“You learn something every day if you pay attention." - Ray Leblond
Back to School
This gut health journey has taken me to some interesting places. I've done a few TV interviews, did a segment on a medical show, and did some media work for my healthcare provider, TriHealth, on a recent media campaign they launched.
None of these environments were comfortable for me, but none of them made me nervous either.
So, when my son Ben asked me to come talk to his class of high school seniors about gut health, I immediately accepted, not giving it a second thought.
It's been a long time since I've been this nervous.
Let me explain.
The subject matter was the easy part. I would expand on the gut-brain connection and how fermented foods can be a great tool in this effort. We would make a little kefir water and class dismissed.
Pretty simple right?
About an hour before the class started, sitting in his empty classroom, Ben reminded me that these were high school seniors in their last semester and that he couldn't guarantee they'd pay much attention to me.
I could feel sweat beading up on my forehead.
I suddenly realized this had the potential of being reminiscent of a stand-up comedian being heckled, booed off the stage, or maybe even wadded-up paper balls being hurled at me.
Then I asked him, "Do these kids know anything about my story?" To which he replied, "No, they just know you're going to talk about kefir water."
It was a true "oh shit" moment that thankfully only lasted for a split second.
The high-pitched tone signaling the end of the previous bell startled me a bit, and moments later 30 kids would file in with varying degrees of interest.
There was no more time to be nervous.
Who Am I and Why Am I here
I didn't coin that phrase. No, that was Admiral James Stockdale, the vice presidential running mate for H. Ross Perot in 1992 and he was excoriated on a Saturday Night Live cold opening.
What happened next was nothing short of amazing.
When I told them why I learned about gut health and fermented foods and the gut microbiome, the decibel level in the room went from a dull roar to stone-cold silence.
Cancer has a way of doing that.
I had 30 sets of eyes on me, focused on every word. OK maybe 29- there was a girl that couldn't stay awake for the lottery. (I remember those days in high school too.)
I quickly reminded them that cancer was my reason for coming to the gut health table, not theirs. They should focus on it for all the reasons it can benefit them at their stage in life.
We talked about how a healthy gut can help teenagers, specifically with anxiety and mood, and how it can even help with weight management.
We also talked about the unique challenges for teens these days, social media pressures, helicopter parenting pressures, and a vastly different food environment than what we grew up with.
Like a planted prop, there was a "healthy fruit snack" wrapper on one of the bulletin boards in the classroom. I pointed out that even when we think we're eating healthy, we might not be.
This particular gem was "fruit" which had 7.5% fruit juice extract and scores of other ingredients we couldn't pronounce.
And from there, the questions started flying. I felt like I was shagging balls in major league batting practice.
I was getting peppered.
It was really cool to see these kids so engaged about how they could help themselves with something as simple as what they put in their mouths.
We even discussed the bathroom.
I managed to keep the discussion on the rails believe it or not. It's such an important part of gut health and monitoring progress. I was shocked at how closely they listened. And I was blown away that the girls in the class seemed to be more interested than the boys.
I raised two boys. I know how quickly bathroom humor can go terribly awry. That was not the case here. It was a much-needed discussion and one that I could tell resonated.
We would go on to make and sample water kefir, milk kefir, and even try some sauerkraut.
It was a fast 48 minutes.
The Major Takeaways
I was extremely impressed with the level of attention teenage kids have about their health.
I could not believe the number of kids that have had some exposure to probiotics.
I also couldn't believe that nearly every student tried almost every fermented food I brought.
More than anything, those kids had no idea what they were providing me.
The chance to tell my story is something I take seriously. It's like a library book that I hope stays checked out as much as possible.
Meaningful change to what we eat and how we tend to gut health can confer so many physical and mental health benefits.
Who can't benefit from that?
Prologue
No homework this week since it's Easter.
So, I'll just leave you with this. I stumbled across this Doctor from UCLA. I think I noticed her because my niece also worked at UCLA Hospital.
People are doing some amazing work in this world. We could use more Dr. Neville's in this world. Take a look at this tweet about the 3 Wishes Program at UCLA:
Happy Easter and thanks for reading!
Jeff
