Things I love....my probiotic

I'm doing an extra post today to share something I love and am passionate about- PROBIOTICS.

EVERYONE NEEDS A PROBIOTIC.  100%.  Even more than multivitamins.  Actually, much more than multivitamins.  Because if you don't have good gut health, you won't be able to absorb anything from those multivitamins and it defeats the purpose in taking them!

I, of course, LOVE my Plexus products and I will tell you a special probiotic is what sold me on the company and is my FAVORITE product.  If I could afford to, I would buy everyone I know a bottle of this.  

First off- why probiotics?  Our microbiome- the living bacteria cells that are all over us and in us.   Here's a quick 3 minute video on this- What is the Microbiome?

Okay- now that we understand we need to have healthy bacteria, or we won't be healthy and feel the effects of this in many ways, what is and why the product I love?  

Plexus Probio5

This probiotic powerhouse not only has 5 beneficial bacteria, but contains digestive enzymes and is designed to keep intestinal yeast (which can cause bunches of issues- google it) in balance.   Here is a link to the product info sheet which has references and all the deets- ProBio5 Product Info Sheet

My personal experience with other probiotics were blah.  Didn't notice a big difference.  And I think the difference was the enzymes helping to break down and digest and the yeast balance.  You could find these types of products from other companies or at specialized stores, but you would have to get multiple products!  I already take several capsules a day- but it would take 3 different ones to equal this one product!    

Plexus has another probiotic called VitalBiome which I've talked about and probably do it's own spotlight on another day.  It works a little different.  But if something happened and I had to cut down my Plexus supply to the bare essentials- Probio5 would not be leaving my hands.  Everyone in my family takes it.  It has helped us all.  And I think it needs sold in 5 gallon buckets! ;) 

I could literally talk all day about probiotics, gut health, and/or Plexus products.  When I read this post it sounds kind of superficial- like, 'hey, I love this'- without much meat or reasoning.  But on public platforms like this I have to be careful to not make medical claims, make things sound like medical advice, or not sound like probiotics treat or cure illnesses.  Please shoot me an email if you want to have an actual conversation about gut health, probiotics and/or Plexus and I'd love to tell you more!

Blessings in Health and Happiness

Sugar- the love and hate relationship

Sugar.  We love it.  We hate it.  It’s a complicated relationship.  At least for me. 

Sugar in it’s many forms has magical abilities to make us feel good, give us energy, and satisfies our hunger.  On the flip side, however, it can cause fat, insulin resistance, diabetes, and mood swings. 

How can one thing do both things?  It’s complicated also- but a big reason is bacteria. 

Our bacteria in our digestive system all like to munch on different things, and as far as the bacteria is concerned our job is to keep them fed.  They have so much to do with what we choose to eat it’s almost like we don’t have a choice at all.  

But one problem with this system is MOST of the bacteria that prefer sugar are NOT the bacteria that are good for us!  We call these pathogenic bacteria and they cause inflammation, first in our digestive system and then on the rest of our bodies.  When we feed these bacteria the sugar they crave, and they give us a momentary pleasurable result for it, they can cause breaks in our digestive lining people often refer to as leaky gut! 

This leaky gut leads to our immune system being less effective at fighting off illness AND can cause inflammation that leads to many problems including many autoimmune problems.  There are also many studies showing this can lead to mood problems like anxiety and depression- which I have talked about before. 

So, not only are you craving sugar to make yourself feel good and keep the bacteria happy, but you are feeding the bacteria that will make you not feel well!  It’s a horrible loop that feeds itself and we need to work to stop it! 

One way to try to stop it, is to try to not feed it.  Much easier said than done, I know.  And you will NEVER completely rid yourself of the bacteria, so if you go back to eating sugar often, you will crave it again. 

Another way to help is by putting good bacteria in- once again by probiotics.  Trying to rebalance the system of better than bad will help restore your health.

Subscribe to my email for tips to try to cut down sugar in your diet!

Blessings in Health and Happiness!

The Down-Low on Probiotics

You may hear often that good gut health is important, but what does that really mean?

I’m going to start a series of several posts that explain all the different pieces of gut health, how they work together, and how you can fix yours!  It really is a more complex topic then one post can contain!  There are hundreds and hundreds of books written about the subject and more and more new we are learning every day!

First we’ll discuss- What is a Probiotic?

Simply put- a probiotic is a bacteria that scientists have found to be helpful in the human digestive system. 

To step back a few steps, you must know that we are constantly covered in bacteria and bacteria lines our entire digestive system all of the time- and that’s okay!  Most of the bacteria on our skin and in our bodies is working with us to protect us!  These good organisms help us stay healthy and well, and in return we feed them.  But our bacteria balance can be damaged by many things including medications (especially antibiotics), foods, drinks and stress.  This leads to dysbiosis and can lead to disease, inflammation and weight gain. 

The general idea behind probiotics is to put more good bacteria into our system to help regain balance of the system with more “good” than “bad” bacteria.  Unfortunately- just taking a probiotic is only scratching the surface- you need to do much more to notice any effects of taking these supplements which I will discuss in other gut health posts 😊

So good bacteria- makes sense, but are there studies about it?  Most studies have been done on mice when it comes to bacteria and probiotics, as they are the easiest host types to control in the scientific community.   These studies, however, can focus on specific bacteria species and give us ideas of which bacteria are truly beneficial.   Subscribe to my email if you want extra info on the bacteria studies 😊

How do you find a good probiotic?  Stay tuned for next week where I’ll walk through all the do’s and don’ts on buying a probiotic!

Blessings in Health and Happiness!

My Stressed-Out Life

Stress.  Anxiety.  Depression. 

I’m not ashamed to say that I battled anxiety and depression for years and was medicated at one point for it.  But at the time, I was.  I went to the doctor almost in secret (my husband knew, but no one else).  I wouldn’t go to counseling- then I’d have to talk about it.  I took a pill and continued trying to go on with life like nothing was wrong.   Grad school, motherhood, wife duties, work in the hospital, running the house, getting food on the table.  Medication helped, of course, but over the years I have found other things help much more. 

First- talking.  Back to being vulnerable.  I’m not the first mom who has lost her mind because of a sock on the floor on the wrong day and screamed at my child like a raging lunatic.   I’m not the first wife who imagined her husband being in an awful car accident to the details of planning what would happen after if it all happened today.  I’m not the first person who wished they could just sleep for 2 weeks and wake up and everything be “normal.”   For sure not the only one who has relied too much on chocolate or a few glasses of wine for a pick me up when things are hard.  Talk to your friends- they are there too!  You can help encourage each other to pick healthier ways and to forgive ourselves for the weak moments!

Second- take care of yourself.  Physically.  Exercise releases endorphins, and as we know from our friend Elle Woods, happy people won’t kill their husbands.   It gives you an outlet for stress and gives you energy- much needed energy!  Eating healthy also helps a lot.  Sugar/carbs is what we reach for in our various comfort foods but increases dysbiosis in our gut which can increase anxiety/depression problems! 

Third- take care of your gut!  Our gut health, as I discussed about eating healthy, has a LOT to do with how we feel.  Dysbiosis in our gut is the imbalance of good and bad bacteria in our digestive system that can lead to several common symptoms including moodiness, anxiety, bloating, bad breath, excess gas and bathroom problems.  Probiotics and prebiotics can help re-balance this system.  I personally use Plexus products to do this as they have scientifically studied ingredients and high-quality control measures. 

Fourth- take care of your mind.  Positive thinking, meditation, music therapy, counseling- all of these are possible tools to help your brain. Anxiety or depression aren’t as clear cut as, “go listen to music, it will help”, but it’s one of many tools to help!  There are certain songs I can’t help but dance or sing along to, no matter what mood I was in before!  Make a playlist and listen when you need some mental health time!  Find what works for you and make it part of your routine!

It’s all about hormone balance, so taking care of our guts and our physical balance can help naturally balance those hormones that determine if we feel good or bad. 

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Blessings in Health and Happiness!