“Constipation is the thief of time.”
– Graffito on door of public toilet
“Diarrhoea waiteth for no man”
– Graffito directly below the above
“Now therefore remain these three:
Faith, Hope and Regularity”
– Paul 13:13
OK, so that last quote is not from the Good Book, but if you’re over 50, you likely think it should be. There are few things as underrated as a good bowel movement. Miss a bowel movement or two, or three, and your life spirals downward rather rapidly. Never take your gut for granted.
The 21st century could be called The Constipation Century. We’re living the perfect storm created by the previous generation. It’s ironic that, just as we get to understand a little bit of the gut microbiome, we find we’ve napalmed most of it into extinction.
If your bowel movement is irregular, it reflects unhappy microbes. Taking laxatives to move the colon along is not a long-term solution. You need to feed them beasties in your belly if you want them to be happy.
One family of microbes stands out above all others when it comes to overall health improvement. These are the Bifidobacteria, or Bifs for short. They eat bad stuff and turn it into good stuff. Without Bifs in your gut, a lot goes wrong throughout your body. Even cancer incidence goes up significantly in the absence of Bifs.
Known Benefits of Bifidobacteria
* Improves digestion
* Relieves symptoms of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS):
* Helps reduce lactose intolerance
* Treats intestinal infections
* Reduces gut inflammation
* Reduces oxidative stress in the body
* Protects against pathogens
* Produces B Vitamins
* Produces beneficial fatty acids
* Reduces obesity
* Improves skin health
* Enhances bone health
And we’re only scratching the surface.
Most of us don’t think about our belly beasties very often. We don’t worry about what they eat or if they’re happy. There’s no gauge on the dashboard to tell us how our microbes are doing. Getting a stool analysis can take several months. Once you have the report, you still don’t know what to do about it.
You might think that simply taking a Bif-containing probiotic will sort you out. However, it is very hard to find a probiotic with Bifs in it. Secondly, when these probiotics get tested, the Bifs in them are found to be as dead as the proverbial doornail.
A much more effective way to increase your Bifs is to feed them their favourite food. This type of microbe food is called a pre-biotic. Scientists have found a number of items that Bifs like. At the top of that list is inulin fibre.
Inulin fibre is a soluble fibre derived from certain plants such as chicory root, onion, garlic, asparagus and others. It has a slight sweet taste, but is effectively indigestible by humans. Bifs can chow inulin and turn it into an array of downstream products that are beneficial to us.
It’s a win-win.
How much inulin do you need to boost your Bifs?
Most studies done on inulin used 30 g inulin daily. This showed a significant increase in Bif counts in the stool after one or two months. However, it is likely that smaller amounts are also beneficial.
Today, we are happy to announce the launch of FIRE Fibre!
This product was developed in partnership with our friends at FIRE for Life, as part of their product range.
Every tub of FIRE Fibre contains 600 g of pure inulin fibre derived from chicory root. No additives.
Each tub comes with its own measuring scoop. Simply mix one scoop of inulin powder into a glass of water to get a 10 g portion of this microbial superfood.
If you wish, you can mix it into hot tea or coffee. It will still work just as well (and won’t mess with the taste, either).
If you want to take more than 10 g, we suggest you take the extra dose or doses at different times of the day. For example, you could have one scoop for breakfast, one for lunch and one for supper, to get to 30g a day.
Let’s look at some other benefits of regular inulin intake:
* Improves digestion and gut microbiome
* Helps with weight management:
* Lowers blood glucose
* Lowers insulin / Improves insulin sensitivity
* Enhances mineral absorption
* Reduces colon cancer risk
* Lowers blood cholesterol and triglycerides
* Accelerates detoxification
To your (regular) health!
The Team at Integrow Health
