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Why are we so lactose intolerant anyways?
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Lactose is a naturally occurring sugar in dairy products made up of two molecules: glucose and galactose. In order to absorb it, our bodies needs the lactase enzyme to break lactose into its single sugar molecules.
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Lactose is produced along the brush border of our gut cells. 🧬 And we all have differing genetic abilities to produce lactose…but for those who are not of Northern European descent, most of us don’t make much of it past infancy.
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👩🏻‍🔬 A recent study in Lancet Gastroenterology & Hepatology found that lactose intolerance was 28% in Europe, 64% in Asia and 70% in the Middle East. In Northern Africa, it was 66% and sub-Saharan Africa was 63%. Some outliers include a low of 13% in Niger and a high of 100% in South Korea. Canada rang in at 59% and USA at 36%
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🔥 Damage to the brush border from inflammatory conditions like celiac disease and Crohn’s disease can also reduce our lactase production either temporarily or permanently.
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If we consume more lactose than we can break down, undigested lactose travels through our gut, drawing water to itself which can loosen up our 💩 and getting fermented by our gut bacteria, which can cause 💨
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Lactose is a FODMAP, so it can contribute to symptoms of IBS too ✨
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The good news? Well, it’s easy to find lactose free dairy but/and/also….remember that dairy free is a DELICIOUS and 🌎 🐮 friendly way to get that calcium in too 🌱
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If you’ve got tummy troubles like persistent gas, bloating and diarrhea, go talk to your doc about lactose intolerance!
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(PMID: 28690131) ...

Get to know your second brain 🧠
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Our bodies are so freaking awesome. But they’re also hella complex. Which can make caring for them a bit frustrating.
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Especially the gut stuff: it’s not as simple as ditching one food or taking one pill. And it’s really easy to get trapped in a cycle of restriction-temporary improvement-backslide-restriction that leaves you feeling unwell and hopeless.
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So let’s start by understanding part of what makes the gut so complex - its NERVOUS SYSTEM 💆🏻‍♀️
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The enteric nervous system allows the gut to regulate its movement, create feedback loops based on sensory and even immune inputs (which is why food poisoning makes you 💩) and enables two way communication with your 🧠
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Even before we had the science to understand gut-brain connection, we intuited it. It’s why we say, ‘trust your gut’ or that we have ‘butterflies in our stomach’.
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If we want to get our gut health back on track, we have to investigate nervous system inputs, like how faulty gut brain connection can be a sneaky cause of chronic constipation. And when we’re creating a plan to improve the gut, we have consider stress in equal measure to our nutrition.
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WELCOME TO THE MONDAY GUT SERIES FRIENDS ✨
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Thanks for all of your awesome questions! We’re going to cover topics big and small, foundational and specific. So many turn on post notifications or something? 👋
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ALSO!! JOIN ME FOR ‘THIS IS YOUR GUT ON PLANTS’ at @plantedexpo at the Vancouver convention centre Sunday Nov 21 at 2:15PM along with a ton of other amazing folks @dr.matthewnagra @easyanimalfree @dr.plantbased and even @richroll 🤯 ...

COZY STARTS HERE 🍎
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These apple pie oats are like the breakfast equivalent of your fave cozy blanket, so good you won’t mind that it’s still dark out when you wake up 😴
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What makes these oats one of the most popular on my website is definitely the salted tahini caramel apples that are the perfect combination of sweet and salty.
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The apples come together WAY faster than you think ie once the oats are done, so are the 🍎
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Oatmeal is really the perfect cool weather breakfast because it’s rich in soluble fibre - including beta glucan - to support your gut microbiome. Keeping your gut bugs healthy is important for a healthy gut and immune response.

You’ll get 6 different plant foods in a single meal, which helps boost the microbiome too. Some folks call those plant points ✅

These oats get a boost in minerals and plant-based protein from hemp hearts, tahini (rich in calcium!) and crunchy walnuts.
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Have you tried them yet? Recipe link in my bio 👩🏻‍🍳 ...

New recipe 🚨 Green Beans with Dijon Butter
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As much as I LOVE vegetables, I’m not one to just flop a vegetable on the plate, naked as the day it was grown.
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Give me FLAVOUR, and be quick about it. 🤤
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These green beans do just that: sautéed in olive oil and then lavished in Dijon + butter and topped with rich + crunchy walnuts.

Not too many ingredients, and not a ton of time.
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For the vegan butter, I like one that actually tastes more like butter so my faves are Melt Organic and Miyokos. Do you have a fave vegan butter?
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For the full recipe, head to the link in my profile ✨ ...

Anyone else love a good sandwich?

I’m not sure how sandwiches got relegated to the ‘unhealthy’ pile. Fear of ‘carbs’, I suppose 😩

But a good sandwich has it all:

🌱 plenty of gut + microbiome boosting fibre

🌱 slow burn carbs that won’t crash you out

🌱 plenty of plant-based protein to keep energy stable so you blast past that mid-afternoon slump

🌱 fruit and veg to top up your cells nutrient banks

Sometimes, I just wanna grilled cheeze…and that’s awesome.

But I also love crafting a sandwich that’s as energizing as it is delicious. So on the blog, I’ve got a round up of truly interesting sandwiches to busy lunch boredom! (Link in profile as always)

Also, I’m just about to start Squid Game so no spoilers…but are you loving it?…I couldn’t resist this meme! ...