Gut feeling
I enjoyed your article on microbiomes and the effect they play in your health (February, p24). I’ve always been pretty healthy and active, and for the last 25-plus years I’ve eaten an ovo-lacto-pesco diet have and have reduced milk consumption to a minimum. I’ve always exercised, and before my kids were born I was a busy personal trainer. For the last six years I’ve taught group fitness in several different formats. See, I’m pretty healthy!
During last year’s school summer holidays, (yep, I teach performing arts and dance at my kids’ school) I picked up some extra group fitness classes. I was running from class to class and not preparing snacks, so I found myself cruising to a big fast food chain since it was close and convenient. A small fries and a smoothie – how bad could that be, right? BAD! My belly started to bloat, I started to feel tired and ‘off’. Even my daughter commented that my belly looked bloated. I looked pregnant! It was not vanity that drove me to look for a solution but my loss of that feeling of balance and wellbeing. I just wasn’t used to feeling this awful. I did some looking around and I found a probiotic that had some good reviews so I decided to give it a try. Within a week I was starting to feel better, my energy was returning, bodily functions were becoming regular and I was starting to feel like my old self again. The
directions said to take one capsule in the morning and one in the evening but I found that I had way too much energy to sleep well at night if I took it then. I know it says in the column that you aren’t convinced by these kind of supplements, but I like my probiotics. Thanks for continuing to spread the word, hopefully it helps someone else get their balance. Natasha Starbuck-Smith, via email