If binge-watching every horror movie ever created has taught us anything, it’s that most of the time the bad guy is coming from inside the house—and the same could go for your gut-health issues.
Okay, before you go all Michael Meyers on your pad, there’s a few things you should know when it comes to keeping your gut out of harm’s way. For a deeper dive into the things creeping around your home (and how to transform it into a digestion-friendly sanctuary), we tapped Anna Shadid, integrative nutrition health coach at Gorgeous Gut.
“Since bacteria colonize on all the surfaces we interact with, it is important to cultivate a healthy environment for bacteria to thrive in the home,” Shadid says. Rather than focusing entirely on the foods you consume (even though that is super important), looking at your gut health from a holistic standpoint can churn out positive changes that actually last.
Aside from giving your home a mini gut-approved makeover, taking a probiotic supplement could also aid in your quest for a healthy digestive system. With 90 billion live cultures and 10 different probiotic strains, Renew Life Women’s Complete 90 Billion is something you can easily integrate into your everyday life while reaping all the digestion bonuses.
Keep scrolling to learn how to help boost your gut health—starting with what’s inside your home.
Opt for nontoxic cleaning products
While cleaning your home is just part of, well, being an adult (and tends to help out your immune system in general), the products you’re using could be contributing to your nonstop trips to the bathroom. Shadid tells her patients who are dealing with gut discomfort to switch to nontoxic products as soon as possible.
“In addition to leaky gut, chemical-laden cleaning products can disrupt your hormonal balance,” according to Shadid. “Your gut serves as an orchestrator of healthy hormonal responses, so when there is dysfunction on the gut level, the communication between hormones is disrupted.” And when your hormones are disrupted, says Shadid, it could potentially lead to allergies, arthritis, digestive distress, insomnia, and skin issues, among other things that pretty much suck.
Your home might be *too* clean
Before you get carried away with your new nontoxic cleaning products, maybe slow it down a bit. “A sterile or too clean environment can have a negative impact on your gut health and diversification,” Shadid adds. Just like your roommate, bacteria has a role in your at-home ecosystem—except maybe bacteria will actually remember to do the dishes.
“It is beneficial to welcome in much more than the good bacteria,” she says. “If your environment is predictable and very separate from nature, it is a challenge to have a strong internal defense system.” Just repeat this the next time your mom decides to pop over to your apartment unexpectedly.
Watch out for mold
“Mold is really good at hiding, and can therefore go unnoticed for long periods of time,” Shadid notes. And if you’re inhaling moldy air (doesn’t that just sound lovely?) on a daily basis, your gut and mucosal linings—which protect your immune system—could be compromised.
However, if you are exposed to mold or haven’t rid your home of chemical-laden products just yet, Shadid recommends taking a probiotic, like Renew Life Women’s Complete 90 Billion. “Probiotic supplements help build up your internal defense system against toxic triggers in your home environment,” she says.
And if you’re looking for smaller ways to give your gut a healthy jolt around the house, Shadid has you covered, too. “Add plants to help cleanse the air, diffuse therapeutic grade essential oils, make your own all-purpose cleaner, and purchase an air purifier,” she adds. See? Easy peasy.
In partnership with Renew Life
Top photo: Getty Images/Kharichkina
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