Lets talk about the gut
Let’s have a conversation about the gut and you.
Do you get nauseous? Constipation? Diarrhoea? Urgency to go to the toilet? Stomach cramps? Bloating?
Does this happen sometimes after eating food? Or sometimes there is just no trigger, it just happens? Overtime these symptoms are getting worse or more frequent or sticking around for longer and longer. But still, there’s nothing to see here, you are thinking “there’s nothing wrong with my gut, I just feel a bit off when I eat some foods", that’s normal”.
Then, out of the blew, it happens, you get diarrhoea CONSTANTLY, for weeks on end, so that must be a stomach bug or something right? But all tests are clear, blood tests, stool tests, colonoscopies, gastroscopies are all clear and yet you are still pooing 10-20 times (literally!) a day!
So, what is wrong with me? Now your getting anxious, anxious when you have to poo, first it’s nauseous then anxious and stressed and worried. Then the sicknesses start coming, colds after colds and more colds, you are feeling so exhausted and run down from being sick and feeling sick and anxious and have no idea what to do, how to get better or where to turn next, all you know if that you can not continue living life like this and you certainly can not continue to live on gastrostops!
Personally, I know this scenario all too well, this is exactly how I was and felt when I was at the peak of my gut issues and literally what made me become a Naturopath.
I was diagnosed with Severe Irritable Bowel Syndrome which is basically a diagnosis that occurs when there is no other explanation for the symptoms. When, in reality the issue was Intestinal Permeability (Leaky Gut). So what exactly is Intestinal Permeability and what does it affect people in so many different ways?
Intestinal Permeability occurs when the GI Tract is in a sub-optimal state and inflammation is present. As a result, openings occur in the epithelial cells where there are usually/meant to be tight junctions. These openings lead to intestinal hyperpermeability allowing foreign particles to penetrate the gut barrier resulting in many different gut disturbances, as well as a compromised immune system.
In the gut, there are 3 main lines of defence which protect the GI Tract barrier from harmful bacteria and substances penetrating it:
Secretory Immunoglobulin A (Secretory IgA): The roll of the Secretory IgA is to bind with bacteria in order to keep it in the GI Tract to prevent it from doing more damage or damage to the gut lining.
Mucus: There is a physical mucus lining present between the gut lumen and epithelium which prevents the attachment of bacteria to the epithelial cells.
Epithelial Cells: These cells are designed to absorb beneficial nutrients and food but not detrimental particles.
So why does Intestinal Permeability occur? The list goes on and on but the common influences that contribute to Intestinal Permeability are:
Chronic Inflammation
Autoimmune Disease
Food Intolerances/Allergies
Antibiotic Use
Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs
Intestinal Parasites
Helicobacter Pylori
Alcohol and/or Drug use
Smoking
Nowadays there are many tests that we can do as Naturopathic practitioners to help clients with gut healing including; IgG and IgA Food Intolerance Testing, IgE Allergy Testing, Comprehensive Stool Analysis, GI Mapping and general blood testing to check for malabsorption of nutrients. But, we also don’t always have to do these tests, sometimes the completion of a food and symptom diary can be our greatest tool to help you on your journey to feeling better.
Natural medicine has recognised the role of Intestinal Permeability in many conditions for decades. Growing scientific research has broadened our understanding of how traditional remedies and nutrients may help to repair and maintain the gut lining, resulting in reduced inflammation and improvement in overall digestive function. For me and many of my clients, this is what worked!
Finally, just remember that living with gut problems of any kind is NOT normal and if you do have some gut issues reach out to your Naturopath and see what they can do to help before it gets to the point where I was, believe, the journey to recovery will be a lot shorter if you look after yourself and health now.