Your gut microbiome is more important in your recovery!
Have you been worried about what you eat after you had your stroke? I should have paid more attention to my diet after the strokes occurred to me. I was in the hospital or the subacute facility for almost 9 weeks. The diet I ate was low on my list. I needed to learn how to talk and walk again! I thought that was far more important. I was wrong. I found out that my diet was a vital part of my recovery.
Do you know that you have roughly 40 trillion bacteria in your gut, on your skin, and in other places? The vast majority is in your gut. Many other microbes live alongside your gut bacteria, including yeasts and fungi. Collectively, these microbes are known as the gut microbiota or gut microbiome. They come into direct contact with the cells that line your intestines and everything that enters your body. That includes the food you eat and the medicines you ingest.
Through this internal ecosystem, the microflora in your gut communicates with your brain through the gut-brain axis. This connection is bidirectional, which means that it goes both ways. (Source: Annals of Gastroenterology) Your microbiome can produce different substances that influence your brain. These include short-chain fatty acids, neurotransmitters, and amino acids. Also, your microbiome controls the level of inflammation and hormone production which influences your brain and central nervous system. Also, your microbiome is unique. No two people have the same microbial cells — even twins are different. That’s fascinating!
Probiotics aren’t a vitamin or mineral. Rather, probiotics are part of the “good” bacteria that comprise your microbiome. You can increase the number of good microbes in your body through foods, drinks, and supplements. Fermented foods like yogurt, pickles, and sauerkraut are home to a host of good bacteria that benefit your body. There are also fermented drinks like kombucha (fermented tea) or kefir (fermented dairy drink) that introduce extra probiotics into your diet. Check them out on your next trip to the grocery store. Just make sure the fermented foods you choose ARE in the refrigerated section.
Apart from food, you can add probiotics to your diet through dietary supplements. These aren’t drugs, so they do not need to be approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA). Some popular ones include Culturelle Daily Probiotic, Renew Life #1 Women’s Probiotic, Dr. Mercola Complete Probiotics. There are many more so you need to do your own search to decide if one is the right one for you.
When you or a loved one had a stroke, check out our website, success4lifetime.org for help. Subscribe to get our blog. You can look at our website, or our Facebook pages; Success 4 Lifetime, LLC or Stroke Survivor’s First Aid Kit. We are going to do our next group training on October 25th at 5 PM ET.
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