Listen to your gut

We all know the importance of good health but making sure we stay on top of it is another thing. Marks & Spencer are promising to make this easy for us with their new collaboration with ZOE. The exclusive ZOE x M&S Food Gut

Shot at €3 is a little bottle with big benefits. M&S approached ZOE to help develop its ultimate gut shot. After a hundreds of tastings, they have bottled up nearly a decade of ZOE’S microbiome research and innovation to create a daily shot that’s packed with over 5 billion live cultures from 14 strains of gut-friendly bacteria. It also contains fibre and is a source of calcium, contributing to the normal functioning of digestive enzymes. It’s a kefir-based shot, made from whole fermented milk and fruit, including blackcurrants, strawberries, baobab and blueberries.

Professor Tim Spector, co-founder of the science nutrition company ZOE, shares his top tips for a healthy gut:

1 Eat a wide variety of fibre-containing foods. Prebiotic fibres in foods feed our gut bacteria, and we need a wide variety of these to feed the different beneficial bacterial species in our gut.

2 Eat the rainbow! Aim to enjoy a diverse range of different coloured plants – these foods are rich in fibre which good gut microbes love.

3 Eat more fermented foods. Aim to eat some – like kimchi, kefir, kombucha and sauerkraut – every day. They can contain live bacteria (probiotics) and some contain fibre.

4 Aim to eat 30 different plants a week. This can include herbs, spices, nuts, seeds, wholegrains, legumes and mushrooms.

5 Be snack savvy. Swapping out snacks like crisps or sweets for mixed nuts, berries or crudités will help you eat a more plant diverse diet.