GOOD GUT HEALTH is one of the most talked-about wellbeing breakthroughs, with the positive scientific research stacking up. The concept is that if we look after the good bacteria in our gut, they’ll look after us, by helping to lower our risk of diabetes, heart disease, inflammatory stomach and bowel diseases and obesity, not to mention improving our mood. Tending your ‘microbiome’ (see below), say converts, will help reset the balance of good and bad bacteria. An imbalance in bacteria – often when good bacteria are wiped out through illness, a poor diet, ageing, stress or a course of antibiotics – is thought to trigger symptoms such as diarrhoea, bloating and abdominal pain. A lack of diversity in healthy bacteria has also been linked to illness, says Melanie Hargraves of the British Nutrition Foundation (BNF).
How to RESET YOUR GUT