Real food for life web-site has information on all the pure extra virgin olive oils. I couldn’t find the information on this site.

I use Aspalls Raw organic cider vinegar Sainsbury’s!

Hi, I’ve just joined this forum. I’ve been making my own kefir for over a year now and don’t wash my kilner jar more then once a week, if that. I haven’t suffered any ill affects. In fact I haven’t had so much as a cold since I’ve been making my own kefir! I love it!

I was inspired to try some kefir from the supermarket, bio-tifuls specifically. Which i loved, delicious as well as healthy.

So i decided to try making my own, which has been a disaster so far.

I bought the grains online. Every evening i sieve out the grains, drink the ‘kefir’, clean the jar, then put the grains back with another 250ml of full fat cows milk.
I thought if i kept doing this they would slowly grow until there was enough to ferment a batch and they have grow considerably, easily tripled in size by now.

But the kefir hasn’t thickened at any stage. It went from tasting like just milk, to milk with a tang, then eventually to what tastes like sour, fizzy milk. Disgusting. Most material online suggests if it doesn’t thicken it means it has gone past that stage and separated into curds and whey but it hasn’t. I have been throwing grains out the last few days to reduce the rate it ferments, which has reduced the sourness, but it hasn’t thickened at all. I have had the grains 10 days now.

Were they bad grains? Or was I mislead by the commercial product into thinking I could get thick kefir at home when it isn’t possible.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated, the company I bought them from were not useful at all when it came to advice.

Hi everyone.
Wanted to get a quick post up to get started. Although I am typing this from my phone at work so I won’t go into too much detail just yet.

I recently bought the book and am finding it very interesting. I already have an incredibly healthy diet but I always wonder if I am intolerant to anything I eat. Plus I have been on and off acne medication for my back and shoulder acne for about 10 years (26 years old now) such as lymacycline, I only take 1 a day though. I have been wanting to come off the medication for a very long time but I am very reluctant to do it because within a few weeks my acne comes back with vengeance which eventually leaves me with scars etc. But that’s the plan.. Or the hope. There is a different tablet they swap with the lymacycline every few months too. I’m not sure the name but it’s tetra something I think, then I swap back and repeat etc..

However I have been reading recently just how bad antibiotics can be and have read that even 7 Days of antibiotics can mess up your gut for a year so it scares me to think what damage mine has had and if it is even fixable? and whether it can actually fix my bad acne skin too.

Aside from that I never thought of my gut as actually being in healthy. I usually use the bathroom once a day. Sometimes twice. But every now and again if I don’t go when I get the urge. I don’t need to go for another day. So occasionally it might be 2 days before I go. But not often. Not really a big concern I didn’t think. However I do seem to go through stages where occasionally my faeces seem very large and uncomfortable to pass. Sorry for too much info but figured it might be relevant.

I was wondering if anybody knows any reliable testing kits in the UK? Although I don’t think I could afford one at the moment anyway but maybe for when I can.

Anyway I am tempted to stop taking the lymacycline today if people think the clever guts book could help with my skin. But with me being on it for so long I wondered if I would need to do anything different or whether I should just start on the diet in the book presumably starting with the 1 week elimination diet and then adding things in?
Also if people think it will be beneficial could they recommend any probiotic or prebiotic to be taking alongside the diet?

I have tons of questions but any tips to get started straight away would be helpful.
Thanks in advance and sorry if I typed anything incorrect from being on my phone

Would love to join the potato starch study! Where do I sign up?

I should also add you should try and eat and drink more healthily, so cutting out junk food & processed foods, cutting down on things high in sugar, chocolate, caffeine, alcohol. Make sure you also include some prebiotics in your diet – you can see from the study below which foods contain the most and which the least – basically garlic (particularly dried), chicory root, and Jerusalem artichoke have very high levels, then leeks, onions, wheat bran and asparagus lower, chickpeas, oats, lentils and beans also. If you already eat those foods in decent amounts you probably don’t need to change anything. Eating a lot (10g+) of prebiotics can cause bloating & gas.

https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/129/7/1407S/4722578

From the studies I have read it certainly seems possible damage to the microbiome could cause both the death of the good bacteria and the subsequent increase in both bad bacteria and candida yeasts which can cause inflammation, and then colonise those inflamed parts of the gut even more, which can cause anxiety. Have you tried any probiotics at all? I would be cautious of most over the counter/online probiotics due to my concerns that they do not guarantee their distribution chain or storage conditions

Probiotics bought online – dishonesty by manufacturers regarding distribution

The paid for probiotics that seem to have most evidence to suggest they do what they claim are VSL #3, it’s European version Vivomixx, available in either pill or sachet form and Symprove probiotic drink. You can order VSL in a cooled delivery box from the manufacturer (there was a 10-15% off offer, may still work)
https://www.vsl3.co.uk/

you can get VSL and Vivomixx from Lifestyle Labs in a slightly cheaper chilled delivery
https://www.lifestyle-labs.com/products/Vivomixx-Probiotic-450-Billion-30-Sachets

I would only order Symprove from the manufacturer
https://www.symprove.com/

You could also try making Kefir (fermented milk) and Saeurkraut (fermented cabbage +veg), or Kimchi (fermented cabbage, veg & fish), but they can be quite tricky to get right, especially in this heat where you may need to control the fermenting temperature with icepacks/coolbox setup.

Hey, I agree with you this can affect your mental health and may result in an increase in anxiety. The dietary habits and nightshades can cause high mood swings, that are sometimes difficult to handle. You can try to improve your food habits or take the help of some experts like the voyance direct from http://www.martine-voyance.com/qui-suis-je who can help to attain peace of mind. There are many new recipes that you can try out with fresh food and fruits, it will help you a lot.

hi I was on 9 antibiotics for a recurring infection. one of them (generic form of Bactrim) I had a bad reaction to it. my head got real hot. th following week I had severe anxiety or fight and flight. doc prescribed a benzo. I am now 23 months off the poison. but still having this anxiety. it happened in the daytime only and stops at night. I need help.

Did in the past already a Potato Starch Study of my own. After three months I stopped, took three tablespoons daily, but my environment was not happy at one point, because the amount of unpleasant air emissions only increased.

Just started again as mentioned in the book the frist week with a tablespoon, and now the second week I do a tableaspoon again but now only before sleeping. This goes much better than my earlier experience. The air emissions are stable and less unpleasant. I slept already very good and a nice average of 8 hours, but as Michael wrote its good for the guts, that’s why I started again with it, but have no frame of reference if it has any positive effect or what so ever?! 😉

Looks like this experiment is not going to happen – have been on the site for a long long time, so tried it anyway – 2 teaspoons of potato starch before bed in milk or water. Buy it from Holland and Barratt for less than £2.00. First couple of nights did not work but after that slept like a baby after years of not getting to sleep’ , waking up in the middle of the night and then again at the crack of dawn. Now getting 7/8 hours sleep. You have nothing to lose, give it a go.

How do I sign up for this? On page 176 of Clever Guts MM says “read the protocol on the website”. I cant see a protocol.

Hi there, thanks for the Clever Guts book. I would like to join the Potato Starch research.

Fasting helps with the survival of probiotics while passing through the stomach according to the 2014 UCL study.

Microba is one of the very few companies that use the new metagenomic sequencing, specifically “full metagenomics” or “shotgun metagenomics” which can detect all the organisms in your gut, such as fungi, archaea, and viruses which the old 16S RNA method used by British Gut/American Gut cannot, it is also apparently much more accurate and will detect more varieties of bacteria than the old method. VIOME uses metatranscriptomics which is similar, unfortunately much more expensive at $399 (+ international postage) than Microba, which is not currently available in the UK. VIOME also seems to have fairly poor reviews.

https://forum.bulletproof.com/discussion/19973/viome

https://www.microba.com/frequently-asked-questions/

“Most other microbiome profiling services use 16S rRNA gene sequencing – a method that only sequences a small portion of a single gene to identify known bacterial groups and leaves out the rest of your microbiome. Results are often biased and not reproducible between different labs. Functional information, that is, what your gut bacteria do, is limited to known bacteria, which misses a large portion of your microbiome.

Microba uses full metagenomics (also called shotgun metagenomics), the most reproducible, least biased and comprehensive DNA sequencing method to provide you with a high-resolution picture of your gut microbiome. Metagenomics is a powerful tool where all the genes from the microorganisms in your sample are sequenced, allowing you to see not just bacteria, but also fungi, protists, archaea, and viruses. This method also identifies microorganisms at the species or even strain level and reveals what your microbes are capable of doing.”

OK, so I have managed to find some hard facts on at least Amazon – for their Fulfilled by Amazon service which many of the probiotics on Amazon seem to be sold under, this is a US guideline, but I suspect it applies worldwide:

“Temperature-sensitive products must be able to withstand at least a minimum temperature of 50 degrees and at least a maximum temperature of 100 degrees for the duration of the product’s shelf life without adversely affecting product quality. Carton markings must not include storage temperature requirements unless expressed explicitly as a range from 50 to 100 degrees.+”

https://sellercentral.amazon.com/forums/t/distribution-warehouse-temperatures/190916/5
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html/ref=hp_rel_topic?ie=UTF8&nodeId=200339730

100 degrees Fahrenheit is 38 degrees Celsius. Pretty much all these probiotics state store in a cool place or under 25 degrees. And that’s not even taking into account the likely 40+ degree temperatures in non air conditioned delivery vans in the late spring and summer. So either these manufacturers must be completely ignorant of the realities of distribution storage conditions, or else they simply do not really care that their products may be almost completely destroyed by the time they reach their customers.

Thanks; don’t worry – I’m all over my vitamins and Omega Fats. 🙂

There may be links between gut dysbiosis with cravings for sweet things, basically the ‘bad guys’ are demanding unhealthy foods. Dr Mosley recommends retraining our tastebuds rather than substituting artificial sweeteners or fruit purees/ extracts for table sugar.

There is a HUGE amount of misinformation, pseudoscience and quackery on the internet: FAR more fiction than fact, much of it trying to lighten your wallet. Stick with reputable, independent websites such as universities, registration bodies for health professionals, the UK National Health Service, the public health arm of major governments, charities for relevant health conditions and so on.

HTH!

Soya products are included in the list of potentially problematic food types. If you mean that tofu does not feature in the recipes that may be because tofu is a processed substance not a wholefood.

Danno: Red wine should be a pleasant addition!

Without oily fish in your diet, are you getting sufficient vitamin D3 (UK sunlight is too weak for 5-6 months of the year) in and long chain omega-3s? If not do discuss supplementing with your family doctor/ pharmacist/ practice nurse/ a dietician. Vitamin D is key in normal immune function and the omega-3s have anti-inflammatory properties.

Question about the Indiegogo pre-order campaign, where can I find the shipping costs? I live in the Netherlands and rather not suprised 😉

Cheers – I’m with you there.
Pills finished yesterday, and introducing glass of red wine tonight 🙂
The Clever Guts diet is more or less what I eat anyway – I’m a veggie who is fit, slim and, apart from this infection, healthy. I’m upping the chicory, broccoli, olives and sauerkraut though.

Both the general Mediterranean diet and the Clever Guts diet are *properly balanced and very varied* wholefood diets. Westerners often eat rather restrictive diets (count number of different foods in each group), too much processed stuff and not enough wholefoods (look much the same going into the pan as when they came off the plant or animal).

I would suggest you use your detailed food and symptom diary (p.187-188) to target one food group or food type at a time. For example Dr Mosley (p.191) advocates *at least* seven brightly coloured portions of fruit and veg a day, mainly vegetables. And a wide variety: twenty to thirty different ones a week! So base your microbiome-friendly recipes around produce: two to four servings at each meal or you will be playing catch-up for the rest of the day.

In the UK an official serving of fresh or frozen fruit and veg is 80g, dried (no added sugar) is 30g. Beans or lentils count once per day. Frozen, canned or dried fruit and veg can be cheaper per portion than fresh, often with little prep time and little waste! You might consider ordering some Spanish/ Mediterranean cookbooks so you are using flavours or ingredients that are familiar to you.

HTH!

Danno: Seven years is a LOOONG time in medical research. Our understanding of the gut microbiome, gut conditions, antibiotics, diet choices is still evolving, still very much in its infancy. The NHS/ NICE etc will not make or amend recommendations until there is a large body of research supporting a given protocol.

There is plenty of mainstream dietary and healthy living advice online: most of the UK population don’t know what the official recommendations are let alone follow them. Sadly most people want to be prescribed pills and potions, not to be advised to manage their weight/ be more physically active/ stop smoking/ eat a balanced and varied wholefood diet/ reduce stress/ practice sleep hygiene.

If you have a copy of the Clever Guts Diet and have been completing your detailed food and symptom diary (p.187-188) you are in a strong position to plan “what to do next”. Do understand that there is no one-size-fits-all healthy eating plan, so you will be experimenting on yourself (within the guidelines). If you need assistance ask your family doctor for a referral to a registered dietician and/ or post here.

HTH!

Welcome!

I would suggest you get hold of another copy of Dr. Mosley’s book: you will need to refer to and reread sections throughout your *unique* Clever Guts journey. The meal planner is an example only, your unique journey should be based on the analysis of your detailed food and symptom diary (p.187-188).

Once you get your replacement copy, do note that Dr Mosley and co “don’t recommend removing too many foods at one time, so it might be helpful to do R&R in several stages. You can always repeat the process … at a later date.” (p.190) Dr Mosley further advises we “introduce foods one at a time with a gap of at least three days between each one … To try and identify the foods that are causing you problems.” (p.193)

Going slowly and carefully reduces or eliminates guesswork. Going in ‘all guns blazing’ all too often ends in symptoms worsening with no way to identify the culprit(s).

HTH.

These are questions for a medical professional who has access to your full medical notes, including results to all tests and any diagnoses. A naturopath can neither diagnose medical conditions nor prescribe drug treatments.

As regards Clever Guts, have you been completing the detailed food and symptom diary (p.187-188)? If you are willing/ able to consult health practitioners privately you might consider having your food diary and results of medical tests analysed by a registered dietician.

HTH.

Hi,
I recently had the stool test (for fatigue) with my Naturopath and it showed 40% Strep (should be <5%).
They recommended 2 months of antibiotics which I feel nervous about (as will kill other microbes too).
My other Biomes were at good amounts.
So why do I have an overgrowth and anyone know if it can be reduced without antibiotics?
Thanks.

Hi Piceas63

I’ve ordered a kit from https://www.phycohealth.com. Phyco Health is Pia Weinberg who is mentioned in Clever Guts. She is in Wollongong. https://www.phycohealth.com/pages/media.

Hello
I am very new and had The Clever Guts Diet Book along with the Recipe Book which I still have. I started yesterday and I made a big pot of carrot and Turmeric Soup along with houmous and my Flaxseed Crackers. I also have my gut healing broth in the fridge. My problem is my Puppy has destroyed my Diet book…I know it sounds mad lol. I need phase one week meal planner and cant find one. I have downloaded app but nothing on there..Help !!

Hi Guys,
I have made Kefir (and Kombucha) for some time. I recently found ‘Bio-Tiful Dairy’s KEFIR at Morrisons. Although I am in contact with their Head of Marketing, has anyone had any GOOD or any BAD comments after trying their FREE flavoured Kefir from Morrisons?
They say their milk is “blast Pasturised to 62 degees” but that the culture is still “alive” when bought (with a shelf life of at least 14 days??) – so is it still fermenting into Curds and Whey??.

Thanks Graham for your reply. It all gets a bit confusing, because when I looked up on “the pure stevia site” they claim many health benefits, & I am a Type2 diabetic. I’ll go without!

Dear Clever Guts Team
Any idea on when the survey will commence ???
Dave B

Googling will bring up various labs. Ubiome, Atlas etc. It really depends what you want out of it. In every case, the report alone won’t be enough and you will likely need some additional advice to interpret the results and decide what changes you want to make. Hope that helps. Good luck. Graham

Well, yes and no! Trouble is none of the artificial sweeteners are ideal, albeit stevia is probably the worst of a bad bunch. Various reasons but, by way of example: the intense sweetness of the sweetner will produce an insulin spike because when the sweetness hits the tongue, the brain anticipates a sugar rush and increased insulin secretion. Raised Insulin/insulin resistance is the key to type2 diabetes. Raised insulin put the body into “fat storage mode” so you are likely to store more and burn less. Also, at least some of the artificial sweeteners mess with the microbiome!

Hi, I’ve had stomach problems for about 7 years, ever since I took elephant-sized antibiotics to cure diarrhoea whilst on expedition in the Himalayas (it had to be done). One year later I went to my GP and described my symptoms (felt like food was getting stuck high up under my rib cage, reflux especially when exercising, churning of the solar plexus). I gave a list of possible causes (ulcer, knackered oesophegal sphincter, tape worm, candida, h-pylori, other infection, hiatus hernia, benign growth). He laughed, did no diagnosis whatsoever, told me to prop the head of my bed up at night, and prescribed a PPI every day for the rest of my life!! I took the PPI for one month to see what happened, and I felt awful. I did start sleeping only on my left side to prevent reflux and that worked (see anatomy). I tried eliminating some foods from my diet, I tried many over-the-counter/off-the-web “cures” for h-pylori and candida, I started eating my own homemade sauerkraut, but didn’t keep it up. My issues returned again and again. More recently I had three bouts of vomiting for no reason whatsoever, the last two occasions with diarrhoea. Cue another trip to my GP and I demanded some diagnosis. After blood and stool tests, it was confirmed I have large count of h-pylori – 7 wasted years!!

I’m currently on Amoxycillin, Clarithromycin and Lansaprazole for 7-days (standard NHS treatment for h-pylori). There was no advice from GP as to “what to do next”. Having read Clever Guts, I consider that next week I have a race against time to prevent any remaining h-pylori from regaining a foothold and ensure that good bacteria will dominate my guts asap! Therefore, I’m making some sauerkraut (again), making live yoghurt, I’ve started eating (during treatment) a broad diet many colours and much fibre – and I intend to step it up when my treatment ends in 4-days time.

I will let you know how it goes – fingers crossed!!

As for NHS – surely they can provide a booklet suggesting “what to do after treatment” otherwise patients will return ad-infinitum with the same infection.

I noticed in the Clever Guts book, Dr. Mosley recommended to avoid sweeteners. Having a bit of a sweet tooth, I have sourced out pure 100% stevia powder from South Australia. This varies greatly from the supermarket brand, claiming it’s a 100% pure stevia, containing other chemicals. Am I on the right track using the 100% pure powder as a sweetener?

Love the book.

I would be interested in taking part. Maxim

Dear All, who are looking for right kind of seaweed capsules. You can visit the whole blog here
https://casadesante.com/blogs/low-fodmap-life/easy-low-fodmap-breakfast-ideas
This is wonderful blog.

If you are new to eating sleep hygiene procedures than try once low fodmap breakfast or foods. It’s wise to introduce them slowly! I came across this great website on casadesante and it has a nice Easy Low FODMAP Breakfast Ideas,Southwest-style egg and cheese muffins,Protein Smoothie.

I’m in the same boat with immunosuppressants for Crohn’s disease. Have spoken to my GP about fermented foods – the issue is that the wrong bacteria may grow due to unclean utensils/contamination. This would be more likely if making your own at home, less likely if commercially produced, but still always a bacterial risk in anything “raw”. Am about to start the anti-MAP treatment for Crohn’s and hopefully get off these darn biologics!!

Hello,
I’ve just finished the book and I was going through the recipes thinking that they sounded a bit fancy. By that I mean that I would need to get quite a bit of new/unusual ingredients to start. And get organized. But a Mediterranean diet does not have to be like that (I am still spanish at the end of the day!). I am not talking about the restricted one (no grains, no dairy, etc…) but the normal diet that anybody can follow with a majority of fibre rich and bacteria friendly ingredients. My issue is that I’ve eaten low carb (high meat) for so long that all I fancy is still meat, I lack ideas.
My first one would be open sandwich with piled scrambled eggs, smoked salmon and grilled asparagus (I would have that breakfast, lunch or dinner!).
Suggestions?

I was reading all your message and I was wondering about how Firecat was doing. Did the bacteria angle help with some of your health issues? Did you happen to order one of those poo’s test to see the landscape of your biome?
I am reading quite a bit about this topic and getting very interested, but the skeptical in me can’t help sometimes to think “this will be another fashion that will die off after a year or so”.
Although, I have to say, the intermittent fasting does work. I lost weight now around 4-5 years ago and only in the last 6 months my weight have tried to bounce a bit. The fast diet did go out of fashion a while back, but I know it worked.
Steph.

Hello,
I’m also curious to try the potato starch thingy. My question is, is starch the same than flour? I have been looking online and the show flour when I have searched for starch. Which brand have you bought?
Another question is, is potato starch the same that resistant starches? I have understood that resistant starches are the ones that develop after cooking and cooling rice and potatoes (I think I remember), we cannot digest them but the microbiota likes them. So, what is what?
To the question about Inulin. It is also another type of fibre but there is no reason that inulin would help you sleep just because of that (bran should do the same, using that rule). Although, who knows, I get the imporession that we know so little about this topic that it may work as well (give fibre to bacteria, bacteria is happy, bacteria release stuff that makes us happy).

That’s all.
Steph.

If you are new to eating live fermented foods it’s wise to introduce them slowly! I came across this great website on krauting and it has a nice infographic.
https://www.makesauerkraut.com/how-much-sauerkraut/

Hello does anyone have issues with poor, lazy digestion and sore tongue?? I have oral glossitis, (burning tongue), and have poor digestion. I’m very keen to do the biome tests when they become available in Australia. My dr and desntist have no answers as to what I can do for my tongue.

Just read the booklet “the clever guts diet”, there is no mention of tofu.
Why is this?

Have used the Progurt incubator which has been very effective for me. You use it with Progurt sachets (1 trillion CFU) and UHT milk. Incubation takes 14-24 hours, depending on the thickness you’re after. Makes a great-tasting yogurt with plenty of live bacteria, so no trouble in recommending it.

We sure do! Got my kit yesterday after preordering 6 months ago.
http://www.microba.com

It seems to me there is a fundamental flaw in all of these probiotic pills – in that their chain of distribution is not regulated – i.e. they don’t ensure that their product is maintained below the temperature stated (usually 25 degrees ), above which may result in their products being significantly degraded or simply sterile. One indication that they are aware of this is VSL#3 – they specifically offer a refrigerated service, and will not in fact send through the normal post if the outside temperature exceeds 25 degrees.

The fact they offer a chilled delivery service is obviously great, but the rule of not sending when the temp is over 25 degrees is flawed, because the temperature which you get it in forecasts refers to the temperature in the shade. Obviously the first problem is the temperature varies across the country, but the second and perhaps more important point is that most Royal Mail and many other delivery vans are not air conditioned, so the temperature of a van in full sun will rise to 20+ degrees higher than what the outside temperature may be. Given with the free delivery offered by Amazon may result in these items being in vans for days on end the effect could be decidedly worse. And then we have to take into account the fact these products may be stored in non air conditioned metal roofed warehouses for months on end, it seems highly likely that by the time we receive these probiotic supplements they may only have a fraction of the stated probiotic content as stated at the time of manufacturer, and quite probably, especially if being delivered free delivery in the height of summer, it’ll be no better than a placebo because it’s dead.