Gut Health
What links kefir, sauerkraut, kombucha, yogurt, kimchi and miso? They are all fermented foods, packed with billions of live bacteria! Fermentation has been used as a food preservation method for thousands of years and, depending on the cultures in action (and what exactly is fermented), it creates food with some unique tangy flavours.
Recently, there’s been lots of talk around the role of fermented and live foods in maintaining a healthy gut, the importance of having a diverse microbiome and the links between gut health and our general wellbeing (including our mental health).
So, we thought that it would be a great idea to launch a platform where we can share a snapshot of content around fermentation, microbiome, live bacteria, and gut health coming from a selection of experts and enthusiasts in this field.
Rhiannon Lambert Podcast
Rhiannon Lambert is a registered nutritionist, founder of the Harley Street clinic ‘Rhitrition’, best-selling author and podcast host. She specialises in weight management, disordered eating, pre- and post-natal nutrition and sports nutrition.
Rhiannon’s popular podcast series, ‘Food for Thought’ aims to equip listeners with all the evidence-based advice to lead a healthy lifestyle. She is joined by special guests who are all considered experts in their field so that together we can learn fact from fiction.
Rhiannon’s fifth series of the podcast was sponsored by Yeo Valley’s organic Kefir yogurt. Rhiannon is a huge advocate for gut health and loves our Kefir which is full of live bacteria which helps create a diverse microbiome.
Dietitian Laura Tilt on Gut Health
What we eat is one of the most important factors in terms of influencing the health of our microbiome, according to Laura Tilt, Dietitian, author of the ‘Gut Lovin’ Podcast’ and health writer. Laura explains how one of the most important things we can do is to eat more fibre and whilst we may think we eat enough fruit, vegetables and fibre we don’t. It is essential to eat more and to rotate the plants foods we eat to have a healthy gut and a diverse microbiome. Have a look at this video to see Laura’s thoughts on the importance of fibre and what she recommends we do to look after our gut bacteria.
Gut Activists Lisa and Alana McFarlane
Lisa and Alana Macfarlane, founders of the online community ‘The Gut Stuff’ are identical twins who have become passionate gut activists. They share their top 5 tips on getting and maintaining a healthy gut. Being twins they are great for medical research and became ‘the chief guinea pigs’ for Professor Tim Spector, head of Twins Research at King’s College London. In his research they discovered that despite sharing 100% of the same DNA they only shared 40% of the same microbiota proving that how we live and how we eat really does change how our gut feels inside. Watch the full video to find out the importance of tuning into our bodies and introducing as much variety as possible to our diets to support a healthy gut.
The Science of the Microbiome
Katie and Marcus joined us in Somerset at the Sauerkrautathon last Autumn, to help showcase how good fermented foods are for our microbiome.
In this short video, Katie and Marcus talk to us about the science behind our microbiome and how important it is for more than just our gut because good gut health can directly influence and strengthen our immune system. They explain how diet is known to have a massive effect on our microbiome and what we eat feeds the friendly bugs that live in our gut.
Have you tried our Kefir range?
No idea about Kefir? This ancient way of fermenting yogurt has been around for centuries, and our range contains 14 strains of live cultures. It’s high in protein, low in fat and with natural and fruity flavours to choose from, we’re sure you’ll find a pot you love.
Dr. Andrew Morrice on Gut Health
A Somerset GP for the last 20 years, Andrew has maintained a very active interest in psychology, nutrition and lifestyle medicine. He includes the effective management of emotion and the role of diet in managing health problems in his general practice and he also teaches and lectures each year at Bristol University.
Here, he talks about gut health and the importance of bacterial diversity for a well-functioning gut. He focuses on the benefits of Kefir and the inclusion of fermented plants in the diet – providing probiotics (live bacteria) and prebiotics (good food for the bacteria living in your gut).
Alana Macfarlane Kempner & Dr Tim Spector on the Microbiome
In this short film we are bringing together two voices from the world of gut health: Alana Macfarlane Kempner, co-founder of The Gut Stuff (and official DJ for Love Island together with her twin sister Lisa) and Dr Tim Spector, professor of genetic epidemiology and head of Twins Research at King’s College London, author of numerous books including “The Diet Myth” and “The Healthy Gut Handbook”. Alana and her sister became “chief guinea pigs” for the Twin Research where they discovered that despite having 100% the same DNA their guts have only 40% the same microbiota.
Listen to them talk in an accessible way about the importance of having a happy and healthy Microbiome, how to increase the diversity of microbes in your gut, feeding your gut with fermented foods and the value of Kefir.
What's So Good About Kefir?
We’ve been making Kefir since 2018 so we’re excited about its many benefits! Have a read of our blog to find out what the health benefits of Kefir are and how you can incorporate it into your diet.
Naomi Devlin on how to get more fermented foods in our diet
Food writer, fermenter and nutritionist, Naomi Devlin is based in West Dorset. She teaches courses on gluten free cookery, nutrition and gut health at River Cottage and other venues around the UK. She grew up in a rural commune, where cheese and yogurt were made directly from raw jersey milk, the bread was always sourdough and the garden veg was often brined or preserved in some way to vary winter meals. When she was diagnosed with coeliac disease, fermented food was one of the gut healing tools that helped her return to her former, vibrant self.
In this short video she is talking about the easy way to include more gut friendly fermented foods in your everyday diet, in order to keep your microbiome happy.
The Sauerkrautathon Round-up
Our Kefir was very proud to support the Sauerkrautathon, here in Somerset last Autumn, and we’re pleased to announce that the Guiness World Record for the largest serving of Sauerkraut has now been confirmed!
It’s all down to these two lovely ladies whose passion goes beyond cabbage to all fermented food, like Kefir. Jo and Katie decided they wanted to spread the message of the importance of gut health and how a variety of fermented foods can support a healthy gut.
This video takes you through their journey, the reasoning behind their record attempt and how they managed to pull off such a massive task.
The Sauerkrautathon, October 2018
The Sauerkrautathon is the brainchild of fermentation enthusiasts Katie Venner & Jo Webster, who wanted to host an event designed to raise awareness of the importance of fermented food for gut health. The message is simple: fermented food is great for you and sauerkraut is one of the easiest ones to make at home – combining not only plenty of live probiotic bacteria but also pre-biotic vegetable fibres to help feed the bacteria already present in the gut.
They are attempting to set a World Record for the largest recorded dish of sauerkraut, and took the first step on that journey at this year’s Wells Food Festival where over 150 volunteers cut and salted over 400kg of vegetables (provided by our friends at Riverford). Being that Wells is so local to us in Somerset, we took the opportunity to take along our Kefir – the perfect complement to a gut friendly diet!
Keep up with everything happening in the valley...
...including upcoming events, recipes, competitions and more. Just pop your email address in below: