Genius Foods

of fiber called prebiotic fiber. This includes soluble fiber
and a form of indigestible starch called resistant starch.
Offer your standard American breakfast of refined-flour
pancakes, bacon, and cheesy eggs, and your typical
intestinal bacterium would politely decline.
Now, you may want to write off your microbe friends for
being too picky when it comes to dining plans, but keep in
mind that for hundreds of thousands of years, humans ate
diets that were rich in fiber, with scientists estimating an
intake of roughly 150 grams of fiber per day. Today we
consume just 15 grams per day on average. Much like our
inadequate consumption of omega-3s and other essential
nutrients, prebiotic fibers have largely been stripped from
our Western dietary pattern. The disappearance of these
microbiota-accessible carbohydrates (a term coined by
prominent Stanford University microbiologists Justin and
Erica Sonnenburg) presents serious downstream health
consequences, as you’ll learn. But increasing the presence
of these gut-happy carbs is easy, as there are plenty of foods
full of prebiotic fiber. These include: berries, leeks, jicama,
kale, sunchokes, avocado, spinach, arugula, garlic, onions,
coffee, chicory root, unripe bananas, raw nuts, fennel, okra,
bell peppers, broccoli, radishes, dark chocolate, and sprouts.
Now that you know where to find these nourishing
fibers, the next few pages will close the loop, definitively
linking them to improved mood, cognition, and longevity.

A Fountain of Youth