How to Improve Gut Health: 5 Ways How a Healthy Gut Can Enhance Outer Beauty Glow!

One's skin health is influenced by a number of factors, right from genetics, diet and nutrition to hormones. To put it simply, the skin is often the reflection of what occurs internally in the body. That is why, an unhealthy gut can often be the reason behind skin breakouts, dull complexion, early ageing, and other skin-related issues. Perhaps that's why, whenever we have a gut problem, we also find ourselves grappling with pimples or other skin breakouts. If you want to get rid of your skin woes, the most simple and consistent way to do so is by improving or restoring balance in your gut. In this article, we shall look at the skin and gut connection as well as delve into the different ways of enhancing one's gut health in order to get a clean, radiant and glowing complexion.

What is the Gut Microbiome?

According to reports published by the Harvard School of Public Health, the gut is home to a host of microorganisms, which is known as the gut microbiome. These microbes aid in digestion, influence the immune system, absorb nutrients, disintegrate potentially harmful and toxic food compounds, and integrate certain vitamins and amino acids that are critical to human living. Needless to say, optimal gut health means that the good bacteria must outnumber the bad bacteria in the microbiome. While no two people have the same gut microbiome, it still gets impacted due to the same reasons such as poor diet, medical history, genetics, disturbed sleep wake cycle, stress and more.

What's The Connection Between Gut Health And Skin Health?

The gut-skin axis may be an extensively researched topic, but it is still not fully understood by all. It has been clinically proven that whenever one's digestive health gets disrupted, the balance between the good and bad bacteria in the gut microbiome is severely skewed, leading to skin-aggravation and inflammation. Several research studies attribute skin health issues like acne and rosacea to an overgrowth of bacteria in the gut, also known as small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). An inflamed gut affects nutrient absorption, which eventually impacts skin health. Additionally, as per research, other gut health conditions like Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) cause skin problems like eczema, dermatitis, and acne, to name a few. While bad bacteria can cause one's skin to break out, the good bacteria can help prevent and treat these skin issues. Thus, a healthy gut automatically reflects on the skin, making it clean,radiant, and glowing. That is why it is so important to fix gut problems.

So What Do We Do?

When it comes to skin health, people tend to spend money on topical applications, but what tends to help in the long-run is an inside-out approach. Understanding that your skin problems could have their source in gut health issues and focussing your attention on fixing them at their roots is a wise approach. So how to improve gut health? While diagnosis and finding the connection between skin and gut problems could take time, making correct dietary choices will help. Let's look at five ways in which we can improve gut health, which could in turn enhance our outer beauty glow!

• A Healthy Diet: Probiotics for gut health is very important as they are good bacteria (live cultures) that are introduced through food or supplements to restore or improve digestive health and balance. At the same time, foods rich in dietary fibre, also known as prebiotics,( which serve as food for the good bacteria), must be added to your diet to help regulate bowel movements and improve digestion. Fermented foods and drinks like kefir, kombucha, kimchi, tempeh,sauerkraut, and miso are just a few natural probiotic sources. Fresh fruits,vegetables, and whole grains are rich sources of prebiotics that must be added to your regular diet. A combination of prebiotic and probiotic foods will help improve digestive health. Not only do probiotics balance the gut microbiome, but they have also shown to soothe and calm inflammation and fight free radicals for every kind of skin. Avoid foods that are high in sugar, fats and refined carbohydrates and also spicy food items as they tend to create inflammation in the body.
• Probiotic and dietary supplements: Due to the hectic schedule we live in, it is not always possible to adhere to a healthy diet. In that case, it becomes all the more imperative to include gut health supplements to our daily routine that support the growth of good bacteria. Opt for supplements that contain both prebiotic and probiotic in one. Consume gut health supplements that use plant-based and whole-food ingredients combined with science to create powerful blends of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants- all essential for a healthy gut and eventually skin. Make Nutrition Melts & probiotic effervescent tabs a part of your daily diet as they provide better bioavailability and absorption than regular tablets and capsules. Delayed release supplements containing prebiotic and probiotic/ live cultures will also ensure better gut health and nutrient absorption for a longer duration- over a longer period of time.
• Good unperturbed sleep: Sleep deprivation and gut health are closely linked. Lack of sleep can affect your mood and overall mental wellbeing. Research shows that the intestinal microbiome creates and releases many neurotransmitters that play an instrumental role in influencing sleep. Any disruption in digestion can affect your sleep and vice versa. As we age, our sleep quality tends to suffer. We need to ensure our sleep-wake cycle is well regulated given it not only impacts our gut but also has a direct impact on our skin health. Taking nutrition supplements for sleep containing vital nutrients like valerian root, l-theanine, chamomile, and plant-based melatonin is likely to help improve sleep.
• Managing Stress: Stress can create havoc in your body if not managed well. The gut is the first thing to get affected whenever you're stressed, which is then eventually reflected on your skin, sleep, mood, and the like. Reducing your stress levels is also likely to lead to clearer skin.If you are someone who finds it hard to stay calm, try stress reduction techniques such as meditation, yoga, or tai chi.
• Drink plenty of water: If you're wondering how to improve gut health, then water is definitely your answer. Water plays an important role in digestion. It helps break down food into smaller particles so that your body can then absorb the essential nutrients, which are vital for the body's proper functioning. Water also makes stool softer, which helps prevent constipation and keeps the gut healthy. Moisture also keeps the skin well hydrated and radiant.