Did you know that about 70% of your immune system lives in your gut? Your gut is so important to your overall health that it’s sometimes referred to as a “2nd brain”. Kind of gives new meaning to the phrase “gut feeling”! Today I hope to put some knowledge in your head about gut health. I’ll also share with you why it’s so important to me & show you some great resources that will help you get started taming your gut. 🙂
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Why Gut Health is Important to Me
Why do I want to talk about gut health? Well, in case you didn’t notice, there’s a little tab in my menu for “Thyroid Cancer Information”. That’s there because about 4 years ago I was diagnosed with follicular thyroid cancer. I lost my thyroid which is a vital part of your body and I have to depend on a pill for the rest of my life. The thyroid affects every part of your body, including the gut. I truly feel that my life was so stressful at that time that it caused the cancer. The stress on top of not eating well or taking care of myself caused my body to rebel.
I believe gut health is essential to our overall health. There’s nothing I can do to replace my thyroid or the fact that I have to take a pill every day. I can do things to help my body do it’s very best without my thyroid. That all starts with getting my gut right. I also feel I’ve neglected that tab too much! How can I keep creating if I’m not taking care of my health? Really, I can’t!
What is Gut Health?
Let me just say, gut health is not about going on some fad diet to lose a bunch of weight way too quickly. That’s not good for you anyway! Also, I’m not a doctor or specialist. This is just me telling what my experience has been and telling you about the research I have done on the subject.
Gut health is about bringing the good bacteria in your digestive track back into balance. That’s right, you have good & bad bacteria in your gut and all over you everyday. As strange as that may seem, the good bacteria is necessary to kind of cancel out the bad bacteria. When it’s unbalanced, your body knows it!
In America, especially, it’s become too common to eat from a box. This means we aren’t ingesting the vitamins, minerals, & – yes – good bacteria our gut needs to work properly. There’s also too much antibacterial soap & antibiotics being used. This is killing the good bacteria too. Several people close to me have suffered more than necessary because of antibiotic resistance.
This is just touching on what gut health is and how important it is to our well being. You can check out the links below for more information. The first is a little less scientific that the last!
Indicators Your Gut Needs Healing
Our bodies have ways of letting us know when things are not right. If you have any of the conditions below, you may need to balance your gut.
- IBS or other stomach conditions
- Candida
- Auto-Immune Disorders
- Gluten Sensitivity
- Leaky Gut Syndrome
- Allergies
- Skin conditions (i.e. Eczema)
- Thyroid issues
Getting your gut in check is not going to cure these things because most are built into your genetics. It will help the symptoms occur less frequently & make you feel better overall. I know this because when I pay attention to what I’m eating & stay on top of it, I feel much better overall. I want to get up and do the things I enjoy versus sleeping the day away because I feel like I can’t move.
Foods That Help Improve Gut Health
I think most people will be surprised at what kinds of food actually help your gut. Here’s a list of some foods that are great for helping rebuilding the good bacteria in your gut.
Gut-Healing Foods
- Bone Broth – beef, chicken, & fish
- Lard & real butter
- Sauerkraut & Kombucha
- Yogurt & Kefir
Are you surprised that bone broth & real butter are on the list? Bone broth is just stock by the way, like what I use in my homemade chicken noodle soup. Lot’s of people gave up “fat” during the whole fat-free phase way back when. Guess what? Some fats are good for you and necessary to help your digestion. Not to mention all that fat free stuff just had extra sugar added so it tasted better. Anything processed that is free of one thing usually has more of another thing – even boxed organic foods. The most important thing when dealing with gut health is finding out what makes your gut run the best. It’s never the same for everyone!
My Plan to Improve my Gut Health
I’ve been feeling really tired & lethargic here lately. While that’s something that comes along with not having a
thyroid, I also know it’s because I’m neglecting my health. Most doctors will tell you that the thyroid hormone replacement I take is enough to lead a normal life, provided the levels are correct. I know what my body felt like with a thyroid and I know what it feels like without it. A pill is no replacement for a whole vital gland like the thyroid. It just gives me enough of the hormone to keep me alive, and that’s just how I feel about it.
I take several supplements daily to try to combat the fact that my thyroid is missing. My goal in improving my gut health is to not have to take these supplements. I would much rather consume food full of the supplements I need that take pills all day long.
That being said, I’m issuing myself a challenge to move towards better gut health. I’ll be taking steps over the next few months to eliminate some things from my diet. It will be a slow process to find what foods my body really needs & what foods I need to avoid.
I plan on keeping a log of sorts on the blog. It will be under the Thyroid Cancer Awareness tab soon. I’ll post at least once a week about my progress, what I changed, & what’s working for me. Feel free to comment and join me! My first post will be next Friday, March 31st.
Gut Health Super Bundle
If you want more information about gut health, you should check out the Gut Health Super Bundle available through Ultimate Bundles. It’s only available today, Wednesday, March, 22nd, to Monday, March 27th @ 11:59 p.m. EST. There are two bonuse included:
- 2 free cartons of bone broth from Kettle & Fire ($24 value), $7.99 shipping, available within the U.S. only
- $20 gift card to Get Kombucha ($20 value), $6.95 shipping within the U.S., international shipping rates apply
I did take advantage of the free bone broth & it’s already gone, so that means it was good! This bundle is full of recipes & resources to help you sort out your gut.
- 5 eCourses
- 16 eBooks
- 44 videos
- 846 Recipes
The price is $29.97 for the whole bundle plus 2 bonuses. I hope y’all will check it out and join me as I get my gut healthier!
Y’all have a wonderful Wednesday & I’ll see y’all back here on Friday. : )
