The human body is a marvel of complexity, and perhaps nowhere is this more evident than in the microbiome — the vast ecosystem of microorganisms that call our bodies home. From the bacteria in our gut to the fungi on our skin, these microscopic inhabitants play a crucial role in our health and well-being. Let’s jump into some frequently asked questions!
What is the microbiome?
The microbiome refers to the collection of microorganisms — including bacteria, fungi, viruses, and more — that inhabit various parts of the human body. These microbes can be found in places such as the gut, skin, mouth, and reproductive organs, where they form complex communities known as microbiota.
What does the microbiome do?
The microbiome performs a wide range of functions that are essential to human health. In the gut, for example, certain bacteria help to digest food, produce vitamins, and regulate the immune system. In the skin, microbes can protect against harmful pathogens and maintain the skin's barrier function. Overall, the microbiome plays a critical role in main -
taining the balance and harmony of the body's internal environment.
How does the microbiome affect health?
Research has shown that the microbiome can have a profound impact on various aspects of health, including digestion, immune function, metabolism, and even mental health. Imbalances in the microbiome — known as dysbiosis — have been linked to a range of health conditions, including Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD), obesity, and depression. By understanding and supporting the health of the microbiome, we may be able to prevent or manage certain health problems more effectively.
What factors influence the microbiome?
A variety of factors can influence the composition and function of the microbiome, including diet, lifestyle, genetics, age, and environmental exposures. For example, a diet rich in fibre and fermented foods can promote the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut, while certain medications, such as antibiotics, can disrupt the balance of the microbiome. By making healthy lifestyle choices and avoiding unnecessary interventions, we can help to support a healthy microbiome.
How do you improve or restore the gut microbiome?
Scientists haven’t yet identified the ‘ideal’ gut microbiome, as it varies among individuals. However, some key principles stand out. Consuming a diverse range of fiber sources, like salads, beans, and whole grains, supports a thriving microbial community. Aim for at least 30 different plant foods weekly for optimal gut health. Additionally, fermented foods like yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, and kefir contain live microorganisms linked with reduced inflammation and various health benefits. While these foods boost microbe numbers, not all qualify as probiotics. True probiotics are measured and tested for health benefits. Consider supplements for targeted digestive or immune support. Supporting a healthy gut microbiome promotes overall well-being, enhancing digestion, immunity, and more.
Kristina Campbell, MSc from the CDHF weighs in on the complexities and impact that the microbiome has on
Publisher: Jessie Caton
Maddie MacNeil
Kristina Campbell, MSc Canadian Digestive Health Foundation
Your Guide to Understanding the Microbiome
Knowledge about the microbiome has surged, though gaps persist. And while the public’s awareness of gut health is relatively new, Florastor probiotics have been researched for decades.
Veronica
Stephenson
As recently as ten years ago, “gut health” wasn’t something you would hear in everyday conversation; it was mostly tucked away in medical textbooks or confined to scientific research circles. Today, there’s a growing awareness of how vital the health of our gut is to our well-being, and terms like “microbiome” and “probiotics” have become relatively commonplace.
Gut health awareness is rising, but knowledge gaps persist
A recent study by the Biocodex Microbiota Institute showed that across 7,500 people in 11 countries, 70 per cent have heard about the human microbiome — but gaps in knowledge are still a major factor. For instance, though many people have heard of the gut microbiome, relatively few know that our skin and lungs, among other major organs, have microbiomes of their own. And not everyone who has heard of the microbiome is confident in their knowledge about it. What exactly is the microbiome, and how can you improve and maintain your gut health?
From gut to skin, the microbiome is everywhere
The microbiome is the collection of
more than 100 trillion microorganisms — bacteria, fungi, and viruses — that live in and on our bodies. Meanwhile, the term microbiota refers to the organisms themselves. These microorganisms live in our gut, on our skin, and even in places like our mouth and lungs, helping regulate everything from digestion to immune response. Some studies focus on the microbiome as a whole, while others centre specific microbiota — like the yeast Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745, which has been clinically shown to help prevent and treat diarrhea caused by antibiotics, infections, and more.
Research on how our microbiome affects our health is still underway, and there’s a lot we don’t know — but we do know there are concrete steps everyone can take to improve their gut health.
How to feed your gut
It probably won’t surprise you to hear that diet is a major factor in maintaining gut health. Eating a wide range of foods, especially high-fibre fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, can help promote the growth of beneficial bacteria. These bacteria can’t thrive on just anything—foods like broccoli, oatmeal, and blueberries (to name a few) act as “prebiotics,” or food that helps microbiota thrive.
Probiotics, or products that actually contain microbiota like beneficial bacteria and yeast, also play an important role. These can help keep your immune system strong, help to counteract the side effects of antibiotics, and even help your microbiome resist the negative effects of stress or a poor diet. There are lots of probiotics on the market, but Florastor stands out as an all-in-one product — that can be taken as a preventive or curative use — and offers unique benefits for gut health.
It’s the only probiotic that contains the yeast Saccharomyces boulardii CNCM I-745, a unique strain that has been studied in over 130 clinical trials and researched worldwide for over 65 years. The Florastor range is suitable for a wide range of dietary preferences — it’s vegetarian, gluten-free, and non-GMO. Conveniently, it doesn’t require refrigeration and is available in various forms like powder sachets and capsules. Plus, it can be taken at any time, even alongside antibiotics.
To learn more about how Florastor products can help support your family’s gut health, visit florastor.ca
This article was sponsored by Florastor
Here Are Two Key Considerations to Support Your Digestive Health
While both naturally help the digestive process and improve gut health, there are some noteworthy differences between enzymes and bitters.
Katherine Cappellacci
When selecting a product that works to support digestion, it’s important to consider how the supplement functions. Digestive enzymes are popular as they can temporarily help one component of digestion to provide short-term relief. These proteins are naturally found in the pancreas, gallbladder, liver, stomach, saliva, and intestinal tract.
Each enzyme works on a specific part of food. For example, protease breaks down protein in peptides and amino acids, amylase breaks carbohydrates into simple sugars, lipase breaks down fats into fatty acids, and alpha-galactosidase helps to break down highfibre foods like beans and vegetables.
In comparison, bitters act as a digestive tonic, holistically preparing, activating, and supporting healthy digestion. In other words, they help kick digestion into action and contain compounds that relieve symptoms of indigestion.
Ways they differ
Bitter herb receptors signal the release of secretions that are essential to breaking down food and metabolizing nutrients like gastric juices, saliva, enzymes, and bile.
Bitter herb receptors signal the release of secretions that are essential to breaking down food and metabolizing nutrients like gastric juices, saliva, enzymes, and bile.
Thus, another key difference is that bitters holistically activate the body’s digestive mechanisms, while enzymes temporarily support only one digestive component. What’s more, supplementary enzymes may lose activity before reaching the spot for which they are needed. On the other hand, there are bitter receptors all throughout the digestive tract — including in the intestines.
It's clear why bitter herbs have a lengthy history of being used to support overall health. However, modern eating patterns and practices have gradually and selectively removed bitter-flavoured foods, which is why St. Francis Herb Farm provides a line of digestive health products that can help the whole family harness the benefits of bitters in the body.
Resolve and reactivate
St. Francis Herb Farm’s Canadian Bitters® product line promotes and supports healthy digestion, relieving indigestion symptoms like heartburn, bloating, and gas. Non-habit-forming, certified gluten-free, and 100 per cent natural, these products can be taken daily to support digestive organs. They’re made up of a signature blend of nine certified organic herbs with bitter compounds, including globe artichoke, dandelion, gentian, chamomile, and turmeric.
Along with the Canadian Bitters® tonic, there’s also the Canadian Bitters® Maple and Maple Spray, which have a touch of natural sweetness. Offering a new spin on traditional digestive support is the brand’s Canadian Bitters® with Apple Cider Vinegar.
By harnessing the power of the medicinal parts of plants, St. Francis Herb Farm has created and perfected the Holistic-Herb ApproachTM . They also works closely with Canadian organic farms, who prioritize a wholesome, back-to-basics way of living. Committed to working with natural ingredients, the company extracts healing compounds from nature to create formulas that support the digestive process and overall heath.
DEMYSTIFYING GUT HEALTH: An Expert Q&A with Andrea Hardy
Incorporating the power of delicious and simple foods into your diet, like Activia probiotic yogurt, can help support your gut health and overall wellbeing.
Tania Amardeil
Ahealthy life starts from the gut which plays an important role in supporting a strong immune system, enhancing nutrient absorption, and promoting overall health and well-being.
It’s important to consume a diverse range of fibre-rich foods, stay hydrated, manage stress, get regular exercise, prioritize sleep, and eat probiotic foods like probiotic yogurt.
The power of daily probiotic yogurt for all ages Incorporating probiotic yogurts into your daily routine can contribute to your digestive health, regardless of your age or dietary requirements.
Activia, the pioneer of probiotic yogurt, driven by science and backed by decades of research, boasts an exclusive probiotic strain and contains more than one billion probiotics per serving. When consumed twice (two servings) a day for two weeks as part of a balanced diet and healthy lifestyle, Activia yogurt may help reduce the frequency of digestive issues such as bloating, gas, discomfort, and rumbling.
Whether it’s in a breakfast bowl or drinkable format when on the go, probiotic yogurt caters to different needs and preferences, making it even easier to enjoy the benefits.
Debunking Common Gut Health Misconceptions
We chatted with Andrea Hardy, a registered dietitian, Canada’s Gut Health Expert, and long-time partner of Activia to debunk common gut health misconceptions.
Is it true that all fermented foods are probiotics?
Andrea Hardy: Not necessarily. A food only counts as a probiotic if it possesses the right amount of microbes that have been shown to have health benefits. Some fermented foods might lack these live cultures, as food processing such as pasteurization can destroy bacteria. Looking for terms such as 'active probiotics' on packaging can help confirm you're reaping probiotic benefits.
Is it true that all probiotics have the same health benefits?
AH: No, not all probiotics are the same. Different strains can have different effects on the body. For example, Activia contains the exclusive probiotic Bifidobacterium lactis, contributing to healthy gut flora. The addition of this exclusive probiotic strain is what makes Activia one of the few probiotic yogurts on the market.
Probiotics are living organisms that thrive on consistency, not intensity. Choosing an option that is affordable, delicious, and easy to incorporate into any lifestyle is a simple way to maintain gut health at any age.
Andrea Hardy Registered Dietitian & Canada’s Gut Health Expert
Are regular gas, bloating, and discomfort a typical part of digestion or should they be cause for concern?
AH: While occasional digestive discomfort can be normal, regular occurrences of these symptoms may indicate an underlying gut issue. Consult a physician if these symptoms occur weekly or more frequently, or if they significantly affect your daily life.
Is eating a high-fibre diet enough for gut health?
AH: While fibre is crucial for gut health, a balanced diet is essential. Incorporating a variety of different colours and types of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains fuels those microbes and fosters a healthy gut microbiome. However, it's vital to make probiotic-containing products a regular part of your diet. Probiotics are living organisms that thrive on consistency, not intensity. Choosing an option that is affordable, delicious, and easy to incorporate into any lifestyle is a simple way to maintain gut health at any age.
To support better gut health, Activia recently launched its Gut Health Program, including The Gut Health Tracker which allows users to assess their personalized gut health score and receive expert insights into how they can maintain or improve their existing lifestyle habits to support digestive wellness.
Start your gut health journey by taking Activia’s Gut Health Tracker test, available at activia.ca/en/ gut-health-tracker
This article was sponsored by Activia
Say Hello to a New Way of Accessing a Critical IBD Biologic Therapy
For years, people living with moderate to severe IBD needed to access a foundational critical therapy at an infusion centre. Now they can have it at home.
Anne Papmehl
About 1 in 140 Canadians is living with Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis — two of the most common forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). While these are two different and distinct conditions, they share some common characteristics. Both involve inflammation of the lining of the gastrointestinal tract, and both can cause debilitating symptoms such as abdominal pain and cramping, diarrhea, rectal bleeding, weight loss, and poor appetite.
Since its approval over 20 years ago, a biosimilar known as infliximab has been a foundational therapy in treating moderate to severe IBD, as well as certain forms of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). However, until recently, the only way to receive this treatment was through intravenous injection administered at infusion centres — which, for some patients, can be inconvenient, time-consuming, and costly to access.
A new at-home option
With Health Canada’s recent approval of a subcutaneous form of infliximab, Canadians living with IBD now have the option to receive their treatment at home. This can help reduce the logistical challenges and costs of travelling to an infusion centre, which is especially meaningful to patients living in rural or remote areas away from major cities, where infusion centres are more common. With this new subcutaneous option, patients can self-inject their treatment at home and at their convenience based on a plan determined by their health care team.
Giving patients the choice as to where they prefer to receive treatment — at an infusion centre or at home — is a decisive step toward a new era of personalized medicine and a more patient-centric approach to managing IBD.
Whether someone is new to this therapy or a long-time patient, this subcutaneous option offers many advantages to patients living busy lifestyles and managing family responsibilities. If subcutaneous infliximab is suitable, they may no longer have to arrange time off work to visit an infusion centre or worry about leaving their home, country, or care team for extended periods of time.
A wealth of efficacy and safety data
The approval of the subcutaneous administration of infliximab is the culmination of rigorous clinical trials and real-world data proving the efficacy and safety of this mode of treatment. This data was recently presented at the 19th Congress of European Crohn’s and Colitis Organisation. This level of robust data is not common with many biosimilars.
Whether it’s infusion or subcutaneous treatment, most biologic and biosimilar therapies offer extensive support programs to guide patients through their treatment journey, and this includes IBD patients. These programs often include tailored support and resources to meet their individual needs. Health Care Practitioners can offer more information about these offerings and their suitability for patients. Depending on the specific therapy regimen, patients starting treatment may have to undergo a few infusion cycles before moving to the subcutaneous mode. Patients should speak to their physician and healthcare team who can recommend the best course of action based on their individual situation. The IV infusion of infliximab may be the most suitable option for patients who require greater attention from their care team or prefer not to self-inject their therapy. But either way, with this new mode of treatment delivery, patients with IBD now have more options and choice in managing their condition
DR. JASON REINGLAS
What challenges do patients face in the diagnosis or treatment of IBD?
Sometimes the diagnosis is unclear and hard to come to terms with because it’s a lifelong illness without a medical cure. The treatments available alter the immune system to allow the bowel to heal itself enabling patients to live normal lives. Accepting the concept and time commitment that someone needs medication for the rest of their life can be challenging.
What can you tell us about the new infliximab option?
Infliximab is one of our most effective and versatile agents for treating IBD. The main downfalls of it are that patients have to take four hours out of their day to get it at an infusion center frequently and their bodies can reject it, which may lead to dangerous infusion reactions. This new injectable version makes the medication more accessible to the patient and removes the risk of infusion reactions altogether.
article was sponsored by Celltrion Healthcare Canada, Ltd
