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Roughly 70-80% of your immune system is in your gut.  Your gut is considered your 2nd brain and it  is very important to take care of.  One way to do this, is to make sure it is stocked with healthy bacteria by adding fermented food to your daily diet at least twice a day.  The importance of fermented foods has been filling up newsfeeds and social media recently due to the known benefits it has with a healthy body.  It may seem like a “new trend”, but it is anything but new.  Fermented foods have been around for centuries.  For thousands of years, people knew how to preserve vegetables and fruits without the use of refrigeration or canning machines we have today.  Cultures from around the world have been eating fermented foods for years from Sauerkraut in Germany to kimchi in Korea, and everywhere in between.  Sadly, with the advances in technology and food preparation, these time-honored traditional foods have been largely lost in our society.  Instead of the nutrient rich foods, full of enzymes and probiotics that our ancestors ate, the average diet today consists mainly of sugar laden, lab created foods.
Foods that have been through a process called lacto-fermentation become fermented foods. During this process, natural bacteria feed on the sugar and starch in the food which creates lactic acid.  This preserves the food, creates highly beneficial enzymes, b-vitamins, Omega-3 fatty acids, and various strains of probiotics that are essential for gut health. If your gut is not “fed” properly of healthy bacteria, it will be left with little defenses and easily overwhelmed by bad bacteria.  This then leaves your gut open to disease-triggering inflammation and bogged down with gastrointestinal upset like gas, bloating, constipation, and diarrhea.  You may also be more susceptible to something as simple as a cold.  When you have a healthy and balanced gut, you can send illnesses packing.
If you are a beginner to fermented foods, try a variety of organic veggies and fruits as the possibilities are endless.  The more popular ones are: beets, blueberries, pickles, olives, raw cacao, radishes, tomatoes, onions, garlic, kimchi, green beans and sauerkraut.  For dairy eaters, yogurts, kefir, cultured buttermilk and some cheeses are a good option.  For non-dairy eaters, yogurts made with coconut milk may be an alternative. 
To learn more about fermented foods, our Nutritionist, Olivia McAllister, at The Center for Health & Wellness will be offering a “How to for Fermented Foods” class.  This event will take place November 14th at 10am.  The fee of the class is $15/person and will include a “starter kit” for you to take home.  We expect the class will fill up quickly, so reserve your spot today and RSVP to 702-248-2228.  Take the first step to improving your gut health, and call us today.