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It’s Personal

One man’s broccoli may not be another man’s broccoli, because all superfoods aren’t superfoods to us all.

If you follow health trends, it’s difﬁcult not to notice the word “superfood” used frequently. From quinoa, broccoli, spinach, and blueberries, it’s hard to imagine that there’s enough to go around.

These foods are rich in antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals- and often powerful natural anti-inﬂammatories. But one of the most common mistakes we make is assuming one superfood is a superfood for all; frankly, our gut microbiome has its own opinion.

Our gut microbes wear a lot of different hats when it comes to keeping their ecosystem stable. Yourgut microbes have adjusted entirely to a particular lifestyle based on your typical dietary habits. As a result, your microbes’ diversity, balance, and activity rely heavily on the foods you consume, and they differ even more from one person to the next.

So although many of those superfoods contain healthy nutrients, they may also have metabolites– or digestible components– that promote harmful microbial activity based on the current state of your gut microbiome. In short, pay attention to your body after consuming certain foods. For example, I love pizza, beer, and pasta like everyone else but realized that I was constantly bloated and experienced discomfort after eating and drinking those foods. Over time, I decided to overhaul my diet while also discovering that I was gluten intolerant, so bye, bye, beer, pizza, & pasta, each containing wheat. In the end, one man’s broccoli may not be another man’s broccoli, or in my case, another man’s margarita pizza.