Presenters and entrepreneurs Lisa Macfarlane and Alana Macfarlane Kempner – aka The Mac Twins – on founding The Gut Stuff, becoming the go-to for everyday gut health, and top starter tips

The lowdown

DJing and touring the world as The Mac Twins, we were as far away from health and wellness as you could imagine – until we volunteered for a twin research study. A few stool samples (and more than a couple of colonoscopies) later, we found out that our guts were only 30% the same – no more similar than strangers. That one moment cracked everything open. Gut health was more than digestive “issues”; it was linked to our immunity, brain, skin, mood – pretty much every part of our well-being – and yet it remained misunderstood. So we launched The Gut Stuff: a community of over 250,000 people, to support daily gut health habits. 

We listen to our community, pick out the bullsh*t and dispel any myths around it (celery juice diet anyone?). We work with doctors, dieticians, nutritionists and scientists to bring the most relevant and evidence-based information to the table. We started The Gut Stuff to make gut health accessible to all, so our advice is affordable, credible and easy to digest. We brought gut health out of the cereal aisle and into convenience snacking – where fibre was missing in action and preservatives ruled. Our bars are emulsifier-free, fibre-packed, and now stocked in Sainsbury’s, Tesco, and Co-op.

Lisa Macfarlane and Alana Macfarlane Kempner

Breaking down taboos

We’ve met this head on – no euphemisms, no “baby talk” or added humour. Our Channel 4 show Know Your Sh!t embodies our approach and how shying away from talking about gut health means you perpetuate the cycle of shame. Talking about poo isn’t gross; it’s a vital sign of what’s going on inside you. If we can normalise tracking your poo as much as your steps or sleep, we’re making progress.

100-day programme

We’ve designed a Gut Stuff app and programme with our amazing experts to take you on the journey we went on in 10 years, in just 100 days – and in true Gut Stuff fashion, it’s fun, informative and we only need a couple of minutes of your time a day. 

We don’t promise quick fixes. We encourage small, sustainable changes that actually stick. You get meal plans, fibre-boosting food ideas, trackers, and daily nudges that help you tune in to your body. It’s about education and action, helping people see how stress, sleep, hydration, movement and diversity in diet all play a role. It’s basically your gut’s best mate for 100 days. 

Factors influencing your gut

A staggering 70% of your immune system resides in your gut in gut-associated lymphoid tissue. Your gut is the interface between your insides and the outside world, so it’s a pretty big deal when it comes to your immune system. You aren’t just born with a fully functioning immune system – it needs to be educated. The types of microbes you are exposed to throughout your life (and the resident microbes colonising in your gut) influence how well your immune system works. 

The trillions of microbes living in your gut can be influenced by a whole host of external factors – we’ve listed just a few below. The fact our gut microbes are quite easily influenced is a great thing, as we can tweak factors within our control to make positive changes.  

Infant feeding 

Babies who are breastfed have a different makeup of gut microbes than those who are not, due to the prebiotic qualities of breast milk. However, there are now some formula milks that contain prebiotics to support a baby’s gut in a similar way to breast milk. 

Stress 

Stress is just one example of how our mental states can affect our guts and the microbes that live within.  

Medicines, smoking and alcohol  

These all have an effect on your delicate gut microbes, but how exactly will depend on many different factors.  

Diet  

The food we eat (and how) can have a huge impact on the number and type of microbes living in our gut and how it physically works.  

Gut Feeling: top tips for better gut habits

1 Get tracking. Tune in to get to know your gut better: the more we track and reflect not just our gut symptoms, but our diet, lifestyle, mood, sleep, movement and stress – the more we start to truly understand what works for us and what doesn’t. 

2 Peek down the loo. Yes we said it, no more poo taboo. Your poop can actually tell you a lot about what’s going on in your gut.  

3 Embrace fibre. It’s thought 9/10 of us aren’t getting enough, but it is key for our guts and overall health. The average adult should be aiming for 30g a day, but that can be really hard to hit, so that’s why we developed our Gut Stuff high fibre bars and drinks. 

4 Increase plant variety. Luckily this goes hand in hand with upping your fibre. The more plant diversity we get, the more diversity there is in our microbiome (which is linked to overall health).  

5 Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate. It’s key to keeping everything moving and grooving in your gut.  

6 Move. One of the main things we can do outside of diet, is moving our bodies a little more – this doesn’t need to be crazy HIIT classes, it can be walking, yoga or whatever works for you. It can increase the diversity of our microbes, which is linked to overall improved health.