“…as you’re about to learn in this book, fiber is the heart and soul of true gut healing, and true gut healing leads to better health in everything from your cardiovascular system to your brain health to your hormonal health.”

“Instead of offering recommendations based on trends and pseudoscience, my program offers you a scientifically validated approach that will truly heal your gut by restoring order to your gut microbiome.”

“You’re going to learn in this book that you are one of a kind with a gut microbiome as unique as a fingerprint. So there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to diet. Something that works for another person may not work for you…”

“Simply put, the greatest determinant of your health during your lifetime is the food that you choose to eat. As it turns out, your diet is also the greatest determinant of the health of your microbiome.”

Bullet Summary – Main Point of the Book

• A healthy gut microbiome is critical for human health. Many of the top diseases and health problems have been traced to having an unhealthy gut microbiome.
• You control the state of your gut microbiome by what you eat. Eating healthy foods (aka plants) promotes healthy bacteria in the gut that release beneficial compounds like Short Chain Fatty Acids (SCFAs). Eating unhealthy foods like meat and processed foods promote bacteria that release harmful compounds that inflame and hurt the body. You need to have more healthy gut bacteria than unhealthy ones so the healthy bacteria can suppress the unhealthy ones
• Eating fiber is the key to flourishing, healthy gut bacteria and fiber is only found in plants.
• Human’s rely on gut bacteria to break down fiber and complex carbs. When fiber is broken down by the bacteria, short chain fatty acids (SCFAs) are released. There are many different types of fiber and each can create different types of beneficial SCFAs when broken down.
• Therefore it’s important to eat a wide variety of plants. This lets you promote all the different types of healthy gut bacteria and also have a lot of different healthy compounds (like SCFAs) be released into your body.

Overview of the Human Gut Microbiome

• Gut Microbiota: All the microorganisms that live in a human’s gut
• Microbiome: The genetic code of the gut microbiota
• The five types of microorganisms in the gut
  • Bacteria: Living single-celled organisms. They sound scary to many people but most of them are actually beneficial to humans.
  • Yeast (fungi): Multicellular organisms that have a nucleus and other organelles.
  • Viruses: Tiny particles of DNA (or RNA) that aren’t considered to be living. Similarly to bacteria they are generally perceived as bad but not all are trying to hurt humans.
  • Parasites: Organisms that steal energy from us and try to remain undetected. These are generally bad but they are actually more common than people think.
  • Archaea: Ancient organisms that existed before oxygen existed on the planet.
• There are thirty-nine trillion microorganisms in a human’s colon.
• Most of the organisms in the gut are bacteria.
• 60% of your poop is the bacteria from your gut

The Power of a Healthy Gut Microbiome

• “suppress pathogenic bacteria, process our drugs, and help us to process our food.”
• 70% of the immune system lives in the gut – “Evidence has shown us that the microbiota helps foster proper development of immune cells, identify invaders, get immune cells to the needed location, and then enhance their infection-fighting power.”
• Damage to the gut microbiome has been associated with many diseases and health problems – diabetes, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, migraines, autism, ADHD, cancer, stroke, kidney disease, heart disease
• Many of the top causes of death are due to lifestyle and diet, NOT genetics
• Note: A fecal transplant has been show to cure extremely sick person. A fecal transplant is essentially taking the gut microbes from a healthy human and putting them into another human.

Gut Bacteria Balance – Healthy vs Unhealthy

Dysbiosis: “…the loss of harmony and balance within the gut.” (damage to the gut)

• Issues arise when bad gut bacteria outnumber the good gut bacteria
• For example, if you have harmful C. Diff bacteria you might not know because you have enough good bacteria that they can suppress it. However, if you start eating poorly then the harmful C. diff multiplies and it can then cause harm.

Controlling the Gut Microbiome with Good Foods

• The food we eat is also food for your gut microbiota.
• “Each dietary choice you make will empower a specific group of microbes, while others will languish. If you permanently remove a food group, the microbes that thrive on that food will starve into extinction.”
• Healthy bacteria produce beneficial compounds when we eat healthy food. These compounds reduce inflammation and promote health. However, when we eat bad food they produce compounds that inflame our body.

The Fiber Fueled Diet and Lifestyle

• Get 90-100% of your food from whole plants
• Remember the Golden Rule: Diversity of Plants (Try to get 30+ different plants every week and try to eat many different colored plants)
• Try to hit the F GOALS every day
• Consider a prebiotic supplement
• Look into supplementing B12, D, and omega-3s
• Drink water throughout the day and avoid regular consumption of alcohol
• Don’t worry so much about restricting the amount you eat when you’re eating whole plant foods
• Take the time to chew your food (digestion starts in the mouth)
• Follow Time Restricted Eating based on your circadian rhythm – Eat in an 11 hour window during the day (ex: 7am – 6pm). No food besides water outside the window.
• Ensure you get quality sleep (this is rest for your gut too)
• Get exposure to the outdoors – look for opportunities to go outside
• Start an exercise routine or go for walks – this has a great effect on gut fitness too
• Socialize with other people. This can help you get exposed to the healthy bacteria of others
• Manage your stress

A Whole Food Plant Based Diet

• The Blue Zones are all at least 90% plant-based. Blue Zones are areas of the world where people live the longest and healthiest lives.
• The diet that most Americans consume is full of preservatives, chemicals, and animal proteins that harm our gut microbiome and promote bad bacteria. It’s also very low in fiber. Fiber is essential for developing a healthy gut

Fiber

• Fiber: A component of plant’s cellular structures. (the only place to get it is from plants)
• “I now legitimately believe that this is the single most important missing piece in the American diet.” “…fiber is the first, and potentially the most powerful, solution to restoring health to your gut microbiota, and from there your overall health.”
• Not all fiber is the same (in fact, scientists currently don’t even know how many exist)
  • It’s been simplified into two groups: soluble and insoluble
• Humans rely on the gut microbiome to break down complex carbs like fiber
• The breakdown of fiber releases different types of Short-Chain Fatty Acids (beneficial compounds)

Short Chain Fatty Acids (SCFAs)

• SCFAs make the colon more acidic which prevents the growth of pathogenic bacteria
• Fiber Feedback Loop: Eating fiber promotes healthy bacteria → they release SCFAs → SCFAs promote healthy bacteria → more healthy bacteria release more SCFAs → etc.
• “What I’m telling you is that SCFAs are a vital nutrient for intestinal health. They are the dominant energy source for your colon, support a healthy gut microbiota, repair leaky gut, reduce release of bacterial endotoxin, promote intestinal motility, and decrease visceral hypersensitivity. Read that sentence again: Let it sink in. I just described the cure for dysbiosis. I believe that dysbiosis is at the root of most modern disease.”
  • Some things SCFAs have been scientifically shown to help: Immune system, leaky gut, chrons disease, cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, weight loss, brain function (cognition)

The Golden Rule: Diversity of Plants – Eat the Rainbow

• “The single greatest predictor of a healthy gut microbiome is the diversity of plants in one’s diet”
• Whenever you’re dealing with food (supermarket, cooking, eating) “Think Diversity of Plants!“
• You should try to get 30 or more different plants every week
• Each plant contain different kinds of fibers which promote different types of healthy gut bacteria. Different types of gut bacteria help produce different kinds of beneficial compounds.
• Diversity of plants also maximizes the different nutrients that you are intaking. This can treat and sometimes reverse different medical problems. It may even help with problems you don’t even know are there yet.
• Plants contain their own microbiome that you consume when you eat them (these are probiotics)
• Eat the rainbow – the color of plants indicates that different phytochemicals are present. To get a true diversity of nutrients you should eat different colored food.
• It’s kind of like working out – eating diverse plants helps make all your different healthy gut microbes stronger. If you stop working out (eating diverse nutrients) then some of the microbes will get weaker.

Pre, Pro, and Post -biotics

• Prebiotics + Probiotics = Postbiotics
  • Prebiotics: Food for healthy gut microbes
  • Probiotics: Healthy gut microbes themselves
  • Postbiotics: Compounds produced by gut microbes
• Fiber is a prebiotic. Healthy gut bacteria can’t survive without it.
• A powerful postbiotic are SCFAs
• Prebiotic supplements have been shown to improve metabolic parameters in adults. The author takes prebiotics in his coffee on most days. Throughout the week he’ll use a different prebiotic in order to get variety.

Daily F Goals

Aim to consume all of these food groups every day – fruit, something fermented, leafy greens, whole grains, food containing omega-3s, aromatics, legumes, and cruciferous vegetables (Bonus: mushrooms and seaweed).

Tips and Tricks: “Mushrooms should be cooked, while aromatics and cruciferous vegetables are generally best enjoyed raw. Aromatics and cruciferous veggies have enzymes that need to be activated to maximize the health benefits, so we can use the CHOP then STOP trick to bring out those phytochemicals. When it comes to super seeds, remember: flax for lignans, chia for fiber, hemp for protein. Or why not all three in a morning smoothie? And don’t be shy about adding greens at every single meal, even if it’s just a handful that you eat raw. They are maximum nutrients with minimum calories.”

F: Fruit & Fermented

• Eat a variety of fruits
• Berries are especially great because they have a lot of phytochemicals
• Popular fermented foods: Sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, tempeh, sourdough bread, kombucha
• Get a small serving of fermented food in your daily routine

G: Greens & Grains (Whole)

• Whole grains are the foundation of building a healthy gut since they contain fiber
• Greens are packed with nutrients (kale, collard greens, spinach, arugula, bok choy, romaine)

O: Omega-3s

• Omega-3 and Omega-6 fats are essential (our body can’t make them so we need to eat them)
• Modern diets have many more omega-6s than omega-3s. This imbalance can lead to issues. Thus we need to consume
• Examples: Flaxseeds, Chia seeds, Hemp Seeds, Walnuts

A: Aromatics (onions, garlic)

• Add fresh herbs and other aromatics to your diet. They are nutrient-dense.
• You should buy these fresh and use the CHOP and STOP technique
• Examples: Onions, garlic, leeks, shallots, chives, scallions, basil

L: Legumes

• Legumes are very healthy and are another foundation of a healthy gut because of their fiber

S: Sulforophane

• Cruciferous vegetables contain a chemical called sulforophane than has a ton of health benefits (like cancer prevention)
• Examples: Broccoli, kale, arugula, cabbage, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, broccoli sprouts
• Use the CHOP and STOP technique or just sprinkle them with some mustard powder before eating them

S (Bonus): Shrooms & Seaweed

• Seaweed helps get nutrients that aren’t found in terrestrial plants
• Mushrooms has awesome prebiotics and nutrients that are very beneficial

Fermented Food

• Fermenting is the decomposition and breakdown of food by microbes. It’s the same process that’s happening in the human gut
• During fermentation new healthy microbes grow, fiber is broken down into beneficial compounds, and bioactive peptides and polyphenols are generated
• Note on kombucha: It’s very acidic so it’s not ideal to drink the entire bottle that you buy at the store. The author recommends drinking only 4 ounces of it a day.

Steps to Implement a Fiber Fueled Diet When You Have a Food Sensitivity

• First, deal with any constipation. “You absolutely will not have success on a plant-based diet if you are trying to ramp up fiber consumption while being constipated. In my clinic, we don’t even consider dietary changes until the constipation is corrected. I’d recommend consulting with your primary care doctor or a gastroenterologist”
• Next, determine if it’s a food allergy or food sensitivity
  • If it’s a food allergy then you actually do need to eliminate it. A food allergy is when your immune system is reacting to it. A food sensitivity is when your gut microbiome can’t process it correctly. Consult with a health professional. Food allergies typically lead to itchiness, hives, and trouble breathing while food sensitivities typically lead to gas, diarrhea, and bloating.
  • Do not consume gluten if you have celiac disease, a wheat allergy, or a non-celiac gluten sensitivity that has extra-intestinal symptoms
• Next, understand FODMAPs (Fermentable Oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols).
  • We rely on our gut microbes to digest these foods. Thus they can lead to food sensitivities.
  • The five categories
    • Lactose – Found in milk products
    • Fructose – Sugar thats found in things like fruit, some veggies, corn syrup, and honey
    • Fructans – Found in many foods like gluten-containing grains (wheat, barley, rye), fruits, and veggiest
    • Galacto-oligosaccharides (GOS) – Complex sugars in beans
    • Polyols – Sugar alcohols in artificial sweeteners, some fruits, and some veggies
  • “This is exactly how these FODMAP categories should be used: If you have difficulty in dealing with one particular category, then you know where the weakness in your gut lies and that you may need to go slow and easy on building up strength there. If you want a list of foods that fall into certain FODMAP categories, email me at fodmap@theplantfedgut.com and I’ll send you what you need.”
• Finally start to slowly introduce FODMAPs and fiber into your diet. At first eat a small amount so it doesn’t trigger any symptoms. Then slowly eat a little more each week. This will train your gut microbes to handle them. “Low and slow to grow – that’s the motto”.

Handling a Sensitive Gut (IBS and Food Sensitivities)

• The typical bad advice for a sensitivity to food is to get rid of it, cut it out, eliminate it. By cutting out sensitive foods you starve out any of the gut bacteria you have that can handle them. This makes the problem even worse because now you have even less bacteria to process these foods. (A vicious cycle)
• Treat your gut like a muscle at the gym: Instead of cutting out foods you should slowly incorporate them into your diet and let your gut adjust to them. Eventually you should be able to eat them without any problems. You need to treat your gut like a muscle.
• Part of the reason is that the human body relies on gut bacteria to process complex carbs. We can’t produce the correct enzymes to process them on our own.