Microbial Matchmaking: A Love That Lasts A Lifetime

With V-day here, love is in the air. But are you directing enough of it inwards? While chocolates and roses may steal the spotlight, your gut microbiome is the unsung hero of your well-being, working behind the scenes to support digestion, immunity, and even your mood. It’s a love story written in microbes, and like any strong relationship, it flourishes with care, attention, and mutual support. Let’s venture on this self love journey by understanding our gut better!

Your gut microbiome is your lifelong companion, working around the clock to keep you healthy, happy, and energized. It is a vibrant community of trillions of microorganisms that work tirelessly to keep you healthy from within. But what happens when this relationship is taken for granted? 

Red Flags: Signs of an Unhealthy Relationship with your Gut

When you selfishly exploit your gut microbiome with an imbalanced diet and unhealthy lifestyle, it strains your relationship with your inner ecosystem. This is what we often refer to as ‘gut dysbiosis’, wherein microbes that mean you harm outnumber those that care for you. The signs of this unhealthy relationship can manifest as red flags in your daily routine.

1. Digestive Issues: bloating, acidity, diarrhoea, constipation, irregular bowel movements, flatulence, abdominal discomfort, etc
2. Weekend Immunity: increased susceptibility to infections and a rise in inflammatory conditions
3. Metabolic Disorders: such as obesity and diabetes
4. Mental Health Issues: anxiety, depression, etc
5. Sleep Issues: insomnia, lethargy, brain fog, poor sleep quality, low energy, etc

Strengthening your Relationship with your Gut

We’ll be honest here, keeping your gut microbiome healthy truly is a lifelong commitment and requires you to put efforts on a daily basis. You have to show up every single day for your microbes and they in turn will make sure that you lead a healthy life. Here are some things you can do to make your microbiome partner happy:

1. Eat for your Microbes

• Consume foods that are wholesome and balanced in all the macros and micros. A balanced meal is the best treat for your microbes - it will nourish the beneficial bacteria in your gut and deprive the pathogens of their unhealthy food resources. 
• Make sure that the food you eat is rich in prebiotics to support your microbiome. 
• Supplement your diet with probiotics that confer additional health benefits.

2. Move, Move and Move

• One of the worst things that you can do to your relationship with your microbiome is stay sedentary. 
• Regular exercise promotes microbial diversity, which is the hallmark of a resilient gut. Even a daily walk can positively impact your gut microbiome.

3. Don’t be a Toxic Partner

• Avoid consuming alcohol and unnecessary antibiotics, it really leaves a long lasting negative impact on your microbiome which it will need months to heal from. 
• Quit smoking and quit suffocating your microbes to their death.
• Limit the use of highly processed foods and those drenched in preservatives and artificial components

4. Stress Less, Sleep More

• Your gut and your brain are in constant communication with each other, passing messages and signals through an array of molecules. Keeping your brain in a healthy state will help in reducing the negative impact it may have on your gut.
• Poor sleep has shown to cause disruptions in the microbiome that can lead to a horde of symptoms and disorders. Aim for 7-9 hours of rich restorative sleep to keep your microbiome thriving.
• Include meditation, breathing exercises, vagus nerve exercises and other activities that support your mental wellbeing.

5 Love Languages of Your Gut

1. Acts of Service: Eating gut-friendly foods

2. Quality Time: Giving it a break with intermittent fasting

3. Words of Affirmation: Reducing stress through mindfulness

4. Physical Touch: Staying active to boost gut motility

5. Gifts: Feeding it probiotic and prebiotic-rich foods

This Valentine’s Day, let’s redefine self-love at its core—by prioritizing the health of the microbes that love you back. A happy gut means a happy you, and that’s a love story worth celebrating!