“Hack Your Health - The Secrets Of Your Gut” Netflix Documentary: Fact-Check and Review

The Netflix film "Hack Your Health: The Secrets of Your Gut" draws attention to the extremely complicated issue of the gut microbiome – the collection of microorganisms in our gastrointestinal tract.

The documentary explained that our gut flora plays a vital role in our overall health and sustenance and therefore, one needs to have a custom-tailored diet. However, are all the assertions regarding beneficial bacteria true?

As for those who have already finished the sort of film, this blog post provides an evaluation of some key quotes from the documentary. If you haven’t watched it yet, these will persuade you.

Let us now focus on a few of the interesting aspects and claims made in “Hack Your Health.” Keep reading!

The gut is the most expansive mucosal surface in our bodies. The food and fluids one ingests enter the gut several times a day, and these foreign substances have to be defended against. It is no wonder, therefore, that 70% of all the human cells which synthesize antibodies are distributed around this area!

When your microbiome is diverse, your immunity is also very strong. The dendritic cells in the immune system act effectively as a guard and are able to survey the gut by extending their dendrites through the gut lumen. Such a cell when it recognizes a pathogen triggers an inflammatory response.

The good bacteria and micro-organisms release the brakes of the immune system, therefore there is no risk of developing allergies and autoimmune diseases.

“It doesn’t matter if you eat meat or if you are a vegan. What matters is for you to eat as many species of plants (fruits and vegetables) as you can – any way and all that you can.”

It is emphasized that a healthy diet is a colorful one, particularly plant based foods. Basically, the more colors the foods are, the better it is.

The broader the diet, the more foods are available for gut microbiomes, aiding its diversity. There are multi-functional bacterial species in our body; the more they are, the more activities they can carry out.

And a diverse diet will help reduce the risks of diseases due to nutrition imbalance and enhance health in all angles. As for fiber, we suggest a minimal amount of 30 grams daily from your diet and it is difficult for most people (at least not every day).

On the other hand, the good news is that you can also drink prebiotics which act as fiber when you’re deficient in fiber.

“If you do not provide enough dietary fiber to these microorganisms, they will eventually begin to feed on you, as in they start eating away the gut lining.”

This is true but a little too much of an oversimplification. Only a few bacterial species are disastrous, and those are the ones that degrade the protective mucous membranes of the body.

Still what happens is that a poor fiber diet often leads to a decrease in helpful bacteria that degrades fiber, resulting in an increase in those that attack and inflame the gut epithelial cells.

“Probiotics are fermented foods, and fermented foods are probiotics. They contain different types of bacteria.”

Kimchi, Sauerkraut and other fermented foods are good for maintaining a healthy gut microbiome. They are actually probiotics which enrich the gut microbiota and aid in the digestive processes by virtue of their live cultures.

Moreover, these foods are less complex after the fermentation process and hence essential vitamins and minerals can easily be absorbed by the body.

Like all food, care should be taken to select the best quality and where possible organic and non-pasteurised. Either that or make them yourself if you like brave new flavours.

“Specific, targeted probiotics can help improve certain health conditions. Probiotics available for purchase from drug stores lack usable strains found inside the digestive tract.”

There are other commercialized probiotics which have strains that are found in a person’s intestinal tract. Probiotics are the live microorganisms such as Lactobacillus species whose advisable doses, as approved by the FAO and WHO agencies, are known to be health improving.

They can enhance the body’s immune response, assimilate and balance the other gut microbiota, reinforce epithelial defence systems, and manufacture important structural protein.

However, it is very important to consider the standard and ingredients of the product selected.

“We are largely born without microbes. They only colonize us after birth!”

Ordinarily, microorganisms first ‘settle’ in newborns at the time of birth when they are exposed to the mother’s vaginal and gut microbiota.

The first exposure to these specific microorganisms is very important in the healthy development of the infant’s microbiome. C-cut babies do not have this first dose of maternal microbiome.

This poor microbiological exposure may explain why children born by cesarean section tend to have a lower proportion of the protective lactobacilli and bifidobacteria in their gut.

Hence, they have a higher chance of regulatory disorders (commonly known as colic), infectious diseases, and allergies.

Nevertheless, maternal bacteria can also be delivered to the offspring through breastfeeding, a process referred to as the entero-mammary pathway.

“What if someone else’s stool could save your life?”

Fecal transplantation is one novel approach to therapy — the first ever microbiome manipulation therapy which is officially approved by the FDA and from which qualified doctors can utilize under clinical conditions with strict supervision.

Even though this therapy shows promise in the elimination of recalcitrant Clostridioides difficile (previously known as Clostridium difficile) infections, it possesses risks.

Certain self treatments, such as seen in the documentary where a lady gulps down a capsule of her brother and partner’s feces, need to be condemned.

The incorporation of medically useful multi-strain probiotics into the therapy, which enhance the gut microbiota and cure or decrease the incidence of C. difficile associated diarrhea, has been very efficient and free from side effects.

When we look at the calorie count on the package, we think: This is the amount of energy a single person derives from the food. But unfortunately, it is wrong.’ Sad to say, this does not happen all the time.

Everybody processes food in a wide range of ways and hence the degree of energy obtained is different.

Two of the most abundant bacteria, Firmicutes, and Bacteroidetes make up 90% of the human microbiome, which develops in the gut and are commonly known as dominant gut bacteria.

Their balance is very critical as it determines the level of absorption of the nutrients in the respective cells. In other words, firms can get 10% more energetic content from a firm food also. This was very important in evolution in the stone age.

Fiber, which does not contain any calories and is thrown out by the body, is also converted by Firmicutes into short-chain carbohydrates (sugars) which provide extra energy. During stone ages, this was critical since it enhanced the energy reserve for any physical activity and for fighting for food.

In this modern world, where the majority of the people have food in plenty, the excess energy and added sugars provided by the Firmicutes bacteria leads to health problems. This is because an individual exceeding the calorie limit will gain weight or even become obese.

Our investigation has shown that many issues raised in the Netflix production are confirmed scientifically. But in this case, it would be smart to carefully analyse the information provided and make use of trustful services.

While the film makes some interesting points about the digestive system, which is quite important, the audience must understand that some of the information may be too simplified or exaggerated. In this way, a registered dietitian and scientific resources are much better for gaining a balanced view.

Nevertheless, the documentary is an excellent resource for a basic understanding of the amazing world of gut health.