In the modern beauty and wellness industry, the word “detox” has become one of the most popular commercial trends. Advertising convinces us that due to improper nutrition, ecology and stress, our gastrointestinal tract turns into a “garbage chute”, on the walls of which kilograms of toxic toxins accumulate for years.

In today's world, where digestive problems, chronic fatigue, and decreased immunity have become the norm, the health industry offers a seemingly simple solution. Advertising from all screens calls us: when you have bloating, after a course of antibiotics, or during stress, it is enough to simply go to the pharmacy and "drink a probiotic." We buy bright jars with billions of lacto- and bifidobacteria, hoping for instant healing.

Summer is traditionally associated with rest, recovery and saturation of the body with fresh vitamins. However, for gastroenterologists and specialists in 4P medicine (personalized, predictive, preventive, patient-oriented), this season is a period of maximum workload.

With the onset of summer, we often fall into gastronomic fanaticism: we try to eat as many fresh gifts of nature as possible to saturate the body with vitamins and lose excess weight. However, gastroenterologists and microbiologists every summer record a surge in complaints of bloating, cramps, heaviness and discomfort in the abdomen after eating seemingly completely healthy food. Modern 4P medicine proves that we feed not only ourselves, but also our microbiome.

For decades, popular culture and advertising have taught us that bacteria are dangerous enemies. We bought antibacterial soap that “kills 99.9% of germs,” took antibiotics at the first sign of a cold, and strived for absolute sterility. However, the modern biomedical revolution and the 4Ps of medicine (personalized, predictive, preventive, patient-centered) have radically changed this view.

In the summer heat, the desire to quench our thirst with something cool and refreshing often leads us to the shelves with kvass, kombucha or kefir. Traditionally, it is believed that such fermented drinks are almost an elixir of health for our digestion. Marketers convince us of the presence of "live bacteria", and folk medicine has been promoting kvass for years as the best way to improve the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. But is this really so?

Today, supermarket shelves and healthy restaurant menus are overflowing with kombucha, kimchi, craft kefir, and various soy pastes. Fermentation has become one of the biggest trends in modern dietetics. Bloggers and nutritionists claim that it is a panacea for all gastrointestinal diseases. But is it really so?

Today, the topic of gut health and the microbiome is heard everywhere. We hear about the need to maintain microflora, drink kefir, buy supplements and eat more fiber. However, it is easy to get confused in this stream of information. On the shelves of pharmacies and supermarkets we are greeted by dozens of bright jars that promise instant improvement in digestion and immunity. But do all these products really work the same?

The modern world has imposed on us the illusion that to improve our health or lose weight, we need to suffer: go on strict diets, drink questionable detox juices, or starve. However, advanced 4P medicine (personalized, predictive, preventive, patient-centered) proves that such fanaticism is not only ineffective, but also extremely dangerous.

On June 27, World Microbiome Day, the scientific community and doctors around the world draw attention to the most important but invisible part of our body - the trillions of microorganisms that inhabit our bodies. For decades, we considered bacteria exclusively enemies that need to be destroyed with antiseptics and antibiotics. However, the modern biomedical revolution has proven the opposite: we are a complex "superorganism", and without our microbial helpers

Modern science views humans not simply as a separate biological species, but as a complex "superorganism" consisting of human cells and trillions of microorganisms. Our bodies are inhabited by about 38 trillion bacterial cells, which even exceeds the number of our own cells (about 30 trillion). This vast microbial community - the microbiome - is our invisible inner world, which controls immunity, metabolism, mood and even eating habits.

Summer and early autumn are traditionally associated with fresh vegetables, fruits and various berries. It seems completely natural to change the heavy winter diet to light salads. However, modern science considers this change in diet not just as a way to get vitamins, but as the most important tool for nourishing our "superorgan" - the intestinal microbiome.

Holiday feasts are a time of joy, socializing, and, inevitably, gastronomic excesses. Traditional holiday dishes are usually oversaturated with animal fats, simple carbohydrates, sugar, and alcohol, but at the same time critically low in fiber. For our body, such a sharp shift in diet is not just a burden on the liver or pancreas, but a real shock to our main "superorgan" - the intestinal microbiome

The arrival of summer is traditionally associated with a change in diet: heavy winter food is replaced by fresh vegetables, herbs, and the first berries. For our body, this is not just a change in menu, but a critically important stage in the renewal of the gastrointestinal tract (GI) and its main "superorgan" - the intestinal microbiome.

Today, the whole world is fascinated by fermented foods: Hollywood stars drink kombucha, and nutritionists advise kimchi and tempeh. However, we often forget that Ukrainian traditional cuisine has had powerful tools for maintaining health for centuries — its own fermented dishes. From ordinary sauerkraut to unique drinks based on the milk of a gray Ukrainian cow and herbs.

Most of us have tried to lose weight at least once in our lives. We count calories, weigh every serving, give up our favorite foods, and exhaust ourselves with strict diets. But why is it that for some people, just looking at a dessert is enough to gain weight, while others can eat cake at night and stay slim?

For millennia, humanity has been looking for a magic pill for all diseases. Today we are used to: if something hurts, you need to go to the pharmacy. However, advanced world science, in particular the European concept of 3P medicine (predictive, preventive, personalized), is making a radical U-turn. The future of medicine lies not in new antibiotics, but in the philosophy of "Food is Medicine" (Food as Medicine)

If you consider yourself 100% human, science is ready to argue with you. The number of human cells in our body is about 30 trillion, while the number of bacterial cells is about 38 trillion. That is, the ratio is about 50:50. In our gastrointestinal tract alone, about 2 kilograms of bacteria, viruses, fungi and protozoa live.

Bloating, heaviness after eating, irregular bowel movements, or constant abdominal discomfort — these problems are faced by almost every second person. The classic reaction of a modern person is to drink digestive enzymes or a pill for cramps and keep running.

We all know people who can eat cake all night and not gain weight, while others can gain weight just by looking at dessert. For decades, we’ve been told that the secret to weight loss is simple math: eat fewer calories than you burn.