With the festive and wedding seasons crossing paths this year, it is arguably more important to give our gut and body the time it needs to reset and detox now more than any other time. And no, I'm not talking about the kind of detox that's done solely on juices or soups, leaving you feeling hollow and hangry. We're going to take a more no-starvation-required approach to getting your gut in the healthiest shape it's ever been in.

I don't know about you, but I grew up learning that bacteria was something to be afraid of. Imagine my surprise, when a few months ago, I was told I had to maintain the bacteria levels in my gut, if I ever wanted a chance at a healthy digestion. That's when I learnt to think of my gut as having a little ecosystem of its own and of the importance of balance within that ecosystem. To put things into perspective, your gut is in the driver's seat, steering most of the processes that help you function. And there are good guys, as well as bad guys. We're of course going to focus on looking after our good guys, a.k.a good bacteria.

What The Experts Do For A Thriving Gut

We spoke to Simran Valecha, Health, Wellness & Weight Loss Expert and Anju Valecha, ACE Certified Nutritionist, who offered us clarity on why we should be more concerned about our gut health than anything else. "The gut is the second brain of our body. All our emotions are reflected through the gut in response to the food we eat - a poor gut is reflected through your hair, skin, indigestion and terminal illnesses - if you do suffer from any of this, focus on healing emotionally. Gut health is important to maintain overall good health. Once gut health is compromised, it takes a long time to get back on track."

To show you just how simple taking care of your gut health can be, they shared some of their favourite tips with us, "Even just including high fibre foods, colourful fruits and vegetables maintains optimal gut health. Consuming 12-14 glasses of water goes a long way toward improving gut function. A balanced plate is the most efficient way to optimise gut health- carbs, protein, healthy fats, vitamins & minerals and fibre are all important components. A common example is our typical Indian diet of roti/rice, cooked vegetables, paneer/ chicken and salad. Along with this, exercising 4-5 times a week keeps your metabolism going, leading to improved gut health." She also had some words of warning to end with, "There is a lot more awareness in the eating habits of today’s youth- people are definitely a lot more mindful about what they eat and what goes into their system. While the desired result is better health and wellness, there is a fine line between using this information as a tool and being obsessed with it- the latter leads to gut health issues because of the stress."

As a simple little cheat sheet that you can follow to keep all those good bugs in your tummy happy, here are a few points to focus on:

1. Getting thirty minutes of some sort of movement in your body everyday.
2. Focus on eating wholesome, home-cooked food made with whole grains and vegetables.
3. Up your pro and prebiotic intake via foods like yogurt, sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, tempeh, bananas, apples, almonds, and garlic and ginger.
4. Avoiding sugar, refined flour, fried foods, spicy condiments and excessive dairy.
5. Practising meditation, singing, journaling, walking barefooted on grass or other self-soothing techniques, if your stress levels are high.

If there's one thing you take away from all his information, it should be that taking care of your gut health is less about restrictive diets and a checklist, and more about giving your digestive system the love it deserves. Here’s to embracing wellness from the inside out—because when your gut feels good, everything else will follow suit!