How To Repair Your Gut After Antibiotic Use

Antibiotics Awareness Week is from the 20th - 27th November So I thought that I would comment a little about how we can pick up the collateral damage after we take those antibiotics:

... We now know what devastating effects these drugs can have on our gut flora - essentially it's like carpet bombing your gut - but what do you do if you have to have them (I always say it's handy not to die)... But recent research suggests that your gut can struggle for up to 4 years following a single dose of antibiotics (eek). They have also been linked to depression, weight gain and autoimmune disease (double eek). Researchers believe now it is simply because they kill off those good soldiers who essentially maintain the peace in our bodies.

But there are certain things you can do to speed the gut repair process:

Try these 4 tips and your microbes may begin smiling again in no time.

1. Exercise! yes that is correct - researchers are unsure how this works, but have found that those who regularly exercise ( and just going for regular walks is enough) have a healthier microbiome. They have even found that early childhood exercise will ensure your child's gut is more robust than the kids who sit on the couch or in front of their computer!
2. Take some probiotics - yoghurt is good, but a good quality multi strain probiotic is the opposite of that carpet bomb - it puts back in the good soilders! But taking 1 supermarket pill a day will only give you expensive poop - talk to your practitioner on best brands and correct dosing.
3. Take some bone broth - yes I know, it's not exactly gourmet food, but you can now buy the organic powdered variety, or even better, make your own and use it as stock in EVERYTHING - it contains vital gut repair nutrients found in no other food. If the thought of bone broth just doesn't push your buttons, taking some good quality grass fed gelatin daily will also do the trick - and you can hide that stuff in everything - even your morning cuppa!
4. So the soldiers are in, the battleground is being repaired, but the troops need food! The best foods for your good soldiers include fermented foods like sauerkraut & kombucha, but also eating that rainbow - loads of fruits & veggies, will also make your good guys flourish. 2 other great food for feeding your microbiome include chickpeas ( I love hummus and have it every day) and leeks!

So try these 4 simple tricks today and make your micro biome happy again.

Alexandra ~naturopath~ nutritionist~