Why your gut bacteria are important – PLUS a Fabulous Kimchi recipe!

Research has shown that the human gut is home to over 100 trillion bacteria, also known as gut flora. In fact, you may be surprised to know that there are more bacteria in your gut than there are cells in your body! Now that’s a thought! But before you rush off in horror to detox your system, you need to know that most of these gut bacteria are beneficial to the functioning of your body and they have a job to do.

Maintaining a healthy balance of bacteria, or gut flora is key to health! Research shows that poor gut health can lead to all sorts of health issues. Your gut plays a big role in overall well being, including brain & mental health and the strength of your immune system. Your gut also eliminates toxins from your body, helping your digestive system to function optimally. It would therefore make sense to do everything you can to protect gut health! An imbalance in gut flora can lead to many health issues, including IBS and other digestive problems, headaches and fatigue . In the long run, it is thought that poor gut health can even make us susceptible to the development of serious life threatening illnesses!

There are many things that can affect gut health – here are just a few:

• Antibiotic use
• An over-processed diet
• Not enough probiotics and prebiotics & insufficient fibre in the diet
• Too much alcohol, cigarettes
• Insufficient exercise
• Insufficient sleep
• Stress

Signs of gut imbalance include:

• Abdominal pain
• Bloating after meals
• Reflux
• Headaches
• Fatigue
• Joint pain
• Immune system weakness

The best natural way to treat issues relating to gut health is to make sure that your gut has the necessary microbes to defend your body. Fermented foods like our Kimchi Recipe below,  water/milk kefir and organic yoghurt are rich in pre and probiotics and are an excellent and tasty way to improve gut health!.

Easy Delicious Kimchi Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 large bright green fresh organic cabbage
• 2 tablespoons of unrefined salt – preferably Himalayan salt
• 2 organic onions – sliced and diced quite small
• 3 organic carrots – sliced and diced quite small
• 2 organic radishes – sliced into really small thin slices
• 4 organic cloves of garlic – peeled and minced
• 1 knob of ginger – peeled and minced
• 1 teaspoon of crushed red chilli (optional if you like spicy ☺)

Method

1. Cut the cabbage into long thin slices – not too big not too small
2. Place the cabbage in a bowl and sprinkle the salt on it. Allow the cabbage to stand for 30 minutes as you want the natural moisture from the cabbage to leak out as much as possible
3. Using clean hands – mash and press the cabbage to release further juices
4. Add all the other raw ingredients
5. Transfer the kimchi into recycled glass jars – be sure that the ingredients in the jar are covered by the natural brine. If you need to add more purified water you can
6. Leave approximately 5 cms between the ingredients and the jar lid – this will allow for expansion once the fermentation process begins
7. Place your jar/s out of direct sunlight at room temp
8. Fermentation usually takes anything from 3 – 21 days
9. Enjoy your Kimchi with any meal – start with small portions and then move to larger portions
10. Share the love and enjoy with your friends and family!

If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact us. We are always here to help in the best possible natural way!