4 Tips for a Healthy Microbiome with Diabetes

In order to have a healthy gut, you need a healthy microbiome. Learn what it is, why it's important, it's impact on diabetes and how to support it! 

You have many microbiomes in your system. The main one I want to talk about today is in your gut.

What is a microbiome? It is a collection of bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other microorganisms that works together with your system to keep you healthy.

The benefits of having a healthy gut microbiome are:

-It keeps the lining of your GI tract healthy and solid so that nothing escapes out of the gut that doesn't belong out outside in the bloodstream or the body proper.

-The bacteria ferments fiber and the product of that is short chain fatty acids.  This is food for the cells in your colon, which also keeps the gut healthy.

-It helps regulate your immune function. It fights infection and it protects you against autoimmunity.

-It regulates the amount of energy that your body absorbs from the food you eat. It regulates your blood sugar metabolism and your weight.  This is important when you have diabetes.

So what things affect negatively your microbiome?

The first one is antibiotics. Antibiotics do what? They kill bacteria. When you have bacteria and viruses and fungi, they exist in just the right proportions. When you take out a whole big swath of them, namely the bacteria, there is now room for the others to take over and can cause some real problems.

Second PPIs, proton pump inhibitors. These are medications that you take for heartburn or GERD. They decrease the acid in your stomach. That causes problems because you're now more prone to infections and food poisoning.

Third, NSAIDs. These are the pain relievers that you get over the counter at your drug store. These are things like Motrin, Ibuprofen and aspirin. They cause a lot of inflammation in the gut and this inflammation damages the cells and the junctions between them. That's when you get something called leaky gut.

Finally, and this is not an exhaustive list, poor diet. If you're eating a lot of sugar, processed food, packaged food, fast food, coffee or alcohol, a low fiber diet, these cause a lot of inflammation in the gut. Again, that's going to damage the lining of the gut and create problems further down the road.

How do we fix it?

The first tip is to try to stay away from antibiotics. Now I realize that you may be in a situation where you have to take antibiotics. If that's the case, talk to your doctor about taking probiotics during the course of antibiotics and definitely after so that you can repair the damage done to your microbiome.

Second, PPIs. Is there a way to avoid taking PPIs? Yes, there is. First, decrease the amount of inflammatory food you eat. Again, that's processed food, packaged food, sugar, things of that nature. You also want to avoid coffee, alcohol, tomato sauce, and spicy foods. Definitely, you want to eat less at each meal because when you overeat at a meal, your stomach is distended and it tends to push acidic material up into your esophagus, which causes the heartburn. Don't stop taking PPIs without talking to your doctor first.

Make sure you have at least two hours and preferably three hours between the last meal you eat and when you go to bed. That way some of that food is digested and you're not laying down with a full stomach which also allows some of that acidic food to come into your esophagus.

Now, what about NSAIDs? Well, people take that for pain and it's good for pain, but there are other things that you can do for pain that don't cause inflammation. You can try hot and cold. You can try light exercise and simple stretching.

Next, you might get some physical therapy or perhaps occupational therapy, depending on what your situation is. Next, try some mind-body tools, some meditation, some mindful breathing, that sort of thing. I think you'd be surprised how much these tools help. Also try some biofeedback.

Finally, eat a healthier diet. This means getting rid of the sugar and processed food; eating whole foods that you prepare in your own kitchen. So at least, you know what the ingredients are. Eating more of your calories at your first meal of the day, a little bit less at the second and the lightest at the third or final meal of the day, that will give you an opportunity to have about three hours between your last meal and, and the time you go to bed. That's going to help with your blood sugar. It's going to help with your insulin and it's going to help you feel better. And when you go to bed at night, you'll just feel better.

So I hope those tips are useful to you. I have a free 30 day guide that I would love for you to download. I think it's got a lot of great information in it and I think you'll find it useful.

Thank you so much for listening.

Download my free 30 Day Guide to Manage or Reverse Type 2 Diabetes 

Schedule a Free Diabetes Assessment Call

This information is for educational purposes only and is not intended to replace the medical advice of your doctor or healthcare provider. Please consult your healthcare provider for advice about a specific medical condition.

This episode was produced and marketed by the Get Known Service