Category: Gut health

Why Menopausal Women May Want to Pop Prunes Instead of Pills

Menopausal and postmenopausal women looking for a non-pharmacological solution to symptoms like loss of bone density and digestive distress might find support from prunes. A recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that eating a serving of prunes every day preserved bone mass in the hips of postmenopausal women, potentially lowering the…


Depression Might Originate in Your Gut, Ways to Heal

Did you know that gut health may be an important tool in fighting depression? Researchers are learning more about the gut-brain connection and how we might harness this relationship for better mental health. The Gut-Brain Connection There’s a name for this connection: the gut-brain axis. According to a chapter in “Translational Bioinformatics and Systems Biology…


Predictive Prescription Diets Could Be Closer Than We Think

Imagine an algorithm that would tell you exactly what to eat for your ailments and even prevent you from suffering from genetic disease. No longer would the conundrum of choosing between keto, Mediterranean, paleo, or other trending, slick-sounding diets exist. Your algorithm would be form-fitting—not just to your medical diagnosis but also to your unique…


FDA Approved Fecal Therapy for C. Diff vs. Healthy Preventative Options

C. difficile (C. diff) is a bacterial infection that affects nearly half a million Americans each year. Paradoxically, treatment for the disease often uses strong antibiotics—yet antibiotic use is a major risk factor for contracting the disease. Despite issuing warnings three years ago, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved the first-ever standardized…


You’ve Damaged Your Gut Microbiome–Now What?

Amanda emailed me with a question. She asked, “I’ve been on several rounds of antibiotics recently, and I know I’ve damaged my gut. Now, what can I do to fix it?” My first response was, “Amanda, you’re not alone.” Then I followed up with, “While the damage from systemic antibiotics occurs immediately to the gut…


The Potential Harm in Unnecessary Gluten-Free Diets

How might we prevent the inflammation from gluten-free diets? Over the last decade or so, there’s been a growing interest in the medical literature on plant-based eating, beyond just exclusionary terms like vegetarian or vegan. Previous such studies were somewhat limited because they just split people up into either vegetarian or nonvegetarian, excluding some or…


New Study: Majority of Working Parents Are Burned Out—But This Diet Helps

Parenting is an all-consuming, life-long commitment, and two-thirds of working-class parents are exhausted. It is a nearly impossible lifestyle, to work full-time and be a parent full-time, so in some cases the parent either quits their job or has little or no time for their children. As a result, what is known as “working parental…


Could You Be Reacting to Corn?

The processed food and meat industries are centered around industrially produced corn—and most people are unaware. Some form of corn is found in nearly every processed food item, whether that be as a sweetener (such as high-fructose corn syrup, dextrose, and sorbitol), a texturizer (such as dextrin and maltodextrin), a grain (as in corn flour,…


How to Cultivate a Healthy Gut Microbiome with Food

Our gut flora is determined by what we eat, for good or for ill. When we eat meat, dairy, eggs, and seafood, our gut flora can take certain components in them (carnitine and choline) and produce something that ends up as a toxic compound called TMAO, which may set us up for a heart attack,…


Any Fiber Is Good Fiber, Just Get More of It

Which kind of fiber supplement is right for you? It doesn’t really matter, researchers say. That huge array of dietary fiber supplements in the drugstore or grocery aisle can be overwhelming to a consumer. They make all sorts of health claims too, not being subject to FDA review and approval. So how do you know which supplement…