Let’s talk about our gut.
When was the last time you learned about a healthy microbiome? If it’s been a while (or maybe, never) you’re not alone. Getting your family on board with a diet is hard enough, let alone something that is seemingly as unamusing (at first) as the microbiome.
When was the last time you learned about a healthy microbiome? If it’s been a while (or maybe, never) you’re not alone. Getting your family on board with a diet is hard enough, let alone something that is seemingly as unamusing (at first) as the microbiome.
It’s been hard enough for me to convince my in-laws about the the important role that the microbiome plays in overall health, let alone my 4-year old. The microbiome is a powerful framework to understand ourselves, our bodies and the choices we make everyday.
Seeding these concepts early means the opportunity to inspire our generation of kiddos to consider and be aware of this important part of their health. Of course, this matters for us adults too.
There are numerous studies that show that social norms are very important for adherence to anything, especially with diet. So when you’re eating one specific way, and the rest of the family is combating you with how THEY want to eat, it can mean serious, serious friction points.
So, when it comes to the gut, I’ve come up with a few ways that you can start getting the family on board in fun ways:
Make Pizza Crust with some Flax Meal in it – It’s the simplest thing. Fiber contains a specific soluble fiber called Arabinoxylans. This kind of fiber is arguably one of the all-time best fibers for producing Short-Chain-Fatty Acids. Here’s a study, it’s pretty wild. This is just a simple way to show your family that doing something good for your gut doesn’t have to be “all veggies, all the time.”
Education: This is the biggest one that you can imagine. Adults…. They have to be in the right mindset to learn, and you have to share with them the short term gratification they can potentially get from taking care of their gut microbiome.
Simple example, for adults, getting more fiber in can have an impact on how their body digests and utilizes carbs better, but also promotes fatty-acid oxidation. This is such a big deal and it can happen fast!
So for adults, make education a quick, short term fix kind of thing.
For kids – They WANT to learn, and with my kids, we made it all about a story and how cool it is that there are microbes inside us that are beneficial.
There is an amazing new book, called “A Kids Book About Your Microbiome” – You can get it right here.
Teaching kids about the framework of trillions of bacteria that help influence so many parts of our life is fascinating to them. My son is so intrigued by the fact that there are “little workers” as he calls them, doing all kinds of cool projects inside his tummy.
This book breaks down what the microbiome is, what it does and most of all, how we can help it. It allows them to see us for the walking, talking, ecosystem that we are as humans, and that alone can change their perspective on their microbiome.
You can get a free copy of this book if you’re one of the first 500 people to check it out. Just go to this link and then take a quiz to get a copy.
Ara Katz, Seed co-founder, authored the book and has partnered up with the organization A Kid’s Company About to write this book—they’re also gifting a bunch of books to schools and libraries, which is awesome!
Get Your Copy for You and Your Kiddos Here (thanks Ara!)
Air Fry Veggies: This is one that I wished I new a decade ago.
When I was going through my transformation, getting enough veggies in was always a challenge.
Steaming them was not fun, plus I didn’t care for the taste.
But now, air frying brussels sprouts with a tiny bit of balsamic and some bacon… Oh my. I have to actually STOP myself from eating too many of them.
And, word to the wise, brussels sprouts are one of the best veggies you can eat when it comes down to the fibers that are important to our guts.
Also, try taking asparagus, throwing it in the air fryer along with a tiny bit of avocado oil and some nutritional yeast. It’s a game-change for asparagus, through and through!
This one is going to sound crazy… really – But you know some of those candies that are sugar free, but are sweetened with either erythritol or sometimes things like soluble corn fiber?
Use them as an education point.
It sounds nuts, and I am not saying eat them all the time. They are still processed, but using the example of soluble corn fiber, or some of these other things like inulin, or even the occasional sugar alcohol like erythritol can be a great entry point to explain WHY they don’t count as normal carbs.
By explaining that they AVOID DIGESTION and don’t contribute to your blood glucose, you quickly have people’s attention.
Then, you explain that what happens is they ferment in the gut and feed our microbiome.
Just be careful not to encourage them to eat them all the time. But you can even explain that the bloating that they sometimes feel is a byproduct of their microbiome doing it’s job.
Trust me when I say that a physical example (and a tasty one) can really get the attention across to start paying attention to their gut.
I suppose at the end of the day, education is key, right?
It’s why you watch my channel and it’s why I do non-stop research. We have to learn and grow and adapt to what we know to be true. And when we realize that we are supporting a harmonious relationship with 99% of the bacteria in us, it sure changes things.
Thank you to Seed as well for writing this amazing kid’s book that highlights in such a unique way, why we should care about our microbiome. Don’t forget to grab your copy here.
See you tomorrow!
