Why Gut Health Is Becoming So Important in Singapore

Over the past decade, gut health has become a very popular topic in Singapore. Restaurants are offering healthier food options and local hospitals are catering to gut health. All of this is thanks to new medical research that shows how gut health is extremely important for regulating health aspects beyond just your bowels. 

One of the most important new discoveries is how the gut microbiome affects your brain, immune system, and even emotions. Gut health could even help treat and prevent major diseases such as cancer. These are some of the reasons why gut health is the next big health movement, and people in Singapore are becoming aware of this.

What Is Gut Health?

Gut health refers to the healthfulness of your gut microbiome, which includes bacteria and other microorganisms that live in your gut. Also known as the gut flora or gut microbiota, these bacteria are essential for providing essential digestive functions that will help you digest food and absorb nutrients.

Why Is Gut Health Important?

In addition to promoting healthy digestion, new studies are showing that the importance of your gut microbiome is much bigger than previously thought. 

The enteric nervous system (ENS) is a collection of over 100 million nervous cells that live in your gastrointestinal tract. According to Jay Pasricha, M.D. from the Johns Hopkins Center for Neurogastroenterology, the role of your ENS is “[...] controlling digestion, from swallowing to the release of enzymes that break down food to the control of blood flow that helps with nutrient absorption to elimination.”

What’s more interesting is how new studies are showing that gut health can cause mental health issues like depression and anxiety. Though the co-occurrence of mental health issues and bowel problems like IBS, diarrhea, and constipation has been known for decades, it’s only recently that we’ve begun understanding this causal relationship more deeply. 

This has evolved into a host of health issues that are now being linked to gut disorders, including cancer, autoimmune diseases, and even autism. Though more research is needed, these are some of the reasons why gastroenterology has become one of the most popular fields in medical research. 

How to Tell if You Have Gut Problems

Sometimes it’s quite easy to tell when you have gut problems. Some signs that your gut health needs attention are:

• Bloating,

• Diarrhoea,

• Gas,

• Nausea,

• Irritated stomach, and

• Food sensitivity issues.

Of course, all of these symptoms could have different causes, but you should always talk to a doctor if you are experiencing any of these and don’t know why.

What Affects Gut Health?

This is where things get a little tricky. Although a healthy diet has a big impact on your gut health, studies show that different people benefit from different foods. This is because everyone has a unique combination of bacteria species living in their guts, which means everyone’s ideal diet for gut health will be different.

OSbiome is a gut health test kit that can help you stay on top of your gut health. By analyzing a small stool sample, OSbiome will create a personalised gut health microbiome analysis report that will let you know exactly what to eat (and what to avoid!) to improve your gut health.

OSbiome was created for the sole purpose of helping Singaporeans improve their gut health. If you suffer from food intolerances or digestive issues, you should order a testing kit today to get a hold of your gut health and optimize your health and well-being.

Tips to Improve Your Gut Health

Getting a gut health test kit to understand exactly what your body needs is the best thing you can do for improved gut health. Besides this, there are a number of general habits that will help you keep your gut microbiome happy and healthy. Here are some of our top tips for better gut health:

Diversify Your Food

Eating healthy food is a great way to improve your gut health. However, just the fact that you are eating a healthy diet doesn’t mean that you are optimizing your food intake for a healthy gut. 

Just as you cannot live off of kale alone, your gut bacteria cannot live off of just any fruit or vegetable. Research shows that diversifying your diet leads to more diverse bacteria in your microbiome. 

The more types of bacteria you have, the healthier your microbiota will be. So, one of the changes that you can make right now to have a big impact on your gut health is adding more types of veggies, fruits, grains, legumes, and seeds to your plate. 

Eat Fermented Foods

Another way to increase the diversity of your microbiota is by eating fermented foods. Science shows that fermented foods increase microbiome diversity, which is exactly what you should be looking for if you want a healthier gut. 

The world of fermented food goes beyond yoghurt and dairy products. There are plenty of fermented products that will benefit your gut flora. Some examples are:

• Kimchi,
• Kombucha,
• Sauerkraut,
• Tempeh,
• Natto,
• Kefir, and
• Miso.

Try adding some of these into your everyday diet and see if you can notice an improvement in your gut. 

Drink More Water

As we mentioned earlier, one of the biggest tasks of your ENS is to break down food, absorb nutrients, and remove waste. Drinking plenty of water will help tremendously with this last part, as it will keep your food moving and prevent constipation. Your gut bacteria will thank you tremendously. 

Avoid Antibiotics

Sometimes, taking a course of antibiotics is just unavoidable. Some infections will require antibiotics to bring you back to optimal health, so taking the antibiotics to kill the bad bacteria will be necessary. However, keep in mind that antibiotics kill all kinds of bacteria, including the good ones. Try avoiding antibiotics whenever possible to prevent your good bacteria from dying off.

Take Probiotics and Prebiotics

Taking probiotic and prebiotic supplements can be another way to support gut health. These are especially important if you’ve just taken antibiotics to treat an illness, as they will help replenish your gut with good bacteria. 

Keep in mind that healthy gut microbiota cannot be sustained with pre and probiotic supplements alone. You will need to make consistent changes to your diet to see a sustained improvement in gut health. 

Invest in Your Gut Health for a Healthier Life

If you, like many other Singaporeans, are trying to improve your gut health, you are on the right track. A healthier gut can not only help you optimize your health through better absorption of nutrients, but it can also help prevent disease. 

A gut health testing kit from OSbiome can help you get a clear sense of what your gut microbiome is like so that you can eat the right food for you. Order yours today and get started on your gut health journey in as soon as four days.