⚠️ Trigger warning ⚠️
We're about to talk about poop. 💩
So, I (Carolyn) am pregnant. I'm due in May (2023) and I decided to enroll in a medical study. In this study they've been looking at how much good bacteria is passed on to the baby through gestation, birth and breast milk. During the process, participants are asked to either keep their diet the same, up their fiber intake, or up their intake of fermented foods. I got put in the fermented foods group, which is great cause it would have been my choice if I had been give a choice.
In the introduction meeting, one of the researchers had been talking about how little we
know about the microbiome and what it controls.
Early studies show that fecal transplants (this is how they rebuild or add additional good bacteria to your microbiome) can cure things like obesity and c. diff (bad bacteria which causes colon inflammation and lots of other poop related problems).
In certain studies, individuals who underwent fecal transplant for other conditions but were also suffering from alopecia, experienced some hair regrowth following the transplant, and their hair continued to grow years later.
As a Hair Loss Practitioner, one thing I often recommend to clients is dietary changes. Adding in a probiotic and multivitamin for example. For those who don't want to take probiotics, upping their intake of fermented foods can increase the healthy bacteria in the gut and reduce instances of things like diabetes, asthma, and allergies.
They are also finding links between a healthy microbiome and mental health. Probiotics potentially can play a role in treating depression and anxiety. Can you imagine, a serving of kimchi a day keeps the lexapro away? We aren't at that point yet, but the idea is very exciting.
If you're a pill girlie and want to incorporate more probiotics I love the Nutrafol Women's health plus the Hairbiotic.
If you're a food girlie, here are some things I have been enjoying during this study: Kimchi, Sauerkraut, fermented Beets, cultured Cottage Cheese, unsweetened Greek Yogurt, unsweetened Kefir, Bubbies fermented Pickles, and the Kevita probiotic drinks.
The key with active probiotic vegetables; they have to be from the refrigerated section and they shouldn't have any vinegar in the ingredients. I love vinegar but vinegar means the food is pickled and you want fermented food. For dairy products stick to unsweetened because sweeteners especially artificial sweeteners can have the opposite effect of the good bacteria rendering the product useless for gut health.
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