Made with almonds and cashews and spiced with Christmas-inspired flavours, these bites offer 2 grams of fibre each, supporting your digestion while fuelling you through the holiday rush.

They’re the perfect pick me up during this busy season, we hope you enjoy this easy recipe!

Serves: 12

Time: 15 minutes

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup Pitted Dates
• 1/2 cup Almonds (raw)
• 1/4 cup Cashews (raw)
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon (ground)
• 1/4 tsp Ground Ginger
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract
• 1/4 tsp Sea Salt

Directions

1. Add the dates, almonds, cashews, cinnamon, ginger, vanilla and sea salt to a food processor and blend until well mixed and sticky.
2. Transfer to a medium-size mixing bowl. Form into even balls with your hands and store in the fridge or freezer until ready to enjoy.
3. Store in an air tight container up to one week. Store in the freezer for longer.

It can help give you the insight you’re looking for to help you discover the underlying cause to your ongoing digestive symptoms without spending more money on supplements that your gut may not even need.

From detecting the levels of good and bad bacteria, the presence of leaky gut syndrome, how inflamed your gut is (and why you’re reacting to so many foods!), to understanding how well your microbiome can breakdown fibre, fat and protein it leaves no stone unturned.

Through microbiome testing, you can learn how healthy your digestive system really is, and take some specific and tailored steps towards a healthier digestive system and to ease those unwanted digestive symptoms like abdominal pain, bloating, constipation or diarrhoea (for faster results!).

1. Markers Associated with Bloating, IBS and Constipation

If you’ve been experiencing constant bloating or irregular bowel motions such as alternating constipation and diarrhoea, understanding key negative markers that can impact your digestive health will help to direct your gut treatment.

For example excess production of hydrogen sulfide, a type of gas produced by specific microbes such as Bilophila wadsworthia, is associated with significant bloating, gas (which can smell like cabbage or eggs) and abdominal pain.

If you’ve been experiencing constipation, we will want to look out for a metabolite called methane which is a gas associated with constipation and slow gut motility.

Hexa lipopolysaccharide is another parameter that can be tested via microbiome testing which is a potent toxin produced by gram negative bacteria such as escherichia species (e.coli). If elevated, lipopolysaccharide can cause mucosal inflammation, leaky gut syndrome, and has been linked to type 2 diabetes, low mood, anxiety as well as cognitive impairment such as Alzheimer’s disease.

2. Inflammation Marker causing Abdominal Pain and Cramping

Calprotectin is a crucial marker in microbiome testing that reflects inflammation within the gastrointestinal tract.

Elevated calprotectin levels are often associated with abdominal pain, food sensitivities, and digestive discomfort, as the presence of inflammation can make the gut more reactive to certain foods.

When calprotectin levels are significantly high, it can indicate chronic inflammation and may serve as an early warning sign of inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), such as Crohn’s disease or Ulcerative colitis.

By identifying elevated calprotectin early, microbiome testing allows us to explore targeted interventions to support gut health and potentially prevent the progression of inflammation-related conditions.

As gut health practitioners we ideally want your calprotectin sitting well and truly below 50. If it comes back between 50 – 100 this can indicate mild – moderate inflammation driven by one or more of the following:

• Food sensitivity such as gluten, casein, eggs, soy or nuts
• A highly processed, inflammatory diet
• Excess alcohol or coffee intake
• Chronic stress increasing inflammation within the digestive system
• A pro-inflammatory bacteria causing damage to your gut wall e.g. e.coli
• Low levels of anti-inflammatory beneficial bacterial species

If your calprotectin marker comes back over 100, this is considered a red flag and you will be referred to your doctor for a colonoscopy to investigate the diagnosis of inflammatory bowel disease such as Crohn’s or Ulcerative Colitis.

Whilst you wait for further investigations your practitioner will continue to work with you through your diet, lifestyle and natural medicines to bring down inflammation in the interim.

3. Do You have Leaky Gut Syndrome?

Leaky gut syndrome is where the lining of the gut mucosal lining starts to break down, allowing undigested food particles, bacteria and toxins to cross the wall of the gut lining into the blood stream.

Leaky gut syndrome has been associated with a number of health conditions such as:

• Irritable Bowel Syndrome
• Allergies, Asthma and Eczema
• Non-Celiac Gluten Sensitivity and Celiac Disease
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Autoimmune diseases: IBD, Psoriasis, SLE, Type 1 Diabetes, Rheumatoid Arthritis, Multiple Sclerosis

A marker of leaky gut syndrome is called zonulin and is tested via the microbiome testing that we recommend called Co-Biome.

4. How Anti-inflammatory are your Gut Microbes?

Did you know that your bacteria living in your large intestine produce protective compounds when they break down fibre?

When you eat adequate amounts of fibre, your microbes will ferment this fibre producing a compound called short chain fatty acids which provide great benefits to your digestive health and wellness.

One of the most well researched short chain fatty acids is a compound called butyrate. Butyrate has been shown to provide the following health benefits:

• Reduce inflammation in the gut mucosal lining.
• Maintain the health of your gut barrier, and reducing the risk of leaky gut syndrome.
• Increase your immune defences against infection.
• Maintaining healthy glucose/blood sugar levels, reducing your incidence of diabetes.

If you aren’t eating adequate amounts of fibre and prebiotic rich foods, you won’t be feeding your beneficial bacteria which means you won’t reap the benefits of short chain fatty acids like butyrate.

For long term digestive health, it’s really important to ensure you are eating a wide variety of fibre rich foods and prebiotic foods to enhance your butyrate production.

This all starts with ensuring you have a highly diverse microbiome. For a healthy gut we would like to see your gut microbiome have over 176 species of bacteria. This diversity and richness can only be picked up by one test available in Australia called Co-Biome and is why we recommend this test solely in our clinic to give us the complete picture on healthy your gut microbiome really is.

5. Is Poor Digestion Causing Your Bloating and Gas?

Have you ever felt like you can’t digest red meat, eggs or fatty foods very well? How about raw, fibrous salads? Certain foods might make you feel nauseous or uneasy just thinking about it.

The reason for this aversion could be down to the microbes that you have inhabiting your digestive system. Certain species of bacteria are responsible for breaking down protein, fat and fibre.

Microbiome testing can also provide markers on pancreatic elastase assessing your ability to breakdown carbohydrates, fibrous foods and fat.

If your pancreatic elastase levels are too low it can lead to symptoms such as bloating, excess gas production, or diarrhoea.

Having insights into the type of microbes that live in your digestive system as well as the quality of your digestion, can really help to better understand your digestive health and guide your practitioner to a tailored treatment plan to resolve your unwanted digestive symptoms.

How to Get Started

If you have been struggling with digestive issues for years and you’re wondering what on earth is happening inside your gut, then we highly recommend microbiome testing to most of our patients with long term digestive issues.

This allows us to truly understand the cause without guessing, giving you the opportunity to treat your digestive issues faster and for the long term.

To get started please book an Initial Consultation, or into our Gut Restoration Program.

We can’t wait to support your gut health journey!

Please note that microbiome testing is an additional expense which is paid directly to the chosen laboratory. Payment plans are available through the lab.

Say hello to your new weekend favorite – this hearty lentil shakshuka!

Packed with 20 grams of plant-based protein per serve, it fuels your body with steady energy and helps keep blood sugar balanced all day long.

With an impressive 14 grams of gut-loving fibre (half your daily needs!), it’ll not only keep you feeling full all morning but also nourish your microbiome for better digestion and regularity. Delicious, satisfying, and perfect for a nourishing start to the weekend!

Serves: 2

Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients

1 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil

1/2 Brown onion (small, diced)

2 Garlic cloves (minced)

1.5 cups Pasta sauce

1/4 cup Dried lentils (rinsed)

1/4 tsp Cumin

2 Eggs

1 tbsp Parsley (chopped)

1 Avocado (medium, sliced)

Directions

1. Heat a medium-sized pan over medium heat. Once hot, add the oil and chopped onion. Cook for about two minutes or until soft. Add the garlic and cook for one minute, until fragrant.

2. Add the pasta sauce, lentils, cumin, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Bring to a simmer and then reduce the heat to low. Cover and cook for 18 to 20 minutes or until the lentils are tender and cooked through.

3. Make small wells for eggs in the middle of the pan and crack the eggs into them. Cover and cook for five to seven minutes, or until the whites are set. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Add parsley on top and divide evenly between plates or bowls. Serve with avocado and enjoy!

Nutritional Breakdown

Per serve

• Calories: 450
• Fat: 27 grams
• Carbs: 40 grams
• Fibre: 14 grams
• Sugar: 10 grams
• Protein: 20 grams

When we think of anxiety and different strategies to reduce its occurrence in our lives, we almost never think about setting firmer boundaries. The lack of clear healthy boundaries can actually be a cause of our anxiety without us even realising it.

Creating personal and professional boundaries are rules, guidelines or limits about what we are willing and not willing to accept. Boundaries are essential if you want to remain emotionally and physically healthy.

Imagine this: your boss asks you to stay back at work to help with the workload piled up from a sick co-worker. Without thinking you immediately say yes, and even though you know you had plans to exercise that evening and have an early night you think “it will just be tonight so that’s fine.” Four hours later you get home exhausted and fatigued, have a small bite to eat and hit the sack.

The next day your boss comes to you again asking you for help. He says “one of your colleagues has to go interstate and I need you to help with the shortfall this evening. You did so well the other night and I know I can count on you to get it done.”

You feel bad, and don’t want to disappoint him so you say Yes! Again you were meant to exercise and meditate but you sacrifice work for your own personal self-care. You get home close to midnight and hit the sack without eating, meditating or exercising. You wake up stressed, sore and exhausted.

Sound familiar? This sort of scenario can happen with family, work, or personal relationships. Many of us don’t like disappointing others, or we feel guilt if we say no, so we automatically say yes and sacrifice our own needs.

Long term this can create high stress and anxiety because you start taking on more than you can handle or want. The truth is no one is can or will say yes to your own needs except for you. Waiting for someone else to recognise what your needs are might take some time, and let’s just say it may never happen.

Determine Keys Areas You Want to Set Boundaries Around

• Your Time: We often feel we never have enough time to focus on what’s really important in our lives yet time is often what we least protect through effective boundaries. Do you have friends who drop by unexpectedly? Do you have co-workers or colleagues who demand your time in unreasonable ways? Do you have tasks that could just as easily be completed by someone else?
• Your Emotions: Your emotions are where your love and care come from. This should be well-protected. Sometimes people in our lives may say or do hurtful things (often unintentional) that can damage our emotions and our hearts. Has someone in your life made hurtful remarks or comments? Been thoughtless? These are examples of violations of our emotional boundaries.
• Your Energy: Your energy is resource from which you function. This energy can come from many sources such as: “alone time”, your inner peace, activities that invigorate you, etc. When others do or say things that robs you of this energy (such as invade your privacy, create turmoil, make unreasonable demands, keeps you from meditating, etc.), you are less likely to function effectively.
• Your Personal Values or other areas important to you: Anything in your life that is important to you (such as your personal values, needs, family, etc.) can be areas that can benefit from effective boundaries. What other areas of your life need boundaries?

Barriers to Boundary Setting

It seems obvious that no one would want their boundaries violated. So why do we allow it? Why do we NOT enforce or uphold our boundaries?

1. Fear of rejection and, ultimately, abandonment.
2. Fear of confrontation.
3. Fear of disappointing others or letting others down.
4. Guilt (this is a big one for many of us).
5. We were not taught healthy boundaries.

These fears we have in our mind are often not REAL! But they feel as though they are. Reminding yourself that 95% of our fears never come true can help you to take that step to assert yourself and set firm boundaries. At first, you will probably feel selfish, guilty, or embarrassed when you set a boundary. Do it anyway and remind yourself you have a right to self-care and self-respect.

I absolutely love this quote by Brené Brown! If you’re ready to love yourself rather than give in to your fears, start taking action by following this next step.

Write Down Your Boundaries and the Action You Will Take

Create two columns, one that says “the boundary I am setting” “the action I will take is…”

For example:

The boundary I am setting: “I will finish work no later than 5:30pm, 3 days a week to prioritise my self-care and therefore my energy and emotions.”

The action I will take is: “I will let me boss know I am available two evenings throughout the week to help with the increase in workload, but not on the days I have prioritised for self-care.”

Do this process for all the boundaries you want to start committing to and remember are not responsible for the other person’s reaction to the boundary you are setting. You are only responsible for communicating your boundary in a respectful way. If your boundary upsets them, know it is their problem.

Some people, especially those who are used to controlling, abusing, or manipulating you, might test you. Plan on it, expect it, but remain firm. Remember, your behaviour must match the boundaries you are setting. You cannot successfully establish a clear boundary if you send mixed messages by apologising all the time!

Do You Need to Dig Deeper?

Kinesiology combined with mindset coaching can be a powerful combination to help you create better boundaries. If you’d like personalised support please book a Kinesiology session here.