A Gut Feeling: Conquer Your Sweet Tooth by Tuning Into Your Gut Microbiome

by Heather Anne Wise

We all know sugar is bad for us, so why can’t we stop eating it? A Gut Feeling gives a personal and scientific look into the world of microbes that live within our bodies and how they can explain our relationship to and cravings for certain foods. Heather Wise takes the reader through a hidden inner world of microflora that shapes our mood, physical health, sweet cravings, and even genes. She makes us question whether a diet high in sugary, processed, dead foods—devoid of any microscopic life—may be causing us to feel sick, tired and depressed.

The microbiome is emerging as the answer to many of our most sought after questions. Using her own story and the science currently available, Wise provides a window into the latest research on the vast world of microbes in our bodies. She explains in simple terms how what we eat can change the expression of our genes and how this symbiotic relationship between microbes and human cells can determine our health. This understanding sheds light on the fact that the genetic makeup of our bodies is more malleable than we could have ever imagined. Wise’s book gives us the opportunity to transform our health for the better by mindfully eating foods, herbs, and teas that improve the health of our microbiome, and cutting down on the foods, medications, and chemicals in our environment that are diminishing beneficial microbes in our delicate inner ecosystem.

A Gut Feeling offers practical steps to rebalancing and healing our gut microbiome to relieve stress, digestive upsets, inflammation, bloat, excess belly fat, and improve mood. Wise offers a needed alternative to the complex world of fad diets and calorie counting in this easy, evidence-based guide for wellbeing. Rooted in scientific research and providing a number of healthy sweet fixes high in prebiotic and probiotic foods that support the growth of healthy gut flora, this book is a practical guide to help heal our relationship with food and tune into what our gut has been trying to tell us.

Genres: Health, Nonfiction, Audiobook, Diets

208 pages, Hardcover

Published September 8, 2018

Reviews

[Ell · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are looking to learn more about the gut and its microbiome, A Gut Feeling, is an excellent place to begin. I consider myself moderately educated on the subject and I found myself learning quite a bit. The questionnaires, and tips are useful. There are studies to support the author's claims. Each chapter outlines Takeaways, bulleted points of the most important information contained in the chapter. I found this very handy.

[Michaela · Rating 4 out of 5]

May be one of two most important books I've read this year. In addition to explaining the complexity and importance of the Microbiome she offers hope (change your Microbione, change you) and tips (diet changes.) Make no mistake, the heavy lifting is still on your shoulders. She also offers insight into the alkaline-acidic theory I had always thought was bunk. So you're not changing the pH of your blood, but rather eating foods that lower the acidity of your urine. "While lemon juice..is acidic..what affects the pH of your digestive tract is whether alkaline or acidic by-products are produced during the fermentation process that takes place in your GI tract....your body quickly metabolizes the citric acid...but the mineral content of the lemon juice -calcium, magnesium, potassium, copper, and manganese...takes longer...needs to go all the way through your intestines to be absorbed. ...As a result, your urine pH rises. Acidic nutrients such as excessive animal protein. ..increase the amount of acid the kidneys must filter out...."

She says Genova Diagnostics can provide stool test score reflecting number of commensal bacteria out of normal range which you can then take probiotic with specific strain missing or lacking.

Key players:
Bifidobacterium bifidum
" longum
" breve
" infantis
Lactobacillus acidophilus
" bulgaricus
" brevis
" casei
" rhamnosus
Saccharomyces boulardii

A 5-day course of ciproflixin can take 2 years to recover from.

Intake of lactobactillus in probiotic yogurt can reduce stress-induced cortisol activity, anxiety and depression.

Prebiotics like leafy greens as effective as SSRI antidepressants like Citalopram (Prosac) & benzodiazeprene (Valium.)

1c broccoli 7g or spinach 13 g is adequate protein for one meal.

Eat kefir, sauerkraut, kombucha, miso!

[Book Him Danno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Heather Anne Wise contacted me about reading her book A Gut feeling and quickly sent me a link to Netgalley.
Now having a Huge sweet tooth I wanted to better understand what microbiome and how it effects my gut.
I found so much amazing information that I hadn't been told about before.
The author set up the book so that is it easy to follow Chapter overview and summaries along with bullet points for the most important information you need to watch for.
I can say I found information to be helpful as I try to find a healthier way for my little family to eat.

Thank you to Netgalley, The Author and Publisher Rowman & Littlefield Publishers for the advance copy of A Gut Feeling

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well-researched, detailed, explained clearly. One of these days, I’m going to read a book about gut health that will actually inspire me to eat better.

[Just Mate A Book · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is for layman understanding of the how your gut and mental emotional overall well-being is connected. How gut and brain, enteric nervous system , autonomic nervous system and central nervous system are connected and influencing each other. And how to start on acting in providing the body want it needs to stay healthy and flourish. Aside all the essential basic information, it also consists of steps to be taken , along with recipes by the author. It's a good book to kick start healthier happier living. Based on researches of the past , author has made understanding gut microbiome easier and approachable. Totally recommend it to beginners!💗

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

There was a lot of really great info in here. Much of it you’ll already know if you have done any previous research into gut microbiomes or clean eating, but I did learn some new things and i was reminded of some others I knew but had forgotten. It’s a good starter book for anyone looking to improve their gut health or quit sugar.

I dropped two stars because sometimes it was hard to get through because it got it so much extra stuff. I was pretty bored.

[Lara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not my first book about gut & microbiome - but there were some new and interesting aspects for me. Others I didn't completely agree with. And even though things got kinda cringy and optimistic (especially towards the end) this book really dragged me down. But hey, maybe that's what I needed to get moving again.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

An alright book. Learned some new things about the microbiom and what one can do to support its health and combat Candidiasis.
What I didn't like however, was the pseudoscience present in some of the chapters.