{"id":226738,"date":"2026-01-10T13:27:07","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T13:27:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/226738\/"},"modified":"2026-01-10T13:27:07","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T13:27:07","slug":"why-your-gut-microbiome-is-so-important-for-health-and-how-to-protect-it","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/226738\/","title":{"rendered":"Why your gut microbiome is so important for health and how to protect it"},"content":{"rendered":"<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">Resolutions to improve health typically include measures such as more exercise, a healthier diet and stopping smoking. But what about safeguarding your gut microbiome?<\/p>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">Taking steps to protect and improve it can benefit digestive health and more, says Dr Purna Kashyap, a gastroenterologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, in the US state of Minnesota, who specialises in the gut microbiome and gastrointestinal disorders.<\/p>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">\u201cThe microbiome is essentially a community of bacteria, fungi, viruses and all of their genes,\u201d Kashyap explains. \u201cThe skin, lungs and reproductive system each have their own microbiomes. The gut microbiome is probably the most diverse in our body. Its microbes perform several functions. The body\u2019s other microbiomes tend to be more specialised.\u201d<\/p>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">Your gut microbiome is as unique as your fingerprint. Its bacteria perform important jobs, including breaking down fibre and starches, synthesising vitamins and amino acids such as vitamins B and K, and producing short-chain fatty acids (SCFA) that help prevent disease.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Taking steps to protect and improve the gut microbiome can benefit digestive health and more, says Dr Purna Kashyap, a gastroenterologist at the Mayo Clinic. Photo: Mayo Clinic\" data-qa=\"BaseImage-handleRenderImage-StyledImage\" class=\"e1gf69pb2 css-6ikqhs e445x7d0\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/058d2bff-98dc-4dc4-bce4-f67d87691589_7c6fe0be.jpg\" title=\"Taking steps to protect and improve the gut microbiome can benefit digestive health and more, says Dr Purna Kashyap, a gastroenterologist at the Mayo Clinic. Photo: Mayo Clinic\"\/>Taking steps to protect and improve the gut microbiome can benefit digestive health and more, says Dr Purna Kashyap, a gastroenterologist at the Mayo Clinic. Photo: Mayo Clinic<\/p>\n<p datatype=\"p\" data-qa=\"Component-Component\" class=\"e8zc9q40 css-1c6uqr6 ec74h0k1\">They also maintain the intestinal barrier, a protective gut lining.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Resolutions to improve health typically include measures such as more exercise, a healthier diet and stopping smoking. But&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":226739,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[3135,135367,135365,135364,6294,12593,31246,20645,3419,3535,21739,34336,134,135366,6983,111,139,69,6919,43232],"class_list":{"0":"post-226738","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-alzheimers-disease","9":"tag-antibiotic-use","10":"tag-antiobiotic-use","11":"tag-c-diff","12":"tag-cardiovascular-disease","13":"tag-clostridioides-difficile","14":"tag-colon-cancer","15":"tag-crohns-disease","16":"tag-depression","17":"tag-diabetes","18":"tag-gut-health","19":"tag-gut-microbiome","20":"tag-health","21":"tag-highly-processed-foods","22":"tag-immune-system","23":"tag-new-zealand","24":"tag-newzealand","25":"tag-nz","26":"tag-parkinsons-disease","27":"tag-ulcerative-colitis"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/226738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=226738"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/226738\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/226739"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=226738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=226738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=226738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}