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Probiotic Salads and Dressings and Why Your Microbes Need Them
Your body is a gift. It's designed to give you time, freedom, and a life that's full of experiences. I love my life so much. Not just the good moments, but all of them, because I have learned that there is value in every moment — even moments when I am feeling negative emotions. In the overcoming of negative emotions, I have found the treasure I was seeking and my body has been one of my best teachers. Eating salads every day is one of those times I found something positive from negative emotions. If I want to feel better from one meal, a salad is just the ticket I need. If I could teach you to eat a small salad every day it could change your life. If you want to feel better, you need salad and dressing with a little fat in them to help you absorb the nutrients in a more profound way.
Eating salads provides fiber for your microbiome and this reduces inflammation and so much more. ScienceDaily explains what happens when you eat leafy greens: "A critical discovery about how bacteria feed on an unusual sugar molecule found in leafy green vegetables could hold the key to explaining how 'good' bacteria protect our gut and promote health. The finding suggests that leafy greens are essential for feeding good gut bacteria, limiting the ability of bad bacteria to colonize the gut by shutting them out of the prime real estate.
"Researchers from Melbourne and the UK identified a previously unknown enzyme used by bacteria, fungi, and other organisms to feed on the unusual but abundant sugar sulfoquinovose -- SQ for short -- found in green vegetables. Each year, leafy green vegetables -- such as spinach -- produce the sugar on an enormous scale." [1]
There are many reasons you should eat salads. They are one of nature's perfect foods - they work like medicine. The benefits are many and they're delicious too! Having fermented dressings is a mainstay in my house and is one of the many ways I add cultured foods to my family's diet. When you serve salads with probiotic dressing, you have a win-win. You can make them in as little as five minutes. They will have billions of probiotics and are perfectly preserved for months. You will love them and your family won’t know they’re eating billions of good bacteria in every bite. These are the many reasons I love to make fermented salads. These are life-giving salads!
Check out the recipes below.
"Doctors are learning that one of the best ways to quell inflammation lies not in the medicine cabinet, but in the refrigerator."
Harvard Health
Probiotic Salads
Salads Are Fertilizer For Your Good Microbes
Many fruits and vegetables are prebiotics which is food for your good bacteria. Prebiotics act as a fertilizer to promote the growth of the good bacteria in our gut. This is essential to the health and function of our immune system. You want a diverse amount of good bacteria in your gut, and eating cultured foods accomplishes this. With the addition of prebiotics, you have a super strong combination that boosts your immune system. Prebiotics also strengthen your ability to absorb calcium, magnesium, and other minerals usually lacking in our diets.
Salads add Fiber to Your Diet
Fiber is essential to having a healthy body. Not only does it feed your microbes, but it can also help to reduce LDL or “bad” cholesterol. It helps to control blood sugar, and fiber helps normalize the bowel and prevent bowel disease. Consuming lots of fiber has been shown to reduce the recurrence, and aid in the prevention, of a number of cancers including colorectal, breast, mouth, throat, and esophagus. [2]
Salads Reduce Chance of Stroke and Heart Disease
A diet rich in vegetables, fruits, and probiotics can lower blood pressure,3 reduce risk of heart disease and stroke,4 and help keep digestive problems at bay. It can also help you lose weight by keeping your appetite in check and by balancing blood sugars.5 Most everybody knows that eating salads is a healthy thing to do but often people don't do it. The more salads you eat, the more you'll crave them. Microbes in your gut reorganize when you eat different types of foods. You will crave the foods you eat the most as your microbes and enzymes increase to accommodate your food preferences. You are what you eat, so make good choices!
Check out my video 📹 for Fermented Asian Salad in a jar!
A Spoonful Gives You Billions of Probiotics
Did you know that the juice from lacto-fermented pickles and vegetables is just as powerful as the vegetables themselves? Add a spoonful of cultured juice to any salad dressing or even your condiments, like ketchup and mustard, and it will add billions of probiotics and be undetectable in terms of taste. Or better yet, make your own salad dressings or condiments – I have many recipes you can see below. This is a great way to get probiotics into picky eaters. One spoonful gives you billions of probiotics and more than a whole bottle of probiotic pills. These cultured veggies help digest proteins and build your immune system to fight off colds and flus.
Check out this video 📹 on how to make 20 Second Kombucha Mayo.
Salads Help with Weight Loss
Eating a fiber-rich salad will help you to feel full faster, so you’ll consume a smaller amount of calories than you might when a meal is served without this salad appetizer. Adding a probiotic dressing will help you receive more nutrients from all of the fruits and veggies. The more raw vegetables you can incorporate into your salad, the greater the potential positive effects will be. Adequate fiber intake helps with weight loss and healthy weight maintenance. It normalizes bowel movements and aids in the prevention of bowel disease.
Salads Reduce Chronic Inflammation
Inflammation is part of the body's immune response; without it, we can't heal. Studies have suggested that vitamin E may play a key role in protecting the body from pro-inflammatory molecules called cytokines. Vitamin E is found in dark green veggies such as spinach, kale, broccoli, and collard greens. Dark greens and cruciferous vegetables also tend to have higher concentrations of vitamins and minerals—like calcium, iron, and disease-fighting phytochemicals—than those with lighter-colored leaves.
Probiotic Salad and Dressing Recipes
Check out all the different ways to make probiotic salads, condiments, and dressings. I want to encourage you to give it a try. These can be game changers. Don't buy salad dressings from the store that are filled with chemicals. Make your own and see and taste the difference. Check out the probiotic dressing and salad recipes below and I have many more recipes in my ebook this month. They're an easy and delicious way to sneak probiotic foods into your diet.
Scroll down for all the recipes! 👇🏼👇🏼👇🏼
Check Out My New eBook Probiotic Soups and Salads for My Biotic Pro Members!
Soups, salads, and homemade probiotic dressings are some of the mainstays of my diet. I have soup or salad almost every day for lunch and sometimes dinner too! The more of these I eat, the more nourished and energized I feel. Soups and salads are loaded with veggies which are prebiotic food for your microbes, so eat up!
Probiotic Salad and Dressing Recipes
References:
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/02/160215114005.htm
- https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/fiber/art-20043983?pg=1
- https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/04/180425131909.htm
- https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2018/05/28/probiotics-may-lower-heart-attack-stroke-risks.aspx
- https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/vegetables-and-fruits/
Listen To My Podcast
If I want to feel better from one meal, a salad is just the ticket I need. If I could teach you to eat a small salad every day it could change your life. If you want to feel better, you need salad and probiotic dressing with a little fat in them to help you absorb the nutrients in a more profound way. Eating salads provides fiber for your microbiome and this reduces inflammation and so much more. Check out all the ways to eat salads and probiotic dressings on this week's podcast.
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