Series 7, Episode 6 – Gut Health
From Sunday roast dinners to Friday night takeaways, food has long been a central feature of our
lives. We don’t just eat for our survival, we eat for pleasure, to celebrate weddings, deaths,
birthdays, achievements. Yet we still don’t fully understand how the digestive system works, how
our bodies choose which compounds to absorb and how the microbiome in the gut interacts with
the brain. In this episode, Aoibhinn meets the researchers exploring how these complex systems
work, Jonathan investigates whether it’s possible to manipulate our feelings of hunger and fullness
by using gut hormones, and Kathriona heads to Westport to meet a group of Irish people who are
managing a debilitating illness with “magic poo bread”!