In this episode of the Love Your Gut podcast, I’m joined by Shannon Race, co-founder of Bio.me, to dive deep into the incredible benefits of prebiotic fiber. We’ll explore what prebiotic fiber is, why it’s essential for gut and hormone health, and how it can transform your overall well-being.
Shannon shares her expertise on the role of prebiotic fiber in feeding beneficial gut bacteria and supporting a healthy microbiome. Together, we discuss the different types of prebiotic fibers, where to find them in your diet, and how they impact digestion, hormones, and even mood. Plus, we cover common mistakes people make when adding fiber to their routine and how to do it in a way that works for your body.
Whether you’re dealing with bloating, irregular digestion, or hormone imbalance, this episode is packed with actionable tips and expert insights to help you harness the power of prebiotic fiber for better health!
Links from the episode:
- Try out Bio.me (Heather is a fan of the chocolate!)
- Take our free quiz!
Connect with Dr. Heather
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Dr. Heather Finley (00:03):
Welcome to the Love Your Gut Podcast.
I'm your host, Dr.
Heather Finley, registereddietitian and gut health
specialist.
I understand the frustration ofdealing with GI issues because
I've been there and I spent overtwo decades searching for
answers for my own gut issues ofconstipation, bloating, and
stomach pain.
I've dedicated my life tounderstanding and solving my own
(00:24):
gut issues.
And now I'm here to guide you.
On this podcast, I'll help youidentify the true root causes of
your discomfort.
So you can finally ditch yoursymptoms for good.
My goal is to empower you withthe knowledge and tools you need
so that you can love your gutand it will love you right back.
So if you're ready to learn alot, gain a deeper understanding
(00:46):
of your gut and find lastingrelief.
You are in the right place.
Welcome to the love your gutpodcast..............
Welcome back to the next episodeof the love your gut podcast.
I am so excited to be here todaywith Shannon, who is going to
share with us all aboutprebiotic fiber and the company
that she owns.
(01:07):
And we're going to get into allthe nitty gritty details.
So Shannon, welcome to the show.
Shannon Race (01:12):
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm excited to be here.
Dr. Heather Finley (01:15):
Why don't you just start off by telling us
your story and a little bitabout maybe why you decided to
start a prebiotic fiber or guthealth brand and kind of get
involved in that space.
Would love to just hear yourjourney and what led you there.
Shannon Race (01:32):
Sure.
My journey started a very longtime ago.
I actually started having prettysevere GI issues back in middle
school.
I was Suffering from IBSD and atthe time when I was going to
various gastroenterologists andtrying to really understand what
the root cause was, I feel likewe weren't at the, we're, we
(01:55):
certainly weren't at the placethat we are now in which we are
now.
have a lot of different tools atour disposal to understand how
to mitigate symptoms.
And I was basically told youhave IBSD, just, good luck.
You're essentially going to needto take note of anything that
gives you GI distress and,perhaps eliminate that.
(02:17):
That's a really tough thing fora middle schooler who's fairly
young to have to endure,especially when, much of the
time that you spend is not atyour home, it's at school and, I
was, it really mentally messedwith me and in the sense that I
started to get really fearful offoods and I started to get
(02:37):
really fearful of, is this goingto cause me to get sick?
And, what if I do, what happensif I get sick at school?
And that journey for me startedearly and really transformed my
relationship with food and,truly my social life in a lot of
ways.
And, as I got a little bitolder, a lot of the symptoms
that I experienced at a youngerage started to subside, but it
(02:58):
wasn't fully fixed or healed andthen it wasn't until.
Beyond college and my 20s, Iactually started working at a
company called Vital Proteins.
I was living in Chicago at thetime and even then, Midwest,
there's just still not a lot ofa holistic approach to nutrition
or wellness at your fingertips.
(03:18):
And Vital Proteins was thisgateway to opening my eyes to a
world of, different varyingapproaches to healing your gut
health that are more natural innature and really understanding
kind of that relationship thatfood plays in the health and
balance of your gut.
And so that was a really pivotalmoment for me.
(03:40):
I started to, incorporate.
Various foods that I hadn'totherwise thought to
incorporate, collagen basedfoods specifically.
I was, researching differentsupplements like L glutamine and
glutathione and like all ofthese various tools that kind of
started me on my path tonaturally healing my gut.
(04:00):
And really set me on the journeythat eventually led me here.
One of the things that I thoughtwas really interesting, I pretty
much had gotten my symptomsunder control.
in my late twenties with, somerandom bouts here and there.
But as I was talking to a friendof mine, so I'm a co founder of
(04:21):
this company.
She has ulcerative colitis.
And one of the things that shetold me was essentially the
primary tool that helped put herinto remission.
was incorporating psyllium husksspecifically in her diet.
And I thought that was so oddbecause I was thinking, for me,
when I recall back to myunderstanding of fiber and why
(04:47):
people take fiber.
It was vastly different thanwhat I come have come to
understand the importance offiber being as someone with IBSD
thinking about fiber and, seeingfiber one bars in my parents in
the cupboards and, my parentshome and, people talking about
prunes, you take prunes, forfiber when need to go to the
(05:07):
bathroom.
My association was you takefiber because you cannot go to
the bathroom, not fiber is a, asa tool and a resource to help
feed the good bacteria topromote a healthy environment in
the gut that can then help healand remedy issues that you
experience even when you haveIBSD.
(05:28):
So that was like a crazy ahamoment for me.
And so I started to do a lotmore research and we talked a
lot about.
Why if fiber is such animportant nutrient and honestly
is a macro nutrient, why is noone talking about how important
that is and how severelydeficient we are in daily intake
(05:49):
of that important macronutrient?
We talk a lot about protein.
We talk a lot about carbs, butwe don't talk about fiber and
how beneficial it is.
And, you look at the shelves Ofthe of various retailers,
grocers, et cetera.
And all are these old, brandsthat have been around forever
with very poor fiber sources inthem and ingredients that are
(06:12):
just frankly could be far moredisrupted to your gut in the
long term than they can bebeneficial in the short term.
And so we, really were like, Ithink it's time that we bring a
brand or a product into theworld that.
is clean, is efficacious andreally helps storytell around
(06:33):
the benefits of fiber in a waythat helps people understand
this is not just a reactive toolfor wellness.
This is a proactive tool.
And that has been that's thestory and the genesis of bio me,
which has been a really funjourney so far.
Dr. Heather Finley (06:50):
I love that.
And I love that you said it's aproactive, not a reactive,
because I think so much about.
Healthcare is reactive andpeople are maybe starting to
change a little bit andrealizing there's so much that
we can do to be proactive aboutour health and fiber for sure is
one of those things.
(07:10):
I know I have a similarassociation with fiber.
I always thought fiber was likethat gross powder that your
grandma mixes into her orangejuice or like those disgusting
fiber one bars or just likethings that you think Oh, you
use this is like desperate timescall for desperate measures type
of situation versus this issomething that's good for my gut
(07:33):
to incorporate for all thesebenefits.
So on that note, for peoplelistening, why don't we break
down what actually is prebioticfiber?
Because it's important to notethe difference.
There's a difference betweenfiber and then prebiotic fiber
specifically.
And then why is prebiotics fiberspecifically so important for
(07:55):
Gut health.
Shannon Race (07:56):
Yeah.
So yes, you're right.
There are different sources offiber.
Some of them are prebiotic,meaning that they actually are
fermented when they reach a, asource of good bacteria.
And which benefits the the colonwith short chain fatty acids and
metabolites and there arevarious sources ferment in the
gut differently and can havedifferent benefits.
(08:19):
I think one of the things thatI've always talked to about is
there is a distinction as wellbetween prebiotic fiber and
prebiotics.
So prebiotic fibers are fibersthat have prebiotic properties
and they're typically found infood sources, vegetables,
fruits, nuts, seeds.
And then prebiotics can be, nonfood based or food source based
(08:41):
ingredients that can haveprebiotic effects when they
enter the gut microbiome.
And so I think, a lot of peopleare like take a caps or a, I
take a capsule with prebioticsin it.
Is it's not fiber?
Is that still beneficial?
Yes, but obviously, I think thatyou get the most benefit out of
a source that's coming directlyfrom a food based ingredient.
(09:05):
That's my preference and what Ilike, what I try to emphasize to
people.
And primarily because those foodsources have the ability to
resist breakdown in the smallintestine.
So they're reaching your colonand you know that they're
feeding the good bacteria andyou know that they're producing
those short chain fatty acidsand various other metabolites
that are so beneficial to thehealth of the gut.
(09:26):
And the other thing aboutprebiotic fiber that, I think
people don't realize is theyhave the ability to distinguish
between feeding good bacteriaand bad bacteria.
So you have gut imbalance.
Not, I think a lot of people forwhatever reason think, Oh, I
should take probiotics.
I need more good bacteria in thegut.
And you're like, no, you need tofeed the good bacteria in the
(09:48):
gut and starve the bad bacteria.
So feeding the good by the goodbacteria through fiber, rich
foods, or, fiber supplements.
is the way to help recalibrateand rebalance your gut health
when you're starting to feellike something's off.
Dr. Heather Finley (10:05):
Yeah.
And you bring up such a goodpoint.
I often get the question I haveGI issues, I have SIBO, I have
IBS, I have, you name it whichprobiotic is going to help me.
And I always tell peopleprobiotics are not actually
going to make a huge differencefor you until we actually focus
on prebiotics.
So let's talk about why we haveto shift our mindset a little
(10:28):
bit away from probiotics firstto actually prebiotics, because
most people that have GI issuesare terrified of fiber because
they think, Oh, fiber makes mebloated.
fiber does this fiber, quoteunquote feeds the bad bacteria,
which you just said is not true.
And yeah, why do we need tofocus on prebiotics more than
(10:50):
probiotics?
Shannon Race (10:52):
Like I was saying, I think it's just whatever
reason, we've had this wave ofpro probiotics and just general
gut health.
It seems to be, it seems tobecome a catch all ingredient
for, if you feel, if you're, ifyour gut feels off or you feel
bloated, take probiotics, theywill help.
If you're putting just morebacteria, good bacteria in your
(11:15):
gut, you're not feeding the goodbacteria that lives in your gut.
And it's not necessarily about,I think there is benefit
absolutely to supplementing withprobiotics, especially if you're
looking to further diversify thebacteria in your microbiome.
But if you're not feeding it,You're not establishing, a
healthy, balanced environment.
(11:37):
And I think that is thedistinction that has to be made.
It's putting more bacteria inthe gut doesn't feed the good
bacteria and help create athriving microbiome.
And it doesn't help remedy youof the bad bacteria that's
already potentially growing andprospering in your microbiome.
And so I think people reallyunderstanding that prebiotics
(11:58):
are the fuel for yourprobiotics.
You, they need to feed on thisfuel so that they can do the
things that you want them to do,produce those short chain fatty
acids in the colon and themetabolites and the things that
actually help your microbiome.
Really heal and repair your gut.
So I think, I've always it'sit's been such an interesting
(12:18):
journey with this brand andgetting to, go out into the
community and talk to peopleand, It's most people do not
truly do not understand thedifference between prebiotics
and probiotics and oftentimesthey them interchangeably and
I'm like no, there's a vastdistinction and you need to
understand why you're doingsomething or what the end result
(12:41):
will be if you do X, Y, and Z,and, if you have to choose
between prebiotics andprobiotics, I will tell
everyone, a hundred percent ofthe time prebiotics first.
Okay.
Dr. Heather Finley (12:51):
I agree with you.
Yeah.
Shannon Race (12:54):
Yeah.
Dr. Heather Finley (12:54):
Yeah.
And I think, we always shock ourclients when we tell them that
I'm like, I really don't careabout giving you a probiotic
right now.
We have other work to do.
And usually a prebiotic is wherewe start.
Similar to probiotics,prebiotics are, they all act a
little bit differently.
And so I would love for you tobreak down just different
(13:18):
sources of prebiotics and likewhy they might be appropriate
depending on someone'ssituation.
And you can share with us thedifferent products that you have
and why you put those in.
In your products, you haveseveral really interesting
products.
When I looked up what all was inall the different products, I
was so interested and I was soexcited to talk to you because
(13:39):
they're really well formulatedand obviously very specific to a
very specific individual.
Some of the things that you haveincluded in your products are
PHGG, resistant starch psylliumhusk like you mentioned earlier,
and then you've also includedpomegranate husk in one of your
products as well.
So let's break down those fourspecifically and like why
(14:02):
somebody might choose PHGG overresistant starch, over psyllium,
over pomegranate, or acombination of those as well.
Shannon Race (14:13):
Yeah, so just to take it back for a moment, like
you said, not all fibers andprebiotic fibers are created
equal.
And I think one of the things tonote in that is that a lot of
people have we've had this kindof like renaissance of adding
fiber to everything, and you seeit in a lot of foods, you see it
(14:33):
in a lot of beverages now, andit's created actually, I think,
a negative association withfiber because the fiber sources
that are typically found inthose products are chicory root
that have high levels of inulinin them.
And, they ferment really quicklyin the gut, which causes a lot
of gas and bloating.
And when formulating theseproducts, it was really
(14:54):
important to me to find goodsources and, clean sources of
fiber that Have a much longerfermenting process and can
actually, reach the colon and doall the work and provide all the
good health, healthy benefitsthat you're looking for.
So you need, you named all ofthe different sources that we're
(15:17):
using and the daily probioticfiber is just a 2 ingredient
fiber powder, unflavored.
We wanted to create somethingthat was really seamless for
people to add to their existingroutines repertoire.
And those two fibers are.
soluble fibers.
The resistant starch, potatostarch, is actually slightly
(15:40):
unsoluble.
But I'll talk about that in asecond.
Partially hydrolyzed guar gum issuch a, it's been a really funny
one to educate people on becausethere is a huge negative
association with guar gum.
And I think people need tounderstand that guar gum is one
state of of, Coming from the warbeing partially hydrolyzed war
(16:00):
gum actually goes through anenzymatic fermentation process
that helps it break down beforeyou even consume it so that it
can resist the small intestineand have those Healthy benefits
for the good bacteria in thegut.
So it's a really importantdistinction because war gum is
(16:21):
not resistant.
It does not.
It's digested as any normal foodis.
It's not reaching your colon andproducing those producing that
fuel or that nourishment forgood bacteria.
So that's a huge distinction toknow.
The resistant potato starch issimilar.
It's not starch, which wouldnormally be digested by your
(16:44):
your GI or your digestivesystem.
Excuse me.
It resists the small intestineand makes its way to the large
colon where it fuels the goodbacteria and helps to produce
all of those benefits that youwould want out of a prebiotic
fiber.
And so those two sources werereally important to me because
(17:05):
they are pretty much neutral inflavor.
They dissolve very easily in avariety of foods and drinks and
can in, in our productspecifically can give you seven
grams of additional fiber inyour diet from really good
sources.
And that are really intended tomitigate any sort of GI
(17:26):
discomfort that you would havedue to the length of the.
They like fibers have differentchain links and that's how you
determine if something is goingto potentially cause GI distress
is how quickly does it fermentin the gut.
Some of these fibers likechicory root, very short chains,
ferment really quickly.
really quickly, which is why alot of people experience gas and
(17:48):
bloating after they have, abeverage that contains that.
And so we wanted, to make surethat we were using sources that
really help to mitigate GIdistress and feed the gut in a
way that helps to provide allthose benefits like bowel
regularity and rebalancing ofthe gut and bloating relief and
(18:09):
some of the symptoms that mostpeople hopefully come to fiber
to, to get.
And then on the other hand, wehave a product called Fiber
Rescue, which is a psyllium huskbased product.
Psyllium husk is very differentthan the other two that I spoke
about because it is Both solubleand insoluble.
So I like to explain to people.
(18:30):
Think of it like a chia seed.
It is going to absorb water, butit's not going to fully
dissipate in a solution.
So it starts to bring water in.
And that's the actual mechanismof action.
That's so important about itbecause it's not going to fully
dissolve.
And it's going to absorb water.
And as it's moving through yourGI tract, it's going to start
(18:51):
pulling water in from yourorgans and creating almost like
a gel, like scrubby brush.
So as it's moving through yourGI tract and in through your
intestines, it's actuallyscrubbing out a lot of the bad
bacteria that's living in there.
And it's a really good tool forpeople who A have constipation
(19:14):
issues and B just need to reallydetox and clean out that GI
tract.
And so that one is, probablymost closely associated with a
brand on the market that's beenaround for a very long time that
our grandmothers may have taken.
But it's a much cleaner sourcereally leveraging specifically
(19:34):
selenium husk as that fibersource to feed and clean out the
digestive system.
And then the last one that youmentioned are PAMA plus is a
it's, that is, that's what I wastalking about earlier, the
difference between prebioticfiber and then prebiotics.
So it is not a fiber source.
It is a prebiotic.
(19:56):
That has essentially bypasses asmall intestine goes into the
colon and has a prebioticeffect.
So it's able to feed the goodbacteria.
And so that 1 specifically.
Is coupled with a variety ofdifferent probiotic strains and
a post biotic.
To have that all in one almostlike this, the, a full circle
(20:19):
kind of cycle of what happenswhen a probiotic feeds on a
prebiotic and creates apostbiotic and that's an all in
one and yeah, that one's it wasa really exciting ingredient for
us to find that worked reallywell in this formula that we
created.
Dr. Heather Finley (20:35):
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(20:55):
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(21:16):
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show notes.
Now back to the episode.
No, it's really great.
And I think I can see theprogression at least if I were
(21:37):
looking at your products fromYou know what I would recommend
to a client.
It's very easy to see okaysomeone who's super sensitive
might start with the resistantstarch partially hard to
hydrolyze guar gum and Theycould slowly progress through
your product suite Or, maybesomeone who's not as sensitive
could try one of the other twoproducts.
(22:00):
Another thing that I foundreally interesting, I talk tons
on my page and podcast, etc.
about minerals, and what Inoticed was your psyllium husk,
for example, product hasminerals in it.
So let's walk through maybe why,what the mindset was behind
that.
I think it's super genius andhow that helps the kind of water
(22:24):
process that you were talkingabout, drawing water in, why
that's important and how thosetwo things, the fiber and then
the electrolytes slash mineralscan work together.
Shannon Race (22:35):
Yeah.
When we were formulating theproduct, one of the things that
we talked a lot about is how dowe properly educate people on
the best ways to use psylliumhusk?
I feel like when peopleoftentimes have a bad experience
taking psyllium husk, it's oftenbecause they're extremely
dehydrated and they're notrealizing, like I said, that
(22:55):
mechanism of action of how it'sactually working in the body.
And why it's so important toensure that you are drinking a
lot of fluids throughout theday, keeping yourself hydrated
so that you can actually makethat process work better.
Because otherwise it's almostdehydrating you from the inside.
And the electrolytes were ourresponse to that thinking, why
(23:17):
wouldn't you want, why wouldn'tyou put electrolytes in a
formula like this in order tohelp, increase that that process
of water creation in the bodyand keep people hydrated and
make sure that.
As it's working its way throughyour intestines, it's not
creating a blockage or gettingstuck or, it's almost mitigating
this negative side effect thatpeople sometimes associate with
(23:39):
that particular type of fiber.
So that was really important tous.
It was just, it's one of thosethings where, you know, as
you're like, Your formula,you're like, why hasn't anyone
thought of this?
This feels like this is a, likea duh,
Dr. Heather Finley (23:51):
no, it really is.
Yeah.
Cause you're right.
The dehydration, so many peoplehave such negative experiences
with psyllium mask and thedehydration piece is the biggest
thing.
Like you have to have, you haveto have a hydrated colon to
tolerate that.
Shannon Race (24:07):
Absolutely.
And I think, and that was the,it was just, Psyllium husk is
such an amazing ingredient.
And if there's any way tomitigate, some of the negative
symptoms or side effects peoplemight experience if they aren't
properly using the product,that's that was the goal with
that.
Dr. Heather Finley (24:23):
Yeah.
So dehydration, like youmentioned, can be a huge mistake
or reason for people to havesymptoms with fiber.
Are there any other things thatyou see that, is a common kind
of malpractice or just mistakethat someone might make when
they're introducing fiber?
I know I can think of several,but.
(24:43):
What are some things that yousee that, might shy someone away
Oh, that didn't work for me.
Or that made me super bloated.
That made things worse.
Why does that happen?
Shannon Race (24:53):
I think the number one thing people do is they try
to add too much fiber tooquickly.
And that is something, over andover again, I tell people, if
you are not, if you do, ifyou're not sure how much fiber
you're just naturally in yourdiet on a daily basis.
And you're not supplementingwith fiber in any other way,
(25:16):
please start with half of a doseof fiber and work your way up
over the course of, a week and ahalf.
Don't add multiple sources offiber at once, give your body
time.
To adjust to the process of thatfrom that fermentation process,
the process of breaking down thefiber that you're introducing, I
(25:37):
think a lot of people, they it'slike they think it's going to be
a miracle cure all and it's aquick fix and then just, go too
much too quickly.
And then they have a really bad.
Side effect from doing that.
And it's one of the medicaladvisors that we work with was
like, Think of it like running amarathon.
You're not going to put on yourrunning shoes one day without
(25:59):
any training and run 26.
2 miles.
You have to, every single day, alittle bit more, and increase
your fiber intake at a slow paceto give your digestive system
the ability to really get usedto it and be able to get the
benefit out of it.
Yeah.
Dr. Heather Finley (26:17):
A hundred percent.
Yeah.
And if you're having sideeffects, bloating, constipation,
diarrhea, whatever it might be,that's not necessarily a sign
that your body's not toleratingit.
It's just a sign to slow down.
So cut it in half or cut it in aquarter.
We've had clients go like superslow, adding in fiber sources
(26:37):
because everybody's tolerance isgoing to be different.
But.
Yeah.
More doesn't necessarily make itbetter.
You could do that and you couldjust fight through the symptoms
until they go away, but there'sreally no need to do that.
When there's an easy way to doit.
I know.
And
Shannon Race (26:52):
I think it's, I think again, that also calls
into question.
Why are we so deficient in fiberthat a small amount of fibers?
So hard for us to tolerate andgoes back to my point earlier
about, we are so incrediblydeficient as a population and
The fact that this is such a keynutrient to just general well
(27:14):
being is mind blowing to me thatfor so long it's been so
negatively stigmatized and notdiscussed.
And oftentimes people are like,it's because it's not sexy.
It should be sexy because it'skeeping you feeling your best.
And so it's just been, it's beeninteresting to, to be out in the
(27:35):
world, talking to people,helping educate them and seeing
them have these light bulbmoments of Oh my God, I have no
idea,
Dr. Heather Finley (27:41):
yeah, no, you're right.
Like it should be sexy becauseit helps you go to the bathroom
and decrease this bloat.
And, it does all the things thatyou're trying to get your
probiotic to do that.
It's not actually doing.
And usually for a much lowercost as well.
Is there anything else thatyou'd like to share about
prebiotic fiber?
gut health in general, just yourjourney through seeing clients
(28:04):
or buyers use your products,just success stories, things
that you've seen on the market,et cetera.
Shannon Race (28:11):
It's, I think the thing that's also been really
interesting is it's opened upthis this Almost a storytelling
landscape.
I feel like my friends now cometo me and talk to me about their
problem.
Same.
And I'm learning a lot aboutwhat is normal for people and
what is not and helping themdistinguish like that.
(28:32):
You haven't gone to the bathroomand How many days that's not
normal and helping themunderstand why it's so important
to have why regularity isimportant to your body is trying
to rid itself of toxins and badthings that it is not beneficial
to your body.
If it's just sitting in there,can you imagine what it's doing?
(28:54):
And yeah, I just, I feel likeeveryone's gut health journey is
so individual and you have totake the things with you that
work and leave behind thingsthat don't.
And just because they worked forone person, they may not work
for another, but, as it relatesto fiber, to me, you know, all I
ask people is just get morefiber in your diet.
(29:15):
If it's not by using myproducts.
And you can just use food andvegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds,
a variety of different types offiber sources as your tool, but
get more fiber, you will feel somuch better.
And it's just, it's shocking tome as someone who has struggled
so long in life with varyingdegrees of IBS that it took me
(29:38):
this long to find this as one ofthe most pivotal.
Tools in my gut health toolkit.
I find that to be wild.
And so I guess I'm just alwaystrying to help people
understand, it's so important.
I don't care where you get itfrom, you should make sure that
you're getting enough of it.
Dr. Heather Finley (29:58):
It's so easy to chase the shiny object
syndrome of the newest fat orthe newest this or that.
But the reality is like fiberhas been and always will be the
probably number one thing thatyou can do to improve the health
of your colon specifically.
But overall GI tract from ashort chain fatty acid and
(30:22):
function perspective.
And it's like you said, it's notthe sexy thing, but it's the
most.
It's a really stable reliablething that you can do and
whether it's from a product,food sources, a combination of
both, it really is, you're goingto see benefits beyond gut
health.
You're going to see benefits inyour cholesterol, your blood
sugar, your sleep, your moodit's all connected.
(30:46):
So it's a really easy lift forlarge rewards.
Shannon Race (30:50):
Yeah.
I think a lot of what we try todo as well is.
Demystify what is happening inthe gut when you're, eating by
fiber rich foods or you'retaking fiber supplements.
I think, we've had this massivewave of gut health trends to
your point.
So many different products outthere saying, this is going to
(31:11):
help you, cure this, or this isgoing to help repair this or
whatever.
And, I feel like at the core ofwhat we're trying to do is just
help people understand why amacronutrient that has seemingly
been forgotten is so critical toputting you on the right path.
To restoring your gut health andfeeling your best.
(31:32):
And that's honestly that's everyday.
That's the message that I'mtrying to get out there.
Dr. Heather Finley (31:38):
I love it.
This is probably a reallyobvious answer, but I'm going to
ask you it anyways.
So since this is the love yourgut podcast, what is your
favorite way to love your gut?
And then please share with uswhere people can find you learn
about your products, all thatkind of stuff as well.
Shannon Race (31:55):
Yeah.
Yes, it comes as no surprisethat fiber is probably involved.
But honestly though it's reallybeen about.
Yup.
My relationship with food andmaking sure that I'm getting the
right sources of nutrients in mydiet and a lot of that is
related to fiber and I, go intoevery day thinking about when
(32:15):
I'm having my meals, what's myfiber source?
What is, how am I ensuring thatI'm getting?
The right amount of protein.
And, there is no one thing thatwill cure all, but I think for
me, the way that I really, trulylove my gut is by feeding it
with the right nutrients andensuring that I'm giving it what
it needs on a daily basis.
(32:37):
So that's what I'm doing.
And if anybody wants to checkout, bio me, they can visit us
on our website bio.
me and then we're also onInstagram and we post a lot of
great videos and content andeducational pieces and recipes
if you're looking for ways toincorporate.
(32:57):
The products into your routine.
And we're also on Amazon, soyeah.
Dr. Heather Finley (33:01):
Awesome.
I'll put all those links in theshow notes so people can check
them out, but thank you so muchfor joining.
This was so informative and Ihope people feel really inspired
that fiber doesn't have to bescary.
It's can be a really easy, apowerful thing to add into your
daily routine for optimal guthealth.
So thanks for joining me today.
(33:22):
You so much for
Shannon Race (33:22):
having me.
Dr. Heather Finley (33:25):
I'm giving your gut a thumbs up because you
just finished another episode ofthe love your gut podcast.
You know that in order to live alife free from uncomfortable
bloating, you need to figure outwhy you're actually bloated,
right?
The best way to do that is bytaking my free quiz.
Take the next steps towardsdetermining your root causes by
visiting drheatherfinley.
(33:47):
co backslash quiz and learn whatit is that's causing your
bloating.
Soon enough, you'll betransforming your gut issues and
I can't wait to help you.
Be sure to tune in next week forthe next episode of the Love
Your Gut podcast.
Welcome to the Love Your Gut Podcast.
I'm your host, Dr.
Heather Finley, registereddietitian and gut health
specialist.
I understand the frustration ofdealing with GI issues because
I've been there and I spent overtwo decades searching for
answers for my own gut issues ofconstipation, bloating, and
stomach pain.
I've dedicated my life tounderstanding and solving my own
(00:24):
gut issues.
And now I'm here to guide you.
On this podcast, I'll help youidentify the true root causes of
your discomfort.
So you can finally ditch yoursymptoms for good.
My goal is to empower you withthe knowledge and tools you need
so that you can love your gutand it will love you right back.
So if you're ready to learn alot, gain a deeper understanding
(00:46):
of your gut and find lastingrelief.
You are in the right place.
Welcome to the love your gutpodcast..............
Welcome back to the next episodeof the love your gut podcast.
I am so excited to be here todaywith Shannon, who is going to
share with us all aboutprebiotic fiber and the company
that she owns.
(01:07):
And we're going to get into allthe nitty gritty details.
So Shannon, welcome to the show.
Shannon Race (01:12):
Thank you so much for having me.
I'm excited to be here.
Dr. Heather Finley (01:15):
Why don't you just start off by telling us
your story and a little bitabout maybe why you decided to
start a prebiotic fiber or guthealth brand and kind of get
involved in that space.
Would love to just hear yourjourney and what led you there.
Shannon Race (01:32):
Sure.
My journey started a very longtime ago.
I actually started having prettysevere GI issues back in middle
school.
I was Suffering from IBSD and atthe time when I was going to
various gastroenterologists andtrying to really understand what
the root cause was, I feel likewe weren't at the, we're, we
(01:55):
certainly weren't at the placethat we are now in which we are
now.
have a lot of different tools atour disposal to understand how
to mitigate symptoms.
And I was basically told youhave IBSD, just, good luck.
You're essentially going to needto take note of anything that
gives you GI distress and,perhaps eliminate that.
(02:17):
That's a really tough thing fora middle schooler who's fairly
young to have to endure,especially when, much of the
time that you spend is not atyour home, it's at school and, I
was, it really mentally messedwith me and in the sense that I
started to get really fearful offoods and I started to get
(02:37):
really fearful of, is this goingto cause me to get sick?
And, what if I do, what happensif I get sick at school?
And that journey for me startedearly and really transformed my
relationship with food and,truly my social life in a lot of
ways.
And, as I got a little bitolder, a lot of the symptoms
that I experienced at a youngerage started to subside, but it
(02:58):
wasn't fully fixed or healed andthen it wasn't until.
Beyond college and my 20s, Iactually started working at a
company called Vital Proteins.
I was living in Chicago at thetime and even then, Midwest,
there's just still not a lot ofa holistic approach to nutrition
or wellness at your fingertips.
(03:18):
And Vital Proteins was thisgateway to opening my eyes to a
world of, different varyingapproaches to healing your gut
health that are more natural innature and really understanding
kind of that relationship thatfood plays in the health and
balance of your gut.
And so that was a really pivotalmoment for me.
(03:40):
I started to, incorporate.
Various foods that I hadn'totherwise thought to
incorporate, collagen basedfoods specifically.
I was, researching differentsupplements like L glutamine and
glutathione and like all ofthese various tools that kind of
started me on my path tonaturally healing my gut.
(04:00):
And really set me on the journeythat eventually led me here.
One of the things that I thoughtwas really interesting, I pretty
much had gotten my symptomsunder control.
in my late twenties with, somerandom bouts here and there.
But as I was talking to a friendof mine, so I'm a co founder of
(04:21):
this company.
She has ulcerative colitis.
And one of the things that shetold me was essentially the
primary tool that helped put herinto remission.
was incorporating psyllium husksspecifically in her diet.
And I thought that was so oddbecause I was thinking, for me,
when I recall back to myunderstanding of fiber and why
(04:47):
people take fiber.
It was vastly different thanwhat I come have come to
understand the importance offiber being as someone with IBSD
thinking about fiber and, seeingfiber one bars in my parents in
the cupboards and, my parentshome and, people talking about
prunes, you take prunes, forfiber when need to go to the
(05:07):
bathroom.
My association was you takefiber because you cannot go to
the bathroom, not fiber is a, asa tool and a resource to help
feed the good bacteria topromote a healthy environment in
the gut that can then help healand remedy issues that you
experience even when you haveIBSD.
(05:28):
So that was like a crazy ahamoment for me.
And so I started to do a lotmore research and we talked a
lot about.
Why if fiber is such animportant nutrient and honestly
is a macro nutrient, why is noone talking about how important
that is and how severelydeficient we are in daily intake
(05:49):
of that important macronutrient?
We talk a lot about protein.
We talk a lot about carbs, butwe don't talk about fiber and
how beneficial it is.
And, you look at the shelves Ofthe of various retailers,
grocers, et cetera.
And all are these old, brandsthat have been around forever
with very poor fiber sources inthem and ingredients that are
(06:12):
just frankly could be far moredisrupted to your gut in the
long term than they can bebeneficial in the short term.
And so we, really were like, Ithink it's time that we bring a
brand or a product into theworld that.
is clean, is efficacious andreally helps storytell around
(06:33):
the benefits of fiber in a waythat helps people understand
this is not just a reactive toolfor wellness.
This is a proactive tool.
And that has been that's thestory and the genesis of bio me,
which has been a really funjourney so far.
Dr. Heather Finley (06:50):
I love that.
And I love that you said it's aproactive, not a reactive,
because I think so much about.
Healthcare is reactive andpeople are maybe starting to
change a little bit andrealizing there's so much that
we can do to be proactive aboutour health and fiber for sure is
one of those things.
(07:10):
I know I have a similarassociation with fiber.
I always thought fiber was likethat gross powder that your
grandma mixes into her orangejuice or like those disgusting
fiber one bars or just likethings that you think Oh, you
use this is like desperate timescall for desperate measures type
of situation versus this issomething that's good for my gut
(07:33):
to incorporate for all thesebenefits.
So on that note, for peoplelistening, why don't we break
down what actually is prebioticfiber?
Because it's important to notethe difference.
There's a difference betweenfiber and then prebiotic fiber
specifically.
And then why is prebiotics fiberspecifically so important for
(07:55):
Gut health.
Shannon Race (07:56):
Yeah.
So yes, you're right.
There are different sources offiber.
Some of them are prebiotic,meaning that they actually are
fermented when they reach a, asource of good bacteria.
And which benefits the the colonwith short chain fatty acids and
metabolites and there arevarious sources ferment in the
gut differently and can havedifferent benefits.
(08:19):
I think one of the things thatI've always talked to about is
there is a distinction as wellbetween prebiotic fiber and
prebiotics.
So prebiotic fibers are fibersthat have prebiotic properties
and they're typically found infood sources, vegetables,
fruits, nuts, seeds.
And then prebiotics can be, nonfood based or food source based
(08:41):
ingredients that can haveprebiotic effects when they
enter the gut microbiome.
And so I think, a lot of peopleare like take a caps or a, I
take a capsule with prebioticsin it.
Is it's not fiber?
Is that still beneficial?
Yes, but obviously, I think thatyou get the most benefit out of
a source that's coming directlyfrom a food based ingredient.
(09:05):
That's my preference and what Ilike, what I try to emphasize to
people.
And primarily because those foodsources have the ability to
resist breakdown in the smallintestine.
So they're reaching your colonand you know that they're
feeding the good bacteria andyou know that they're producing
those short chain fatty acidsand various other metabolites
that are so beneficial to thehealth of the gut.
(09:26):
And the other thing aboutprebiotic fiber that, I think
people don't realize is theyhave the ability to distinguish
between feeding good bacteriaand bad bacteria.
So you have gut imbalance.
Not, I think a lot of people forwhatever reason think, Oh, I
should take probiotics.
I need more good bacteria in thegut.
And you're like, no, you need tofeed the good bacteria in the
(09:48):
gut and starve the bad bacteria.
So feeding the good by the goodbacteria through fiber, rich
foods, or, fiber supplements.
is the way to help recalibrateand rebalance your gut health
when you're starting to feellike something's off.
Dr. Heather Finley (10:05):
Yeah.
And you bring up such a goodpoint.
I often get the question I haveGI issues, I have SIBO, I have
IBS, I have, you name it whichprobiotic is going to help me.
And I always tell peopleprobiotics are not actually
going to make a huge differencefor you until we actually focus
on prebiotics.
So let's talk about why we haveto shift our mindset a little
(10:28):
bit away from probiotics firstto actually prebiotics, because
most people that have GI issuesare terrified of fiber because
they think, Oh, fiber makes mebloated.
fiber does this fiber, quoteunquote feeds the bad bacteria,
which you just said is not true.
And yeah, why do we need tofocus on prebiotics more than
(10:50):
probiotics?
Shannon Race (10:52):
Like I was saying, I think it's just whatever
reason, we've had this wave ofpro probiotics and just general
gut health.
It seems to be, it seems tobecome a catch all ingredient
for, if you feel, if you're, ifyour gut feels off or you feel
bloated, take probiotics, theywill help.
If you're putting just morebacteria, good bacteria in your
(11:15):
gut, you're not feeding the goodbacteria that lives in your gut.
And it's not necessarily about,I think there is benefit
absolutely to supplementing withprobiotics, especially if you're
looking to further diversify thebacteria in your microbiome.
But if you're not feeding it,You're not establishing, a
healthy, balanced environment.
(11:37):
And I think that is thedistinction that has to be made.
It's putting more bacteria inthe gut doesn't feed the good
bacteria and help create athriving microbiome.
And it doesn't help remedy youof the bad bacteria that's
already potentially growing andprospering in your microbiome.
And so I think people reallyunderstanding that prebiotics
(11:58):
are the fuel for yourprobiotics.
You, they need to feed on thisfuel so that they can do the
things that you want them to do,produce those short chain fatty
acids in the colon and themetabolites and the things that
actually help your microbiome.
Really heal and repair your gut.
So I think, I've always it'sit's been such an interesting
(12:18):
journey with this brand andgetting to, go out into the
community and talk to peopleand, It's most people do not
truly do not understand thedifference between prebiotics
and probiotics and oftentimesthey them interchangeably and
I'm like no, there's a vastdistinction and you need to
understand why you're doingsomething or what the end result
(12:41):
will be if you do X, Y, and Z,and, if you have to choose
between prebiotics andprobiotics, I will tell
everyone, a hundred percent ofthe time prebiotics first.
Okay.
Dr. Heather Finley (12:51):
I agree with you.
Yeah.
Shannon Race (12:54):
Yeah.
Dr. Heather Finley (12:54):
Yeah.
And I think, we always shock ourclients when we tell them that
I'm like, I really don't careabout giving you a probiotic
right now.
We have other work to do.
And usually a prebiotic is wherewe start.
Similar to probiotics,prebiotics are, they all act a
little bit differently.
And so I would love for you tobreak down just different
(13:18):
sources of prebiotics and likewhy they might be appropriate
depending on someone'ssituation.
And you can share with us thedifferent products that you have
and why you put those in.
In your products, you haveseveral really interesting
products.
When I looked up what all was inall the different products, I
was so interested and I was soexcited to talk to you because
(13:39):
they're really well formulatedand obviously very specific to a
very specific individual.
Some of the things that you haveincluded in your products are
PHGG, resistant starch psylliumhusk like you mentioned earlier,
and then you've also includedpomegranate husk in one of your
products as well.
So let's break down those fourspecifically and like why
(14:02):
somebody might choose PHGG overresistant starch, over psyllium,
over pomegranate, or acombination of those as well.
Shannon Race (14:13):
Yeah, so just to take it back for a moment, like
you said, not all fibers andprebiotic fibers are created
equal.
And I think one of the things tonote in that is that a lot of
people have we've had this kindof like renaissance of adding
fiber to everything, and you seeit in a lot of foods, you see it
(14:33):
in a lot of beverages now, andit's created actually, I think,
a negative association withfiber because the fiber sources
that are typically found inthose products are chicory root
that have high levels of inulinin them.
And, they ferment really quicklyin the gut, which causes a lot
of gas and bloating.
And when formulating theseproducts, it was really
(14:54):
important to me to find goodsources and, clean sources of
fiber that Have a much longerfermenting process and can
actually, reach the colon and doall the work and provide all the
good health, healthy benefitsthat you're looking for.
So you need, you named all ofthe different sources that we're
(15:17):
using and the daily probioticfiber is just a 2 ingredient
fiber powder, unflavored.
We wanted to create somethingthat was really seamless for
people to add to their existingroutines repertoire.
And those two fibers are.
soluble fibers.
The resistant starch, potatostarch, is actually slightly
(15:40):
unsoluble.
But I'll talk about that in asecond.
Partially hydrolyzed guar gum issuch a, it's been a really funny
one to educate people on becausethere is a huge negative
association with guar gum.
And I think people need tounderstand that guar gum is one
state of of, Coming from the warbeing partially hydrolyzed war
(16:00):
gum actually goes through anenzymatic fermentation process
that helps it break down beforeyou even consume it so that it
can resist the small intestineand have those Healthy benefits
for the good bacteria in thegut.
So it's a really importantdistinction because war gum is
(16:21):
not resistant.
It does not.
It's digested as any normal foodis.
It's not reaching your colon andproducing those producing that
fuel or that nourishment forgood bacteria.
So that's a huge distinction toknow.
The resistant potato starch issimilar.
It's not starch, which wouldnormally be digested by your
(16:44):
your GI or your digestivesystem.
Excuse me.
It resists the small intestineand makes its way to the large
colon where it fuels the goodbacteria and helps to produce
all of those benefits that youwould want out of a prebiotic
fiber.
And so those two sources werereally important to me because
(17:05):
they are pretty much neutral inflavor.
They dissolve very easily in avariety of foods and drinks and
can in, in our productspecifically can give you seven
grams of additional fiber inyour diet from really good
sources.
And that are really intended tomitigate any sort of GI
(17:26):
discomfort that you would havedue to the length of the.
They like fibers have differentchain links and that's how you
determine if something is goingto potentially cause GI distress
is how quickly does it fermentin the gut.
Some of these fibers likechicory root, very short chains,
ferment really quickly.
really quickly, which is why alot of people experience gas and
(17:48):
bloating after they have, abeverage that contains that.
And so we wanted, to make surethat we were using sources that
really help to mitigate GIdistress and feed the gut in a
way that helps to provide allthose benefits like bowel
regularity and rebalancing ofthe gut and bloating relief and
(18:09):
some of the symptoms that mostpeople hopefully come to fiber
to, to get.
And then on the other hand, wehave a product called Fiber
Rescue, which is a psyllium huskbased product.
Psyllium husk is very differentthan the other two that I spoke
about because it is Both solubleand insoluble.
So I like to explain to people.
(18:30):
Think of it like a chia seed.
It is going to absorb water, butit's not going to fully
dissipate in a solution.
So it starts to bring water in.
And that's the actual mechanismof action.
That's so important about itbecause it's not going to fully
dissolve.
And it's going to absorb water.
And as it's moving through yourGI tract, it's going to start
(18:51):
pulling water in from yourorgans and creating almost like
a gel, like scrubby brush.
So as it's moving through yourGI tract and in through your
intestines, it's actuallyscrubbing out a lot of the bad
bacteria that's living in there.
And it's a really good tool forpeople who A have constipation
(19:14):
issues and B just need to reallydetox and clean out that GI
tract.
And so that one is, probablymost closely associated with a
brand on the market that's beenaround for a very long time that
our grandmothers may have taken.
But it's a much cleaner sourcereally leveraging specifically
(19:34):
selenium husk as that fibersource to feed and clean out the
digestive system.
And then the last one that youmentioned are PAMA plus is a
it's, that is, that's what I wastalking about earlier, the
difference between prebioticfiber and then prebiotics.
So it is not a fiber source.
It is a prebiotic.
(19:56):
That has essentially bypasses asmall intestine goes into the
colon and has a prebioticeffect.
So it's able to feed the goodbacteria.
And so that 1 specifically.
Is coupled with a variety ofdifferent probiotic strains and
a post biotic.
To have that all in one almostlike this, the, a full circle
(20:19):
kind of cycle of what happenswhen a probiotic feeds on a
prebiotic and creates apostbiotic and that's an all in
one and yeah, that one's it wasa really exciting ingredient for
us to find that worked reallywell in this formula that we
created.
Dr. Heather Finley (20:35):
I'm interrupting this episode really
quick to tell you about oursponsor LMNT.
You know that I am a huge fan ofminerals for gut health.
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(20:55):
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(21:16):
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show notes.
Now back to the episode.
No, it's really great.
And I think I can see theprogression at least if I were
(21:37):
looking at your products fromYou know what I would recommend
to a client.
It's very easy to see okaysomeone who's super sensitive
might start with the resistantstarch partially hard to
hydrolyze guar gum and Theycould slowly progress through
your product suite Or, maybesomeone who's not as sensitive
could try one of the other twoproducts.
(22:00):
Another thing that I foundreally interesting, I talk tons
on my page and podcast, etc.
about minerals, and what Inoticed was your psyllium husk,
for example, product hasminerals in it.
So let's walk through maybe why,what the mindset was behind
that.
I think it's super genius andhow that helps the kind of water
(22:24):
process that you were talkingabout, drawing water in, why
that's important and how thosetwo things, the fiber and then
the electrolytes slash mineralscan work together.
Shannon Race (22:35):
Yeah.
When we were formulating theproduct, one of the things that
we talked a lot about is how dowe properly educate people on
the best ways to use psylliumhusk?
I feel like when peopleoftentimes have a bad experience
taking psyllium husk, it's oftenbecause they're extremely
dehydrated and they're notrealizing, like I said, that
(22:55):
mechanism of action of how it'sactually working in the body.
And why it's so important toensure that you are drinking a
lot of fluids throughout theday, keeping yourself hydrated
so that you can actually makethat process work better.
Because otherwise it's almostdehydrating you from the inside.
And the electrolytes were ourresponse to that thinking, why
(23:17):
wouldn't you want, why wouldn'tyou put electrolytes in a
formula like this in order tohelp, increase that that process
of water creation in the bodyand keep people hydrated and
make sure that.
As it's working its way throughyour intestines, it's not
creating a blockage or gettingstuck or, it's almost mitigating
this negative side effect thatpeople sometimes associate with
(23:39):
that particular type of fiber.
So that was really important tous.
It was just, it's one of thosethings where, you know, as
you're like, Your formula,you're like, why hasn't anyone
thought of this?
This feels like this is a, likea duh,
Dr. Heather Finley (23:51):
no, it really is.
Yeah.
Cause you're right.
The dehydration, so many peoplehave such negative experiences
with psyllium mask and thedehydration piece is the biggest
thing.
Like you have to have, you haveto have a hydrated colon to
tolerate that.
Shannon Race (24:07):
Absolutely.
And I think, and that was the,it was just, Psyllium husk is
such an amazing ingredient.
And if there's any way tomitigate, some of the negative
symptoms or side effects peoplemight experience if they aren't
properly using the product,that's that was the goal with
that.
Dr. Heather Finley (24:23):
Yeah.
So dehydration, like youmentioned, can be a huge mistake
or reason for people to havesymptoms with fiber.
Are there any other things thatyou see that, is a common kind
of malpractice or just mistakethat someone might make when
they're introducing fiber?
I know I can think of several,but.
(24:43):
What are some things that yousee that, might shy someone away
Oh, that didn't work for me.
Or that made me super bloated.
That made things worse.
Why does that happen?
Shannon Race (24:53):
I think the number one thing people do is they try
to add too much fiber tooquickly.
And that is something, over andover again, I tell people, if
you are not, if you do, ifyou're not sure how much fiber
you're just naturally in yourdiet on a daily basis.
And you're not supplementingwith fiber in any other way,
(25:16):
please start with half of a doseof fiber and work your way up
over the course of, a week and ahalf.
Don't add multiple sources offiber at once, give your body
time.
To adjust to the process of thatfrom that fermentation process,
the process of breaking down thefiber that you're introducing, I
(25:37):
think a lot of people, they it'slike they think it's going to be
a miracle cure all and it's aquick fix and then just, go too
much too quickly.
And then they have a really bad.
Side effect from doing that.
And it's one of the medicaladvisors that we work with was
like, Think of it like running amarathon.
You're not going to put on yourrunning shoes one day without
(25:59):
any training and run 26.
2 miles.
You have to, every single day, alittle bit more, and increase
your fiber intake at a slow paceto give your digestive system
the ability to really get usedto it and be able to get the
benefit out of it.
Yeah.
Dr. Heather Finley (26:17):
A hundred percent.
Yeah.
And if you're having sideeffects, bloating, constipation,
diarrhea, whatever it might be,that's not necessarily a sign
that your body's not toleratingit.
It's just a sign to slow down.
So cut it in half or cut it in aquarter.
We've had clients go like superslow, adding in fiber sources
(26:37):
because everybody's tolerance isgoing to be different.
But.
Yeah.
More doesn't necessarily make itbetter.
You could do that and you couldjust fight through the symptoms
until they go away, but there'sreally no need to do that.
When there's an easy way to doit.
I know.
And
Shannon Race (26:52):
I think it's, I think again, that also calls
into question.
Why are we so deficient in fiberthat a small amount of fibers?
So hard for us to tolerate andgoes back to my point earlier
about, we are so incrediblydeficient as a population and
The fact that this is such a keynutrient to just general well
(27:14):
being is mind blowing to me thatfor so long it's been so
negatively stigmatized and notdiscussed.
And oftentimes people are like,it's because it's not sexy.
It should be sexy because it'skeeping you feeling your best.
And so it's just been, it's beeninteresting to, to be out in the
(27:35):
world, talking to people,helping educate them and seeing
them have these light bulbmoments of Oh my God, I have no
idea,
Dr. Heather Finley (27:41):
yeah, no, you're right.
Like it should be sexy becauseit helps you go to the bathroom
and decrease this bloat.
And, it does all the things thatyou're trying to get your
probiotic to do that.
It's not actually doing.
And usually for a much lowercost as well.
Is there anything else thatyou'd like to share about
prebiotic fiber?
gut health in general, just yourjourney through seeing clients
(28:04):
or buyers use your products,just success stories, things
that you've seen on the market,et cetera.
Shannon Race (28:11):
It's, I think the thing that's also been really
interesting is it's opened upthis this Almost a storytelling
landscape.
I feel like my friends now cometo me and talk to me about their
problem.
Same.
And I'm learning a lot aboutwhat is normal for people and
what is not and helping themdistinguish like that.
(28:32):
You haven't gone to the bathroomand How many days that's not
normal and helping themunderstand why it's so important
to have why regularity isimportant to your body is trying
to rid itself of toxins and badthings that it is not beneficial
to your body.
If it's just sitting in there,can you imagine what it's doing?
(28:54):
And yeah, I just, I feel likeeveryone's gut health journey is
so individual and you have totake the things with you that
work and leave behind thingsthat don't.
And just because they worked forone person, they may not work
for another, but, as it relatesto fiber, to me, you know, all I
ask people is just get morefiber in your diet.
(29:15):
If it's not by using myproducts.
And you can just use food andvegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds,
a variety of different types offiber sources as your tool, but
get more fiber, you will feel somuch better.
And it's just, it's shocking tome as someone who has struggled
so long in life with varyingdegrees of IBS that it took me
(29:38):
this long to find this as one ofthe most pivotal.
Tools in my gut health toolkit.
I find that to be wild.
And so I guess I'm just alwaystrying to help people
understand, it's so important.
I don't care where you get itfrom, you should make sure that
you're getting enough of it.
Dr. Heather Finley (29:58):
It's so easy to chase the shiny object
syndrome of the newest fat orthe newest this or that.
But the reality is like fiberhas been and always will be the
probably number one thing thatyou can do to improve the health
of your colon specifically.
But overall GI tract from ashort chain fatty acid and
(30:22):
function perspective.
And it's like you said, it's notthe sexy thing, but it's the
most.
It's a really stable reliablething that you can do and
whether it's from a product,food sources, a combination of
both, it really is, you're goingto see benefits beyond gut
health.
You're going to see benefits inyour cholesterol, your blood
sugar, your sleep, your moodit's all connected.
(30:46):
So it's a really easy lift forlarge rewards.
Shannon Race (30:50):
Yeah.
I think a lot of what we try todo as well is.
Demystify what is happening inthe gut when you're, eating by
fiber rich foods or you'retaking fiber supplements.
I think, we've had this massivewave of gut health trends to
your point.
So many different products outthere saying, this is going to
(31:11):
help you, cure this, or this isgoing to help repair this or
whatever.
And, I feel like at the core ofwhat we're trying to do is just
help people understand why amacronutrient that has seemingly
been forgotten is so critical toputting you on the right path.
To restoring your gut health andfeeling your best.
(31:32):
And that's honestly that's everyday.
That's the message that I'mtrying to get out there.
Dr. Heather Finley (31:38):
I love it.
This is probably a reallyobvious answer, but I'm going to
ask you it anyways.
So since this is the love yourgut podcast, what is your
favorite way to love your gut?
And then please share with uswhere people can find you learn
about your products, all thatkind of stuff as well.
Shannon Race (31:55):
Yeah.
Yes, it comes as no surprisethat fiber is probably involved.
But honestly though it's reallybeen about.
Yup.
My relationship with food andmaking sure that I'm getting the
right sources of nutrients in mydiet and a lot of that is
related to fiber and I, go intoevery day thinking about when
(32:15):
I'm having my meals, what's myfiber source?
What is, how am I ensuring thatI'm getting?
The right amount of protein.
And, there is no one thing thatwill cure all, but I think for
me, the way that I really, trulylove my gut is by feeding it
with the right nutrients andensuring that I'm giving it what
it needs on a daily basis.
(32:37):
So that's what I'm doing.
And if anybody wants to checkout, bio me, they can visit us
on our website bio.
me and then we're also onInstagram and we post a lot of
great videos and content andeducational pieces and recipes
if you're looking for ways toincorporate.
(32:57):
The products into your routine.
And we're also on Amazon, soyeah.
Dr. Heather Finley (33:01):
Awesome.
I'll put all those links in theshow notes so people can check
them out, but thank you so muchfor joining.
This was so informative and Ihope people feel really inspired
that fiber doesn't have to bescary.
It's can be a really easy, apowerful thing to add into your
daily routine for optimal guthealth.
So thanks for joining me today.
(33:22):
You so much for
Shannon Race (33:22):
having me.
Dr. Heather Finley (33:25):
I'm giving your gut a thumbs up because you
just finished another episode ofthe love your gut podcast.
You know that in order to live alife free from uncomfortable
bloating, you need to figure outwhy you're actually bloated,
right?
The best way to do that is bytaking my free quiz.
Take the next steps towardsdetermining your root causes by
visiting drheatherfinley.
(33:47):
co backslash quiz and learn whatit is that's causing your
bloating.
Soon enough, you'll betransforming your gut issues and
I can't wait to help you.
Be sure to tune in next week forthe next episode of the Love
Your Gut podcast.
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