Why are we obsessed with Gut Health?

Why are we obsessed with Gut Health?

The Importance of Gut Health

Feeling your best—mentally, physically, and emotionally—starts in the gut. Often called the “second brain” your gut is home to trillions of microbes that do far more than just digest food. They play a central role in your immunity, energy, mood, sleep and mental clarity. The science* is clear: a healthy gut supports a healthy you.

The Gut-Brain Superhighway: Meet the Vagus Nerve

Your gut and brain communicate constantly via the gut-brain axis, with the vagus nerve acting as the main communication highway. This long cranial nerve carries signals between your brain and gut, influencing digestion, mood, inflammation and stress.

When your gut is balanced and well-nourished, these signals promote calm, clarity and resilience. But when gut health falters, disrupted signalling can lead to low mood, fatigue, poor sleep and digestive discomfort.

Your Gut is a Hormone Factory

Beyond digestion, your gut plays a vital role in hormone production—especially those that regulate mood and motivation. Around 95% of the body’s serotonin (the feel-good, mood-stabilising hormone) is produced in the gut, along with about 50% of dopamine, which governs pleasure, reward and motivation.

A healthy, well-fed microbiome supports the regulation of these key neurotransmitters, contributing to mental wellbeing, emotional balance and quality sleep.

Why Plants Are So Powerful for Gut Health

Plants are essential because they provide fibre and polyphenols—two critical nutrients that feed and support your gut microbes.

Fibre: The Gut Microbiome’s Primary Fuel
Fibre isn’t digested by your body but fermented by beneficial gut bacteria. This fermentation produces short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) like butyrate, acetate, and propionate, which help:

  • Reduce inflammation

  • Regulate immune response

  • Protect the gut lining

  • Support brain function and metabolism

Your body’s cells have receptors for SCFAs, enabling direct communication between gut microbes and your cells to influence overall health.

Polyphenols: Microbe-Modulating Antioxidants
Found in colourful fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and spices, polyphenols:

  • Promote the growth of beneficial bacteria like Bifidobacteria and Lactobacillus

  • Inhibit harmful microbes

  • Produce bioactive compounds that affect inflammation, immunity, and brain health

Together, fibre and polyphenols support a diverse, resilient microbiome—making a varied plant-rich diet vital for lasting overall health.

Probiotics, Prebiotics & Postbiotics—What’s the Difference?

  • Probiotics are beneficial bacteria themselves, found in fermented foods like yoghurt, kefir, miso and kimchi. They help populate and balance your gut microbiome.

  • Prebiotics are the fibres and plant compounds that feed those good bacteria—think vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes and yes, Daily Blend.

  • Postbiotics are the health-promoting compounds (such as SCFAs) produced when your gut bacteria ferment prebiotic fibre. They help regulate inflammation, support immunity, and strengthen the gut lining.

Simply put:
🌱 Prebiotics feed probiotics
🦠 Probiotics produce postbiotics
✨ Postbiotics help your body thrive

Why Variety Matters

One of the most powerful ways to support your gut is by eating a wide variety of plant foods. Research* shows that people who eat 30 or more different plants each week have significantly more diverse and resilient microbiomes.

Each plant offers unique types of fibre and polyphenols—fuel for different microbes. The more diverse your gut bacteria, the better they support digestion, immunity, mood and overall wellbeing.

Daily Blend: A Simple Way to Feed Your Microbiome

That’s why we created Daily Blend—to make it easy to increase your plant variety deliciously and effortlessly.

With 30+ plant ingredients in every serve, Daily Blend is naturally rich in fibre and polyphenols, helping feed your gut, support SCFA production, and nourish your whole body—starting from the inside out. A small daily habit with a big impact.

*The Science and Further Reading

  • McDonald, D., Hyde, E., Debelius, J. W., et al. (2018). American Gut: an Open Platform for Citizen Science Microbiome Research. mSystems, 3(3), e00031-18.

  • Harvard Health Publishing. (2021). The gut-brain connection. Harvard Medical School.

  • National Institutes of Health (NIH). (2020). Probiotics: What You Need to Know. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.

  • Cleveland Clinic. (2022). What Are Prebiotics and Why Are They Important?

  • Healthline. (2023). Postbiotics: What They Are and How They Work.

  • British Medical Journal (BMJ). (2020). Short chain fatty acids and human colonic function: roles of resistant starch and non-starch polysaccharides.

  • Medical News Today. (2021). What is the vagus nerve and what does it do?

  • University of Oxford. (2022). Gut bacteria and mental health: The surprising link.

  • Psychology Today. (2023). The Gut-Brain Connection: How Microbes Influence Mood and Behavior.

  • BBC Science Focus. (2022). Serotonin and the gut: why 95% of the 'feel-good' hormone is made in your bowels.

  • Frontiers in Psychiatry. (2019). The Role of the Gut Microbiota in the Development of Dopaminergic System.