You may have heard of the Human Microbiome, which mainly consists of the Gut, Mouth, Urogenital, and Skin. A microbiome is a community of microorganisms or microbes (such as fungi, viruses, and bacteria) that exist in a particular environment. The human microbiota consists of trillions of microbes, primarily bacteria in the gut. Our Microbiome begins developing at birth and continues to change in response to a host of environmental factors, such as exercise, diet, medication, stress, and other exposures.
The state of our Microbiome determines the strength, balance, and functionality of our immune system, digestion, mood, sleep, energy, hormone production, overall health, and the role of disease.
Poor gut health is tied to nearly every disease in some way because the gut is where 70% of the immune system resides. It may be natural to think that eating a nutrient-dense diet, exercising, and taking probiotics is enough to strengthen your Microbiome. Though this is absolutely an excellent start, a strong Microbiome is also about how and where your food is grown and in what state of the soil it's grown in, the conditions/environment, and which animals are around, as each community has its own Ecosystem directly connected to our human Microbiome.
Local fresh produce, for example, contains higher amounts of nutrients as the nutrient content starts to decline when picked. If your produce is on a truck for a week or two, traveling to your grocery store, a significant amount of nutrients may be lost.
As we move further away from Nature, by reducing open green spaces and replacing them with concrete, polluting our air, and relying on fast, packaged foods, we are weakening our Environmental Microbiome, thus weakening our community microbiome.
Developing without considering large open spaces with soil, trees, flowers, or local shared gardens increases Carbon Dioxide, pushing the insects, birds, and animals further away, thus reducing our robust community ecosystem and dampening the overall energy frequency.
The beautiful thing about Nature is it's forgiving and has this innate intelligence to rebuild, repair, and restore, but this takes a Community effort. Our local community, farmers, gardeners, and makers are working on REWILDING our Microbiome.
Dennis Duce of Shan Shui Garden is one local who set out to make a difference among many. From uncovering and nurturing his local land into a beautiful, thriving biodiverse garden, Shan Shui, to growing a highly nutrient-dense unique variety of microgreens, which I have tried and can attest, are must add to your life. His passion for rewilding our community microbiome is admirable. Further, to connect local makers, growers, and the community, he created Idigogden.com, which is developing into a one-stop shop for locals to purchase local goods.
How can you do your part in rewilding our community and reap the health benefits too? One easy step is to support our local farmers, gardeners, and makers. Now is the perfect time to set up your CSA (community-supported agriculture). A CSA allows you to purchase local produce or animal products for a weekly, monthly, or seasonal fee. In return, you get freshly picked produce from your local gardener or farmer. Aside from Idigogden.com, Localharvest.org is another website to search for a program in your area.
Here's just a small list in the surrounding Ogden area to get you started:
Arrowhead Urban Farms
Eden Patio Springs Gardens
Argyle Acres
Jul Bud Ranch
Dancing Moose Farms
Urban Prairie Agriculture
Shan Shui
Check out Grow Ogden Farm, Eden Streets, and the Oasis Community Garden for additional ways to get involved.
The Farmer's market in Ogden is another excellent resource for gathering local goods.