Gut Feeling.

Do you eat well and take good care of yourself, but you still struggle with weight gain, sluggishness and various unexplained health issues?

It all has to do with the types of bacteria in your gut.

Most people think of bacteria as dirty or dangerous to your health, and bad bugs can actually make us sick, however, it's vitally important that we carry good bacteria in our gut to maintain good health and to heal us from illness and disease.

There is strong research suggesting that the gut is the key curing most illnesses and diseases, including mental illnesses and autoimmune diseases.

Humans harbour over 100 trillion bacteria, in and on, our body.  We contain ten times more bacteria than we have human cells!

Most of this bacteria lives in our gut.  Your gut is one of the most complex eco systems on the planet and if you don't look after it, you risk harming the health of your entire body.

Our digestive tract houses both good and bad bacteria, and in a healthy gut, the bad bacteria are limited and well controlled by the good bacteria.  If the good bacteria are weakened, the bad bacteria take control and your health is compromised.

What kinds of things lead to bad bacteria taking control?

• Sugar: It promotes the growth of bad bacteria in the gut and therefore hampers the good bacteria. Diets high in sugar, refined carbohydrates and processed foods basically provide an all-you-can-eat buffet for the bad bacteria to thrive. 
• Antibiotics: They are prescribed to kill bacteria but unfortunately they kill the good AND the bad guys. When the good bacteria die off,  bad bacteria take off, and can outnumber the good in no time. While antibiotics can be lifesaving, we need to be much more prudent in our use of them, in both medicine and agriculture.
• Stress: Stress can also greatly impact our gut bacteria. 
• Obsession with cleanliness: Our overenthusiastic use of antibacterial soaps, lotions, wipes and sprays weakens our good bacteria.

The good news is that there are simple steps that you can take that can help create a healthier balance of bacteria in your gut and improve your overall health.

Some simple things to help correct your gut.  

• Cut out sugar, refined carbohydrates and processed foods: This should be your number one priority because the gut can't restore itself while you continue to eat these highly inflammatory foods.
• Introduce fermented foods to your diet. Fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi and kefir are rich in beneficial probiotic bacteria so they help inoculate the gut with more good bugs.  This is a great place to find information about making your own fermented food.
• Eat plenty of prebiotic foods (i.e. foods rich in soluble fibre): Prebiotic foods are like fertiliser for the good bacteria in your gut. Sweet potato, raw onions, garlic, asparagus, Brussels sprouts and avocado are some of the best prebiotic foods to add to your diet.  Raw, unfiltered Apple Cider Vinegar (like Braggs) is also fantastic.

So that's my advice on the subject.  Take it or leave it.

While BGWLBH and I were on our road trip in January, we stopped at a lookout at Wollomombi, east of Armidale, which overlooked the Wollomombi Gorge.

It was a massive gorge - not as massive as the Grand Canyon of course - but while we were standing there, on the lookout, a Wedge Tailed Eagle loomed from below us!  It just appeared from nowhere and there I was with my camera, panicking and shaking and trying to aim and focus and fire in the ten seconds that the beautiful raptor was in my line of sight.

I missed my opportunity.  I could have kicked myself because I dream of the perfect Wedge Tailed Eagle shot.

You can see by this shot, that he was very very close and if I had been on the ball, the perfect shot was to be had. *sigh*

Ah well ... next time.

Nite all.