Nutrition
What is a healthy gut?
Your gut is healthy when you:
- are able to eat a healthy diet without symptoms of abdominal pain, heart burn, severe bloating and blockages.
- are able to digest and absorb 95-99% of the nutrients you consume.
- are able to have regular soft bowel motions.
- have the right amount of beneficial gut flora or bacteria living in it.
The gut, also known as the gastrointestinal tract or digestive system, is more than just a tube from mouth to anus. It not only digests our food and rids us of waste, but also plays a role in protecting our natural defences, and maintaining the health of our whole body.
The gut includes: your mouth, oesophagus, stomach, small intestine and large intestine. For optimal function it is also dependent on the liver, gall bladder and pancreas for assisting with the digestion of food by releasing enzymes into the gut.
Everything we eat and drink passes along the gut pathway; so, too, do the bacteria and viruses we consume with our diet. The gut also houses most of our immune system.
So it is very important to look after it!
What happens to food in the gut?
- Mixes with digestive juices.
- Breaks down into smaller molecules.
- Molecules absorbed through the gut wall of the intestine.
- Transported through the body providing energy, building and repairing tissues, providing vitamins and minerals important in regulating processes and supporting body tissues.
- Leftover waste material is passed out in the form of faeces.
Article supplied by Auckland Dietetics Service