Seabuck your Gut! Why?
The concept of Gut Health is here to stay. Rapidly growing research is showing us that investing in our gut microbes now, not only protects our future health, but brings immediate benefits too! From impacting our mood, regulating our immune response and therefore inflammation, helping to control weight, reducing risk of allergy, inflammatory bowel disease and even some cancers, nurturing our Gut Health is vital. The genetic make-up of these bacteria is known as our ‘Microbiome’. With 150x our own genetic makeup, our microbiome is to be nurtured – we’ve evolved with bacteria; we need them, and they need us!
Sea buckthorn: a 100% pure and natural prebiotic:
British Sea Buckthorn is a source of Fibre – a type of carbohydrate that we can’t digest in our small intestine. Instead, it passes to our colon (large intestine) where it’s fermented by our trillions of gut bacteria to produce many ‘postbiotics’ essential for our health.
But that’s just the start. Sea buckthorn is extremely nutrient-rich, in fact it contains over 190 known nutrients to date. The more nutrient-rich our food, the more diverse our gut bacteria and the more health benefits they give us. We know that a diet rich in Antioxidants, Vitamins A and E especially, helps to increase our microbiome diversity (1). Sea Buckthorn is particularly rich in these vital nutrients and they’re far more ‘bioavailable’ to us when eaten in their natural food compared to taking in supplement form. (2)
We need Antioxidants to protect against and repair cell damage which can happen as part of our every-day use of oxygen. The process of living, our metabolism, produces free radicals; by-products, which if not removed by our antioxidants, lead to cell damage; the process we call ageing. Antioxidants also help to reduce inflammation in the body – the root of many chronic diseases such as heart disease, Type 2 Diabetes, auto-immune disease and cancer. Our gut bacteria activate many of the antioxidants in our food and also provide nutrients for us to make our own supply.
Bright orange Sea buckthorn is brimming with them!
Sea buckthorn – many nutrients all working together:
Recent research is showing us that fibre may increase the effect of antioxidants within the same food – protecting them as they pass through the harsh acid environment of the stomach on their way to being fermented and activated by our gut bacteria. (4) And, adding antioxidant-rich food like sea buckthorn to probiotic foods (containing live cultures) such as yogurt or kefir, also helps to promote the survival of the bacteria. (5) That’s why we recommend adding a seabuckthorn shot to your favourite kefir for example! It’s also one of many reasons why nutrients from their natural, unprocessed whole food are so much more beneficial to us.
Emotions, Immunity, Weight control, Inflammation – our gut is a firm foundation for our health:
That Gut feeling? Well, our gut bacteria make building blocks of our happiness hormone, Serotonin, so it’s no surprise! Chemical signalling from gut nerve endings to our brain, our so-called Gut-Brain axis depend on our microbial fermentation too. Then there’s our immunity – 80% of the cells of our immune system are in the wall of our gut and our varied microbiome ensures it is well regulated to respond as it should, not excessively so to cause a build-up of inflammation. A gut-healthy diet is therefore a low inflammatory diet (6); fabulous for long-term health! Specifically in the gut, this is thanks to butyrate, a fatty acid (SCFA) from microbial fermentation which protects the cells of our gut wall and is therefore associated with a reduced risk of bowel cancer and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Recent research also shows how gut microbes may be involved in weight control by regulating fat storage and signalling ‘fullness’. Eating fibre-rich foods also helps to avoid blood sugar ‘spikes’ and so reduces feelings of hunger.
Why do our organic, healthy soils provide such a nutrient-rich sea buckthorn crop?
Just as our gut microbes ensure we get the most nutrients from our food, healthy soils, brimming with microbes do the same for the food that is produced from it. When we farm with nature, soil health thrives! The British Seabuckthorn Company grow certified organic sea buckthorn on the coastal farm in Essex, working with nature to encourage biodiversity and a nutrient-rich crop!
Gut Health is at the core of our emotional and physical wellbeing; it really is a case of ‘we are what we eat’! Sea buckthorn has been quietly recognised through the centuries for its vast health-giving properties – perhaps at last we’re beginning to understand why!
For more about microbes head to our blog.
- Yang Q, Liang Q, Balakrishnan B, Belobrajdic DP, Feng QJ, Zhang W. (2020) Role of Dietary Nutrients in the Modulation of Gut Microbiota: A Narrative Review. Nutrients.Jan 31;12(2):381. doi: 10.3390/nu12020381. PMID: 32023943; PMCID: PMC7071260.
- Williamson G. (2017). The role of polyphenols in modern nutrition. Nutrition bulletin, 42(3), 226–235. https://doi.org/10.1111/nbu.12278
- Attri S, Goel G. (2018) Influence of polyphenol rich seabuckthorn berries juice on release of polyphenols and colonic microbiota on exposure to simulated human digestion model. Food Res Int. 2018 Sep;111:314-323. doi: 10.1016/j.foodres.2018.05.045. Epub 2018 May 21. PMID: 3000769
- Loo, YT,Howell, K, Chan, M, Zhang, P, Ng, K. Modulation of the human gut microbiota by phenolics and phenolic fiber‐rich foods. Compr Rev Food Sci Food Saf. 2020; 19: 1268– 1298. https://doi-org.ezproxy.herts.ac.uk/10.1111/1541-4337.12563
- Terpou, A., Papadaki, A., Bosnea, L., Kanellaki, M., & Kopsahelis, N. (2019). Novel frozen yogurt production fortified with sea buckthorn berries and probiotics.Food Science & Technology, 105, 242-249. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lwt.2019.02.024
- Bolte LA, Vich Vila A, Imhann F, et al (2021) Long-term dietary patterns are associated with pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory features of the gut microbiome. Gut Published Online doi: 10.1136/gutjnl-2020-322670