There’s still loads of disagreement over whether or not caffeinated drinks, such as tea and coffee are good or bad for you.  It can be very confusing to read in the media one minute that coffee’s so bad for you that everyone should ditch it immediately. Then the next thing it’s practically a superfood – you just don’t know what to think. On the one hand, it can make you more alert, productive and motivated, or, for some, it can make them anxious, jittery and lack concentration.  And we know all about how important our mental state is for our gut health.  So, is caffeine bad for you?  What’s the verdict?

Is caffeine bad for you?  Let’s start with the good part.

Here are six reasons caffeine can be good for you –

1 – Coffee seems to promote longevity.  Several studies have found that drinking coffee is linked to a lower risk of death. This is what the science says, so we can’t argue with it!

2 – Coffee also contains several important micronutrients such as potassium, manganese, magnesium and niacin.

3- It’s very rich in antioxidants called polyphenols.  In fact, a lot of the time tea and coffee can be the main source of polyphenols and antioxidants in someone’s diet.  Although ideally we want to be obtaining these through our fruit and veg intake and not simply relying on coffee!

4- Coffee and tea seem to protect against diabetes, heart disease and depression.  They also increase concentration and improve physical performance – fantastic!

5 – They also protect against cirrhosis of the liver.

6 – Caffeine is also thought to promote weight loss by boosting metabolism BUT I’m not so convinced it does (sorry!!) …. will come to that in a minute.

Is caffeine bad for you?  Here’s why it might be –

1 – It’s addictive.  In some people, very addictive.  Sometimes people can have a really tough time trying to come off it – they get headaches, fatigue, digestive problems and so on. In these cases the only way to get it out of your life completely is to cut down slowly as the headaches can be atrocious.

2 – It can massively overstimulate your body and eventually burn out your adrenal glands – not what we want at all.
For a start, when the adrenal glands are overstimulated your system will become flooded with glucose. Essentially you’re in ‘fight or flight’ mode.

This is where your system becomes saturated with glucose to fuel your muscles so you can escape from danger, e.g. lions. Except there are no lions if you’re sitting in front of your desk trying to meet a deadline. You can read more about your stress response here.

So if you’re a candida sufferer that’s a big no-no.  If you have candida, or suspect you have candida, you’ll probably know all about avoiding sugar and caffeine. If not you can read all about it here.

Also, if you’re trying to lose weight all this glucose isn’t going to help.  I know some studies demonstrate that coffee is great for weight loss, but how can it be if it keeps flooding your system with glucose?  If you’re not ‘fleeing from danger’, all that glucose will just end up being stored as fat.

My guess would be that at best one cancels the other out. I.e. the boost in metabolism just cancels out the rise in glucose.

4 – Caffeine can make you grumpy and increase anxiety.

It has a massive effect on the brain and impacts neurotransmitter activity and hormones. So, if you suffer from anxiety, nervousness or other mood disorders then ditching the coffee may well be a great thing for you.

Is caffeine bad for you?

Ultimately it depends on the individual as to whether or not caffeine can work for you.  Some people tolerate it much better than others, but how do you tell?

If you suffer with gut, sleep or anxiety issues, I’d definitely recommend having a few days off the tea and coffee and see if it makes you feel any better.

It’s really just a case of taking it out for a week or so and see if you notice any improvements in any aspect of your health.  If it doesn’t make any difference you know you’re good to go.  If it does, well, it’ll be disappointing, but at least you’ll know.

Widely considered to be the root cause of most (if not all) disease states, inflammation is something we definitely need, but we certainly don’t want too much of it.  Read on to learn more about inflammation, particularly inflammation and your gut health.

Acute inflammation

Acute inflammation is part of our innate immune response. Without it we’d end up with festering wounds, and any infection we encountered would be deadly. Think about when you cut your finger or or bang your leg – the redness and swelling that follows is inflammation, and as part of our natural defences it protects and helps our body to heal.

Examples of situations that may result in acute inflammation include:

• Sore throats which accompany viral infections
• Cuts to the skin
• Sinusitis
• Infected insect bites

The other type of inflammation we encounter is chronic. While acute inflammation starts quickly and generally disappears in a few days, chronic inflammation can last for months or years as a result of failure to eliminate the root cause.

Some symptoms and signs of chronic inflammation include:

• Ongoing fatigue
• Abdominal pain
• Skin rashes
• Joint pain
• Asthma
• Cardiovascular disease
• Rheumatoid arthritis
• Systemic lupus erythematosus
• Ulcerative colitis
• Crohn’s disease

Inflammation and your gut

Having an imbalance in your gut bacteria, ie. too many less desirable species and not enough beneficial species may result in low grade inflammation, and may give rise to digestive health symptoms such as IBS.

But it doesn’t stop there unfortunately, as this type of intestinal inflammation may contribute to further inflammatory conditions such as neurological problems, depression and arthritis.

So what can cause this state of chronic inflammation?

• Chronic low grade food allergies or sensitivities
• Stress is a huge trigger
• Toxins from the environment
• Too much processed food and sugar, dehydration and too much caffeine can increase inflammation in the body.

Luckily there are a few simple tweaks you can make to your diet and lifestyle to really help with inflammation and your gut health:

Drink red wine

Yes really!  The occasional glass of red wine can be highly beneficial as its so anti-inflammatory. It contains the highly effective anti-inflammatory substances quercetin and resveratrol. If you’re not already a drinker I wouldn’t start just to get these anti-inflammatory benefits, but if you do already drink alcohol, switching over to red wine occasionally will offer a host of health benefits. Always drink in moderation as alcohol itself is a well known toxin if consumed in excess.

If you’d rather avoid wine, quercetin is also found in green tea, kale and blueberries.

Someone had a great question the other day – is your gut health related to your hormone health.  The answer:  Yes!  It absolutely is!!  So here’s a bit of background about gut health and hormones, what the links are, and three actions you can take to help avoid problems in the future.

It’s astonishing how many women get really bad gut problems at the time of their period, or problems that become really pronounced around the time of the perimenopause.  This is because both oestrogen and progesterone have direct effects on the sensitivity and motility of your gut.

It works the other way around too – the state of your gut really effects your hormones too.

Gut Health & Hormones – the stress link

Alcohol, medications, food intolerances and stress can all cause inflammation in the gut. You probably won’t know you’ve got inflammation in your gut, but if you’ve got symptoms like PMS or perimenopause it’s highly likely.

If your sugar cravings are starting to get to you, check out the Ultimate Gut Health Programme which contains a wealth of information to help you nourish your gut to balance your hormones.  Click here for more info.

Hormones are linked to mood and 90% of our main mood hormone – serotonin – is made in the gut.  It does a different job in the gut to the brain, but most of it is produced in the gut.

Gut Health & Hormones – the bacteria link

However, the main issue I wanted to highlight in this post is that our friendly bacteria play a vital role in how oestrogen is balanced in the body.

In an ideal world, oestrogen is produced by the ovaries, circulates around the body to where it’s needed, gets inactivated by the liver once its done its job THEN makes a swift exit through your digestive system

But problems can strike if you don’t have the correct balance of bacteria throughout your gut, i.e., too many bad guys and not enough good ones.  Some bacteria create an enzyme called beta-glucuronidase which reactivates the oestrogen in your gut. and sends it spiraling about through your system again.

This is really not ideal and we end up with oestrogen overload happening.

• This makes periods heavier
• Contributes to conditions such as fibroids
• Gives many of the unwanted symptoms associated with the menopause
• May even contribute to some cancers

So you can see here how a healthy gut and healthy hormones are very closely linked.  If you have a healthy balance of gut bacteria, that will help keep hormones at the right levels.  Then with your hormones at the correct levels, you’ll have fewer gut problems.

If you want to finally get a handle on your gut health (and help your hormones in the process) I’d highly recommend downloading my online course The Ultimate Gut Health Programme to help you balance your meals optimally, and therefore help avoid the dreaded hormone symptoms.

It’d be impossible to include all you need to know in one blog, but the programme will have all you need to know to ensure you’re soothing your digestive system, whilst eating delicious and filling foods.

Cruciferous vegetables – a vital tool for great gut health and hormone levels

Ensure you’re eating plenty of fibre, especially cruciferous veg – broccoli, cauliflower, kale etc.  These contain the  important compound Indole 3 carbinol which is broken down into DIM (3,3-Diindolylmethane) which helps your liver process oestrogen.

It sounds like the perfect solution doesn’t it?  Getting a sweet hit without all the problems associated with eating sugar – BUT might it be too good to be true? The short answer, sadly, is yes.  In this article I’ll look at which artificial sweeteners may be detrimental to your health, and where they may be lurking. Which ones are healthier, and what the best options are.

The problems with artificial sweeteners

Sweeteners may actually cause you to become addicted to overly sweet foods.

How?

By training your taste buds to want increasingly sweeter and sweeter foods.

When you eat sweet-tasting food your brain thinks it’s getting some sugar, and your body prepares itself as though sugar is going to land in your digestive system.  The problem is the sugar never appears.  Your body still produces insulin from your pancreas, and it is this insulin release which will cause you to gain weight.  At this point your body is in a total spin, expecting sugar which never arrives!

Which leads to the next problem:  Because your brain thinks it’s getting sweet food, and that sweet food never arrives, you may end up craving very sweet, high carb food to make up the deficit.  This may also add to the sugar addiction problem.

After you’ve consumed the sweeteners, the insulin you produce will drive down your blood sugar levels and undoubtedly cause anxiety, and/or feelings of being ‘hangry’.

So all this confusion in the body may well be why the intake of artificial sweeteners is strongly associated with –

• Obesity and weight gain
• Type 2 diabetes
• Metabolic syndrome

Frequent consumption of sweet-tasting foods, with no calorific content really does interfere with your overall metabolic function.

If your sugar cravings are starting to get to you, check out the Ultimate Gut Health Programme which contains a wealth of information to help you curb those cravings for good.  Click here for more info.

Then there are the side effects of artificial sweeteners –

If you have trouble with your digestive system, there’s double trouble as sweeteners tend to increase inflammation throughout the gut. These problems are apparent in those suffering with IBS and IBD.

A further study found that consuming artificial sweeteners on a daily basis actually caused the build up of arterial plaque, increasing the risk of cardiovascular disease.

Here are a few of the more common artificial sweeteners that you need to look out for, as they may cause problems for you.

Always check labels for –

• Aspartame
• Nutrasweet
• Saccharin
• Splenda
• Sorbitol
• Sucralose

These will be hidden in a lot of ‘low sugar’ or ‘light’ prepackaged food and drink options, for example –

• Yogurts
• Sweets
• Zero calorie water
• Diet soft fizzy drinks
• Some vitamins, medicines etc.

Worse still …

Studies which have looked at the effects of aspartame have found it may impair memory performance.  Also, if you’re pregnant or breastfeeding you will definitely want to avoid it as it may cause issues with obesity and metabolic disorders in the child, later in life.

Further problems associated with aspartame include –

• Headaches
• Migraines
• Dizziness
• Mood disorders and other mental health problems
• Nausea and digestive disturbances

If you want to finally get a handle on your sugar cravings I’d highly recommend downloading my online course The Ultimate Gut Health Programme to help you balance your meals optimally, and therefore help avoid the dreaded sugar cravings.

It’d be impossible to include all you need to know in one blog, but the programme will have all you need to know to ensure you’re soothing your digestive system, whilst eating delicious and filling foods.

Avoiding artificial sweeteners – natural is better

When it comes to sweetening food, I’d definitely recommend retraining your taste buds to appreciate less sweet foods, such as the natural sweetness of fruit or dates for example, which also contain dozens of health enhancing nutrients.

Prebiotic or probiotic.  Which is more important?  Which should you choose?

By now everyone is pretty familiar with the concept of probiotics and how beneficial they are for our overall health. Particularly our digestive health. But what about prebiotics? What are they for? Read on to discover whether you should opt for a prebiotic or probiotic.

Which is best – a prebiotic or probiotic?

Probiotics are beneficial microorganisms that live in our large intestines. They are instrumental in ensuring we have robust immune health, they regulate our mood and of course assist in digesting and absorbing nutrients, not to mention hundreds of other positive actions in the body.

Prebiotics on the other hand are what probiotics need to survive and flourish. They are a type of fibre which travels through the small intestine undigested, which then provides fuel for our probiotics to ferment. As with all high-fibre foods prebiotic fibre passes through the small intestine undigested. It then arrives in the large intestine and provides fuel for the good bacteria to ferment and thrive on.

So you can safely say, as much as you need your probiotics for great health, you also need prebiotics to keep them well fed so they can multiply and flourish.

Given how important they are, prebiotics are still largely underrepresented in the typical Western diet.

Unfortunately this can result in issues such as –

• Indigestion
• Poor immunity
• Weight gain
• Inflammation

What’s best to consume?  A prebiotic or probiotic?

A combination of both is ideal – although if you’re supplementing there is a caveat which I’ll come to in a bit.

Both are vitally important to maintain great health. While your beneficial bacteria provide an array of health benefits, prebiotics ensure they are healthy and plentiful – they really amplify the benefits that probiotics provide.

Prebiotics can be broken down into the following categories –

Fructooligosaccarides – you may find this as a supplement shortened to FOS.

Inulin – the notorious gas producing Jerusalem artichokes are high in this.

Galactooligosaccharides – when looking at supplements you may find this shortened to GOS.

Some foods provide natural sources of prebiotics –

• Leeks
• Onions
• Garlic
• Chicory

So use these liberally in your cooking. For example use onions as a base for soups, stews and curries. You can add leeks to these and you would barely notice they’re there as they dissolve almost to nothing when they’re cooked.

The absolute best way to ensure you’re getting plenty of great quality prebiotic fibre from a wide variety of different types of fruit and veg is to join a veg box scheme. We’re all guilty of buying the same food over and over again when we shop in the supermarket (which is not ideal for our gut health), but if you join a box scheme it’s a great way to encourage you to get more variety in your diet.

I’ve been a huge fan of Riverford for many years, their produce not only tastes so much nicer, you can be confident it’s not covered in pesticides or other chemical fertilisers (which also are detrimental to your gut flora, and hormones). If you’d like to give them a try feel free to use my referral code to get £15 off – click here to learn more.

Use liberal amounts of garlic for flavour and chicory in salads.

If you increase your intake of prebiotic foods you can look forward to amazing benefits such as –

• Less indigestion and bloating
• Improved digestion
• Better immune function
• Balanced hormones
• Greater resilience to stress
• You’ll be less likely to gain weight

If you want to supplement, which one is best – a prebiotic or probiotic?

A combination is ideal and you can look forward to optimised body functions such as –

• Nutrient absorption
• Improved mood
• Generally better gut health (there is a caveat to this, so more in a bit)

Therefore you can see that by passing through into the large intestine and feeding the beneficial bacteria, prebiotics play a vital role in increasing levels of gut bacteria such as Lactobacillus and Bifidobacteria, and ensuring great diversity.

Ensuring you’re eating a diverse diet, which  is rich in prebiotic fibre, to keep your microbiome healthy, can be a nightmare when you’re suffering with your gut.  Especially as so many of these prebiotic foods are also big trigger foods. If this is the case for you I’d highly recommend downloading my online course The Ultimate Gut Health Programme to help you eat safely, whilst avoiding triggering symptoms.

It’d be impossible to include all you need to know in one blog, but the programme will have all you need to know to ensure you’re soothing your digestive system, whilst eating delicious and filling foods.

Why?

Because if you begin to experiment with either prebiotic or probiotic supplements you may make your symptoms worse. In these types of situations you need to establish what the root cause of your problem is. For example, you may already have established that you need to avoid foods high in prebiotic fibre such as garlic or onions, as they may make your bloating worse.

This doesn’t apply if your gut is already functioning OK,.  Then you can take a probiotic and prebiotic to keep things ticking over nicely, or for extra reassurance whilst travelling, for example.

There are a few points to bear in mind when it comes to breakfast, aside from what should you eat for breakfast, and they are –

• There is certainly nothing special about breakfast
• Eating healthy, good quality food for the entire day is what matters most
• Breakfast does not ‘jump start’ your metabolism
• Skipping breakfast doesn’t make you overeat and gain weight

Ultimately, breakfast is optional, and it all boils down to personal preference. If you feel hungry in the morning and like to eat breakfast then a protein-rich breakfast is best.

Chia seeds, nuts and eggs are examples of great protein-rich breakfast foods.

What should you eat for breakfast?  Breakfast cereal.

There’s no doubt about it, breakfast cereal is very handy indeed – most of us are in a hurry in the morning, weekday mornings are usually anything but relaxed and cereal is easy to reach for and quick to prepare.

BUT there is a problem – commercial brands are usually loaded with refined carbs and added sugar and loads of salt.

Not the best way to start the day and a surefire way to start you off on the blood sugar rollercoaster which will leave you feeling starving and craving more carbs and caffeine a couple of hours later.

But all is not lost! There are a few things to look out for when you’re selecting your cereal.

What should you eat for breakfast?  Watch the sugar content

In an ideal world you want sugar-free cereal, there are a few brands that make sugar-free but double check the labels.

For example, healthier ranges such as Deliciously Ella or Rude Health for instance will have some options which are very low in sugar (great) with high quality ingredients, and other options which are stacked with sugar.

Even if you’re shopping in a health food shop – some types are great and totally sugar free, but others can be loaded with sugar.

So be careful, always check the labels – ideally you’re looking for less than 5g of sugar per 100g, preferably with no added sugar at all.

Once you start checking labels (if you don’t already) you’ll probably be shocked at how much sugar they can contain – a lot of the time they’re just mostly sugar!!

Especially brands which are targeted at kids unfortunately.

What about wheat?

Commercial brands such as Nestle will have low sugar options, but they’re normally made of wheat, and a lot of us don’t want to be eating too much of that.  It’s commonly not tolerated that well and it can be very aggravating, especially if you have gut problems.

Beware of things like bran flakes – these can be very high in sugar (alarmingly so!) and bran can be very irritating to the gut so far from a healthier option.

Yes it’s a minefield!

So unless you’re going to become very label-savvy I highly recommend you prepare your own breakfast food and get creative! It doesn’t have to be cereal.

Ensuring you’re eating a diverse diet can be a nightmare when you’re suffering with your gut, especially as so many of these ‘healthy’ foods are also big trigger foods. If this is the case for you I’d highly recommend downloading my online course The Ultimate Gut Health Programme to help you eat safely, whilst avoiding triggering symptoms.

It’d be impossible to include all you need to know in one blog, but the programme will have all you need to know to ensure you’re soothing your digestive system, whilst eating delicious and filling foods.

Nut butter on toast.

Eggs – always a great, simple breakfast food – make egg muffins in advance and keep them in the fridge ready to grab as you’re heading out of the door.

Pre-make pancake mix at the weekend and use the leftovers during the week. This can be tailored to suit your dietary needs.

Don’t forget the protein!

All these ideas are packed with protein to keep you going and full of energy up until lunchtime.