effects can also be eased with the help of balanced gut flora.
Skin Health Improvement
A lot of people face skin health issues like Atopia, eczema, acne, dermatitis and allergies due to various reasons. Being the first defense of your body, the skin has to face a lot of chemicals, physical, bacterial, viral and fungal challenges. It can undergo a lot of malfunctions like dehydrations, malfunction of the sweat glands, oil glands, ruptures and damage due to allergies, etc. It is known through studies that a well-maintained gut flora balance can help improve these skin conditions and the easiest way would be consumption of probiotics. The probiotics will reduce the effect of bad gut flora and increase the ‘good bacteria’ to sooth the imbalance.
Heart Health Improvement
A strong heart can be a well running body. If your heart starts to show any signs of disrupted functioning, it is time to get it checked. With the rising consumption of processed foods and foods with preservatives in it, people are facing a lot of blood sugar imbalances, heart failures and high blood pressure issues. In such cases a supplementary support to your heart health could be the use of probiotics. Digestion and intestinal health can be closely related to your heart functioning and keeping a balanced gut flora may help to keep your blood sugar levels under control, your blood pressure within normal limits and your heart pumping oxygenated blood in adequate quantities.
Mental Health Improvement
It is very natural that when your digestive functions are not tuned well and you are facing issues with certain food substances or simply bowel movements are not good, it can lead to bad mental health. Your mood would be affected by this and anxiety creeps in. Hence studies have proved that a bad gut flora can cause imbalance in your mental peace, moods and even go until depression and anxiety. WHat can one do in such cases? You can opt for a well-functioning probiotic which can improve your gut health and automatically your digestive systems begin to improve. This will have a good effect on your mental health and anxiety.
Body Immunity Improvement
The immunity of your body depends a lot on the functioning of your body and that depends on your surroundings, the food you eat, the lifestyle you lead and much more. Some people have the habit of consuming heavy doses of antibiotics for small aches and pains. This can be very dangerous for the immunity of your body and it tends to get compromised as you will fall ill more often. A smooth operating digestive system plays a major role in your immunity and keeping your intestines healthy and strong is essential. The gut flora will enable your body to be immune to various viral and ‘bad bacterial’ attacks. With changing times and lifestyle, one must keep a check on your food intake and kind of products you are consuming. Immunity can be maintained with the help of regular consumption of probiotics.