While you may not have heard of Professor Tim Spector a few years ago, the scientist has quickly become a household name, having co-founded the popular personalised nutrition app, ZOE, and written numerous best-selling books including Food for Life and Spoon Fed.

And with his rise to notoriety, Tim Spector has become shorthand for improving your gut health.

Prior to being in the spotlight, the professor of genetic epidemiology at King’s College London founded the TwinsUK study, one of the most in-depth studies about identical and non-identical twins in the world.

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But nowadays, what does the gut-health guru really eat from the comfort of his own home?

Admitting "this is the video I never thought I'd do," Tim took to Instagram to give a much-anticipated glimpse inside his fridge which contains a number of ferments, including:

  • Water kefir grains (as well as his "fantastic" water kefir combined with turmeric, ginger and lemon as a second ferment)
  • Milk kefir grains
  • Homemade red cabbage sauerkraut
  • Tempeh
  • Garlic in honey
  • Homemade fermented garlic and mushroom pâté
  • Sourdough starter from The Sourdough School
  • Homemade kimchi.

"It's a bit experimental, it's not very tidy," Tim said, describing his fridge and its contents of fermentation experiments. "It's become my second home!"

He added, "If you’re yet to get started with fermentation, it’s such a rewarding journey and a fantastic practice to start this new year to support your gut health."

Tim also highly recommended "investing in some kefir grains to have a never ending supply of this ferment, with over ten times more microbe varieties than yogurt."

Tim's big fridge reveal comes shortly after the scientist announced the launch of ZOE's gut shot in collaboration with Marks & Spencer. The drink, Tim says, is "packed with more than 5 billion live cultures and full of fibre and polyphenols."

Tim wrote on Instagram: "My greatest hope is that my research can make a difference to people’s health and today is a career highlight. When I first started researching the gut microbiome, most people hadn’t considered the role your gut health plays in anything other than digestion.

"What we know now, is that your gut health is critical for countless aspects of your health, from your immune system to your metabolic health, to your appetite and even your mood."

He added: "We’ve also put together a free gut health guide to give you my 5 gut health foundations to start your journey to better gut health.

"The thing that excites me most about the gut microbiome is that it’s never too late to make changes that could have a significant impact on your health. For all the details about how to make 2024 the year you prioritise your gut health, head to the link in my bio or visit zoe.com/gutguide."