Welcome to this month's edition of Boost Gut Health. As Hippocrates observed: all disease begins in the gut.

Two Gut Healthy Habits

Cook with avocado oil. What oil you cook with matters. Avocado oil is about 70% monounsaturated, mostly oleic acid, which is anti-inflammatory. It also contains antioxidant vitamin E and lutein, which is good for our eyesight.

How avocado oil is processed matters: extra virgin or virgin is best, with no chemical solvents used to extract it.

Find snacks at the farmers market. Looking to cut down on processed foods like crackers? How about slices of cucumber or radishes instead of crackers?

A Daikon radish is bigger than a traditional radish, shaped a bit like a carrot, with a sweeter taste than small red radishes.

One Lesson

Reducing microplastics. A new study has shown that we can drastically reduce, in just seven days, the amount of plastic that touches our food and ends up in our bodies.

A team from the University of Western Australia tested the effect of microplastics on over 200 healthy Australians and found there is a lot we can do day-to-day to reduce our exposure.

More than 16,000 chemicals are used in food packaging, kitchen utensils, and personal-care products, including bisphenols and phthalates.

Researchers removed tinned food and any plastic packaging from food, from paddock to plate. The kitchenware was also plastic-free, including stainless-steel pots and wooden chopping boards.

Within seven days, microplastic particles found in participants' urine had decreased by up to 60%. That's good news.

Here's more on the study. ​

One Quote

"Eat your food as your medicine. Otherwise, you have to eat medicine as your food."

Steve Jobs