Pro40 and Supporting Gut Health
The gut plays a central role in overall well-being. The foods we eat and the way we process them are essential to the normal functioning of the rest of the body. Gut health is a relatively new and rapidly evolving area of research with current evidence suggesting that the gut microbiome plays an important role in everything from normal gastrointestinal function and regulation of metabolism to irritable bowel syndrome, type 2 diabetes, depression and immune function.
What you eat and any changes in your diet can quickly lead to changes in your gut microbiome and therefore your gut health and overall health.
Sleep, stress, exercise and antibiotic use are factors that can have a big impact on our gut microbiome and when this is out of balance it can impact our physical and mental wellbeing.
When should Pro40 be incorporated into your diet?
Maintaining a balanced diet can be a significant challenge for people with gastrointestinal problems. Periods of active illness can cause nutritional deficiencies through loss of appetite and the malabsorption of nutrients.
It’s important to ensure you are eating a diverse range of foods as this can minimise the risk of nutritional deficiencies, help to maintain a healthy body weight and to ensure proper growth and development, for example post illness of surgical procedure, in children and in pregnancy and breastfeeding.
In times of low appetite, or increased nutrient requirements, Pro40 is a great option to help to fill nutrient gaps and meet protein goals.
*This can be discussed further with your healthcare professional.
Probiotics
Probiotics are the good bacteria or microbes living in your gut. In sufficient amounts they may have a beneficial effect on your health.
Prebiotics
Prebiotics are certain foods that feed your gut bacteria. Without them, the good bacteria wouldn’t survive. The main prebiotic-rich foods that feed our good gut bacteria are fructans (eg asparagus, garlic, red onion, leek, black beans, baked beans, silken tofu, barley, wholebran) galacto-oligosaccharides or GOS (eg green peas, pumpkin, beetroot, freekeh) and resistant starch (eg rolled oats, unripe bananas, cooked potato and pasta, kidney beans and chickpeas).
To ensure you’re eating a gut friendly diet, include prebiotic rich foods and at least 30 different plant foods per week as part of a balanced diet. This includes fruit, vegetables, wholegrains, nuts, seeds and legumes.
And remember - Pro40 provides a great option to help to fill nutrient gaps and meet protein goals.