The Things I do to Care for my Microbiome
The microbiome is the trillions of bacteria which live within our bodies; and particularly within our guts. Our microbes have many important functions, such as helping to digest substances that we are unable to digest; they produce vital vitamins that are important for our health; and they also play a key role in our immune function. It is therefore in our best interest that we care for our microbes by giving them everything they need to thrive. Read on for the things that I do in my daily life to care for my microbes.
I try to eat at least 30 plants per week
Tim Spector, a leading scientist in the field of nutrition and the microbiome recommends that we aim to eat 30 plants per week to increase the diversity of our microbiomes. This may sound daunting, but don’t worry, it’s easy than it sounds. ‘Plants’ includes fruit and vegetables of course, but also nuts, seeds, herbs and spices. If you have avocado toast for breakfast on seeded sourdough, topped with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of spices & seeds, you can probably tick off 10-15 plants in just one meal! It’s particularly beneficial to eat plants which are high in inulin; a type of fibre which is loved by our microbes. Onions, leeks, garlic, oats and bananas are all high in inulin.
I take probiotics daily
Taking a probiotic is one way to improve the balance of good bacteria within your gut. I choose to take Seed which is a prebiotic and probiotic in one, meaning it delivers both the beneficial bacteria & what those bacteria like to eat, straight into my digestive system.
I avoid UPF as much as possible
UPF stands for ultra-processed food, and while people may squabble about exactly which foods are considered UPF, I consider UPF to be any food which contains ingredients that you don’t recognise / couldn’t have in your cupboard at home. Charlie and I check the ingredients of all of the food that comes into our home, and we try to find non-UPF versions of common products such as sauces and condiments.




I regularly eat fermented food
Fermented food is really beneficial for your microbiome as it’s packed full of beneficial microbes. I try to eat a good range of fermented food (such as kefir, sourdough and live greek yogurt) to try to consume a wide variety of good bacteria.
I drink coffee every day
We used to think that coffee was bad for us as in the short term it increases our blood pressure, which was thought to be linked to heart disease, but it turns out we had it all wrong! While coffee increases our blood pressure in the short term, it has been shown to actually decrease our blood pressure and our risk of heart disease in the long term. Tim Spector recently published a study that found that people who regularly drink coffee (including decaf) have much greater numbers of a few key microbes that are beneficial for our health. You can read more about this study here.
I place a high importance on sleep
Did you know that sleep is also important for your microbiome? Getting enough, good quality sleep is associated with having a healthier microbiome. I therefore try to sleep around 8 hours per night and I try to keep my sleep and wake up times the same throughout the week, even on weekends. I am also trying to avoid going on screens right before bed as screen-time can disrupt your sleep.
If you’d like to learn more about the ways to improve the health of your microbiome, and your overall health, we’d recommend these resources…
ZOE Science & Nutrition
In the ZOE Podcast, some of the world’s top scientists explain the latest health and nutrition science and teach us how to apply their learnings in our everyday lives.
Ultra-processed People by Chris van Tulleken
This book uncovers what ultra-processed food is, why it is now so dominant across the world, and how it’s harming our health. This book is truly mind-blowing and we’d recommend that everyone reads it!
The Dr. Hyman Show
In his groundbreaking podcast, Dr. Hyman tackles all of the most pressing issues of our time including chronic disease, food policy and longevity. This is an American podcast but is still very applicable to those in the UK.
Feel Better, Live More with Dr Rangan Chatterjee
Dr Rangan Chatterjee uses his podcast to simplify health advice, and to give the public easy, practical hacks to improve the way we eat, sleep and move.

