Hello everybody, welcome back to another episode of Find Your Model Health, the official podcast of Shameen's Model Health. For those looking to optimise their long-term health and weight goals, I am Shameen Lenny. I am a biohiker and fitness and nutrition expert and I'm very happy to have you back with me for this most interesting episode. Before I go on though, I must stress that the information in these podcasts is not to be taken as medical advice and is to be taken for informational purposes only, please do consult with your medical practitioner before making any lifestyle changes.
So this week we're learning about the microbiome diet. Now the microbiome diet got really popular at the start of 2019 and of 2018. And it was, at the time, a very trendy way to lose weight while healing the body. And I do like the concept of the microbiome diet because a lot of it is what I've been implementing with my clients for the last couple of years.
It was created by Dr. Rafael Kelman and is based on eating and avoiding certain foods in the hopes of restoring health, specifically gut health. And then it also claims to offer other benefits such as a faster metabolism and weight loss. So the microbiome diet is a three-phase program aimed at helping you lose body fat or weight by restoring your gut health.
It's based on the idea that eating the right foods will help keep your gut microbiome healthy, which at this stage I think most of us know is instrumental to overall health. So if you don't know what your microbiome is, your gut microbiome, so we do have an external microbiome, which is bacteria on our skin, but your gut microbiome is made up of trillions of bacteria and other microorganisms, both friendly and unfriendly, so they can be good and bad like our firm Acute Center Bacteroididies. And it's very important that we maintain the right balance of these good and bad bacteria in your gut. And many studies suggest that maintaining this balance will improve digestion, reduce inflammation, decrease anxiety, decrease instances of depression, and even improve brain function and mood.
So a healthy balance of good gut bacteria, depending on which your dominant species is, can boost metabolism, help bring down or even eliminate cravings, and help people shed unwanted weight. So those would be your bacteroididies, and a specific family of bacteroididies called Acromancia, those ones are shown to increase metabolism, they're carbon feeders, so they feed on carbon, which when we break down carbon backbones, we then can break down fat and use that fat for energy, but those are the kind of bacteria we're looking at. And obviously we'd like to have a higher ratio of those guys than the ones that make us fat and unhealthy. So as I said, it's a three-phase program designed to improve gut health and help you lose weight at the same time.
So when we look at the three phases, you have your phase one's pretty strict. It lasts 21 days and aims to remove unhealthy bacteria from your gut and replace stomach acids and digestive enzymes, which are awesome. Like this, in my opinion, this is awesome because they're so important. So phase one, we focus on the four ores meal plan.
And like I said, this is the strictest of the three. So the four ores is basically for the gut healing where we remove. So we cut out all foods, toxins, harmful chemicals that may cause inflammation or imbalance your gut bacteria. And this includes pesticides, hormones, antibodies, and certain medications.
The second ores is repair. So we load up on plant foods and supplements that help heal your gut and support the microbiome. And even in here, we can look at adding in some really good like bone brats and glutamines and stuff. Then number three, the third ores is replace.
And this is where we're eating certain herbs and spices. And if you're a client of mine, you'll know the term that goes with these herbs and spices, it's modbiotic. So you're eating certain modbiotic foods and adding in supplements, even modbiotic supplements that can help replace stomach acid and digestive enzymes and improve the whole digestive system and support the proliferation of the good bacteria. So support the growth and diversity and quality of the good bacteria.
Now, the fourth ores in phase one is re-inoculate. This is where we repopulate your gut with healthy bacteria by eating more probiotic and prebiotic rich foods. We still are focusing on those modbiotics, but now we're adding in a bit more probiotic and prebiotic foods and even supplements. So in phase one, you're required to avoid a large variety of foods.
That's why it's pretty strict. But you know what, in my opinion, and pretty much when I look at my clients, most of them are almost always following phase one. And it's not a big deal to a lot of people. But in phase one of the microbiome diet, we are advised to avoid all grains, eggs, mostly goons, dairy, and starchy fruit and vegetables.
So the starchy fruit and vegetables will be a bit more challenging for a lot of people, unless they're used to following, say, an autoimmune paleo template. You also want to avoid packaged and fried foods, sugar, fillers, coloring, artificial sweeteners, some types of fats. So obviously, you're hydrogenated and trans fats. Fish and meat are also avoided in phase one.
So instead, in this phase one, and it's kind of like my three-day cleanse, you're encouraged to eat organic, mostly plant-based with prebiotic rich foods. So prebiotic foods are what your bacteria feed and thrive on, like asparagus and onions and garlic. And even spinach can be awesome too. And then fermented foods are promoted in this phase, like sauerkraut and kimchi and kefir and yogurt, just again, to help more so with that mudbiotic and balancing of the gut bacteria, rather than to provide probiotics, because a lot of these foods don't actually contain probiotics once the whole fermentation process has been done.
And then certain supplements are strongly recommended. Probiotics, zinc, vitamin D, berberine, grapefruit seed, extract, wormwood, and oregano oil. Now, phase two is what they call your metabolic boost meal plan. And this phase is designed to last 28 days.
Now, by the time you've reached this phase, you're assuming that your gut and microbiome have healed somewhat and it's more resilient, which then, of course, allows you a bit more flexibility with your diet. So during this phase, you still need to avoid the supposedly gut damaging foods from phase one, but here it's only 90% of the time. So this means that up to four of your weekly meals can include food not recommended on the food list from phase one. And this is based on if you're having a solid three meals a day across the week, four of these meals could include those not recommended foods.
In addition, dairy, rearrange eggs, gluten free grains, and some legumes can be added back into your diet in this phase. And this is a nice phase that if you aren't having any reactions to certain foods, you would aim at these foods in one at a time, say every three days, so we'll do dairy for the first three days, then we might do some legumes for another three days. And you can monitor if you have a reaction or anything. If you don't have a reaction, you continue to use them.
If you do have a reaction, you will eliminate them again. And in phase two, you can also start eating a lot more fruits and vegetables, like mangoes and melons and peaches and pears and sweet potatoes and yams. So that's phase two. Now phase three, they call it your lifetime tuna.
This last phase of the diet is considered the maintenance phase. It has no recommended length and you're encouraged to follow it until you lose your desired amount of weight. Phase three is also meant to help you maintain the weight loss long term. It doesn't say though, when you're when you do reach your desires, go wait what you do to maintain it there and not continue to lose weight.
So when you look online, there's no direction like do you add in more fats? Do you add in an extra meal? What are you doing? Well, by this point, you're going to microbiome, I believe, to be almost fully healed.
So although the foods to avoid remain the same as in the first phase, now you only need 70% compliance. So phase two is 90%. Phase three is 70%. So kind of you can eat whatever you want 30% of the time, equaling to about one meal per day.
Still, it's recommended to avoid processed foods and added sugars as much as possible. Now, I would take phase three a step further after you have established what foods may not work well for your body. You're going to continue to keep them out. Plus, also looking at some of the studies of the general population on what generally causes issues for us, I would still heed to some of those guidelines as well.
So for me, if I was working with my clients on a microbiome diet, I wouldn't say eat what you want 30% of the time, but I would give them a little bit more flexibility with stuff that they do like, but that I have approved or I feel this is fine. We shouldn't see any detrimental damage from having this or whatever. But you know what I mean. So basically the microbiome is split into three phases.
Each phase eliminates the same foods, but becomes increasingly flexible as time goes on. There are some guidelines, some more guidelines and foods. So the microbiome warns against eating a lot of foods. And at least in phase one, they should be completely avoided.
But then you get that flexibility as you move through phase two and phase three. So let's take a look at some of those. So first they have, and rightly so. And you know, first and second listed are appropriate, in my opinion, especially as we see more studies come out.
So first is processed foods and fried foods, specifically foods fried in trends or hydrogenated fats. Second is sugar and high fructose corn syrup. Then we've got artificial sweeteners, except for your good artificial sweeteners like organic stevia, lecanto, swerve, some people, not everyone can tolerate xylitol and erythritol, but you get the idea. Then you've got your starchy fruits and vegetables, which is bananas, potatoes, corn, even peas.
Then deli meat, high in salt and fat should be avoided, peanut soy and other legumes and cashews are a legume too. It should be avoided, high mercury, fish, then dried fruit and fruit juices, of course, nobody in their right mind should be having them anymore. All grains containing gluten, which can be debatable now as a science is starting to come out that it may not actually be the gluten, that's the problem. It's the carbohydrate itself.
So we'll keep an eye on that space. Eggs and dairy, except for butter and ghee, and then yeast and foods containing it. So those are the foods to be avoided. Foods that you can eat and that can be enjoyed throughout all the phases of the microbiome diet are wild salmon, grass fed and wild meat, fermented vegetables like sauerkraut and kimchi, non-starchy vegetables like asparagus and green beans and your broccoli, if you can tolerate it, non-starchy fruits like avocado, tomatoes, lamens, limes, berries, nuts, seeds and their butters, olive oil, so extra virgin olive oil of course.
So these are promoted chickpeas and lentils are promoted. But again, I would say that's more of a phase two thing where you implement those and you don't see any reaction then go ahead with it. But a lot of people have issues with lentils and even chickpeas, especially when they're not cooked properly. And then again, lacanto and sorghum and stevia and small amounts and then your herbs and spices so you're might buy your mybiotic foods.
In phase two of the diet foods like free-reigned eggs, dairies, some gluten-free grains, although that's not really advisable or wise, and some starchy fruits and vegetables can be reintroduced. And then to further on, there are a few more rules. The microbiome diet encourages sticking to organic foods and avoiding chemicals and non-natural household cleaners or personal care products. And it's also encouraged that you use a good water filter.
Now I'm just going to address this. Okay, I'm all about the organic foods. I clean my house with the essential oils and vinegars. I use beauty counter personal care products on my skin.
I drink out of glass bottles and use water filters, except I can do that. Financially, I can do that. But not everyone can. And this is where I think the microbiome diet can be a bit discriminatory.
For those that can't afford organic foods or to use natural household cleaners who just want to optimize their gut health and need the help of this diet, but can't afford some of the extras. It's still, in my opinion, is perfectly fine to follow the microbiome diet. And only by organic and stuff like that when you can, if you can. If you can't, don't stress over it and don't say, oh, this means I can't do it.
It just means that right now your results may not be as optimal as we like, but they're going to be very much improved. And you will see a lot of progression from moving from a more whole food-based diet like this, or to a more whole foods diet like this from a processed high, high trans fat, high toxic oils, high simple curves and sugars diet. So you will see that progression and you will see improvement in biomarkers, even if you're not using the organic foods and the chemicals or can't afford certain skincare products. Like I'm the first to admit that beauty counter as much as I love it.
It is expensive and I know not everyone can afford it. So I do feel that there has to be a bit of give here for people that still want to use the microbiome diet, but may not have the finances available. So if you're switching from pizza all day every day to more whole foods, like even lean meat, even if it's not grass-fed, you're going to see big improvements. And then also the diet does recommend various supplements as a way to reduce inflammation and remove unhealthy bacteria and health strength and your gut.
So like your glutamine and your berberine and chrystatin and garlic and stuff like that. And if you can't afford stuff like that, you will do very well on whole foods. You may not progress as fast, but you still will see a lot of benefits. And out of all the supplements that are recommended, just get what you can afford.
I like vitamin D is pretty cheap. You always want to get vitamin D3 of course and get your K2 along with that. If you can't afford a glutamine supplement, you can always make your own homemade bomb broth. And that's going to have some nice glutamine in there.
If you can't afford a zinc supplement, you can get yourself some pumpkin seeds. They've got really nice amounts of zinc in them. So you see we can look at stuff like, again, if you can't afford it, where can we get it from food? But as we all pretty much all smart diets are eating templates are anti-smart health professionals out there.
Diders are warned to avoid overusing certain drugs like antibiotics, NSAIDs, so they're non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and proton pumps inhibitors, which are mainly used for acid reflux. But really, if you start following this diet, you should have no issues with acid reflux unless there's an underlying condition there. Because they all have been shown to disrupt your gut bacteria and throw off your microbiome and open the door to a whole host of issues. So antibiotics for sure, we all know about those guys now and the damage that day would do.
So avoiding these medications whenever possible, of course, will contribute to a healthier gut, especially if you're doing all the other recommendations as well. So other than potential benefits of the microbiome diet, it does say it will boost your metabolism and reduce cravings and promote the weight loss. Again, we will see that when you have reduced the process to sugars and the bad foods and hopefully increased those back to roitides and the acromensia and other beneficial gut bacteria. So that would help with the metabolism.
The microbiome diet should help prevent nutritional deficiencies as well. And because it's a really low diet in fat too, so not just your processed crappy foods, it's really low in fat, that may contribute to weight loss without the need to count calories or portion sizes as well. So some people might like to do this. And then of course, there's been beneficial or there's been research showing its beneficial effects on type 2 diabetes, heart disease, metabolic syndrome, Alzheimer's, depression, that all makes sense.
So once your gut wall is stronger, it can help prevent all these unwanted diseases and immune responses and issues. There are some downsides, but not really, it really depends on your food, choices. Some say that restricting your intake of certain foods that are beneficial, like fruits and grains and legumes can have a negative effect. You know what I don't believe that, based on all the research and all the different food groups, there's nothing that you can't get out of other foods that you would get from grains and legumes and fruits.
So I wouldn't even worry about that. And then so the other downside is emphasizing on organic foods and maybe stuff that people can't afford. But overall, I feel this diet, the microbiome diet, is very doable for a lot of people. It does have not as much flexibility as how I would teach and how I've seen certain practices need to be implemented for long-term success, especially in real life now.
Like, I work with real life people, real moms, real dads, real workers with stress and kids and lack of sleep and family days and birthdays and just all of that. So for many people, I can see the microbiome diet is going to be a bit too rigid for them. But it's definitely doable for a lot of people. And for someone that has severe gut issues, this could be a great starting point for them, especially phase two, as you start to reintroduce certain foods and you can see where you react and where you don't react.
Well, that's it for this week. If you have any questions about the microbiome diet or this podcast or would like me to cover any other topic in the future, please do reach out to me and let me know. So thank you again for joining me, listening to me, ramble on. I really do appreciate it.
I hope you're enjoying these podcasts and I will chat to you guys again soon. Okay, take care. Bye bye.