Restrictive diets don’t do gut health any favours. People hear about how the gut is connected with our brain, heart health and weight management, so they want to do what’s best, but they think that means a restrictive diet. I’m working at the forefront of this research and it’s saying the exact opposite – that people with a more diverse diet have better gut health. It’s very much a Mediterranean way of eating and is about what you can add in, rather than what you take out.
The humble apple contains almost 300 different plant chemicals, and each does different things in our body. What’s more, different bacteria in our gut like different types of plant chemicals. If we were to just eat broccoli, we’d only be feeding the broccoliliking bacteria, and we’d starve out the other bacteria that like whole grains, cashews or chickpeas.