The holiday season is upon us, filled with delicious food and festive cheer! 🎄 What’s your favourite Christmas dish? While we indulge in seasonal treats, it’s essential to consider how our choices affect our health, particularly the health of our microbiome.

What is the Microbiome?

Your microbiome consists of trillions of microbes, including bacteria and yeast, that inhabit your gut. These tiny allies not only aid in digestion but also produce essential vitamins, protect against harmful microbes, and create various metabolites beneficial to your health. The food you provide for these microbes is known as prebiotics, while the beneficial microbes themselves are referred to as probiotics.

Not all foods promote a healthy microbiome; some can nourish the good microbes, while others may feed harmful ones. Foods rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and whole grains are fantastic for supporting the beneficial microbes in our gut, promoting overall health. Conversely, sugar, alcohol, unhealthy fats, and processed meats can favour harmful microbes.

â—‡Add some microbes to your Christmas diner
â—‡ Saccharomyces cerevisiae helps your Christmas bread and cakes rise, making them fluffy and delicious
â—‡ Lactobacillus bacteria create tangy flavors in sauerkraut and sourdough, adding zest to holiday meals
â—‡ Probiotic foods like yogurt and fermented veggies support digestion and balance your gut after indulgent Christmas dinners

Balancing Indulgence with Microbiome Health

It’s no secret that Christmas feasts often include rich and sugary dishes. While it’s perfectly fine to indulge occasionally, consider incorporating some microbiome-friendly foods into your holiday meals to support your gut health. Here are some nutritious options to include in your Christmas dinner:

  1. Carrots: Rich in prebiotics like Arabinogalactan and Pectin, carrots support beneficial microbes such as Bifidobacterium and Lactobacillus acidophilus, which help ferment these fibers into short-chain fatty acids.
  2. Onions: Packed with fructo-oligosaccharides (FOS), galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS), and inulin, onions resist digestion in the upper digestive tract, making their way to the colon, where they promote the growth of Bifidobacterium and Lactobacilli, ultimately producing anti-inflammatory compounds like butyrate.
  3. Artichokes: These nutrient-dense vegetables are not only delicious but also high in inulin, GOS, and FOS. They can enhance liver function and provide nourishment for your gut microbes.
  4. Potatoes: When prepared correctly (cooked and then cooled), potatoes become a source of resistant starch, which our microbes ferment into beneficial short-chain fatty acids.
  5. Brussels Sprouts: These cruciferous veggies are high in prebiotics and maintain their fiber content during cooking. They contain sugars like arabinose, which support butyrate-producing microbes, crucial for gut health and immune function.
  6. Fruit: Fruit is always a great choice! Apples, grapefruit, and cranberries contain pectin fibers, while unripe bananas are packed with resistant starch. Blueberries provide a potent mix of soluble fibers and polyphenols, supporting digestion and combating free radicals. Just remember to enjoy them in moderation due to their sugar content! 😉

In the accompanying photo, you’ll see cells of Saccharomyces boulardii, a yeast known for its beneficial effects on gut health. This yeast thrives on the prebiotic MOS (mannooligosaccharides) and is often used as a remedy for diarrhea.

Wrapping Up

This holiday season, let’s celebrate with food that not only delights our taste buds but also nurtures our microbiome. Here’s to a joyful and gut-healthy Christmas!

Much love, Jennifer