You’ve heard of leaky gut but you just don’t understand what it means.
Leaky Gut seems to be that one term that everybody’s just throwing around lately. You can Google the terminology or go to your medical provider and they bring it up as a possible cause of what’s going on with you. “You may have leaky gut causing your illness”.
So what does “leaky gut” mean?
It means that your intestinal walls get very thin with tiny microscopic holes allowing important nutrients that you get from your food to pass through instead of being absorbed into your body to be used for overall health and wellness.
Let’s talk anatomy for a second OK?
Your digestive tract is just a tiny layer thick. The cells in this lining act as a barrier between you and your bloodstream, your immune system and anything that you put in your body such as food, drink, medication and supplements. This also means toxins and bacteria.
The way your intestines are supposed to work is that these cells act like a protective barrier to keep you from getting sick. Everything that goes in your gut is processed by the cells in that lining of your gut making it so you live a well-balanced life free from illness; this is homeostasis at it’s finest.
However, things like chronic stress, poor nutrition, infections both viral and bacterial as well as autoimmune diseases can cause a breakdown in this protective lining.
This is what is considered leaky gut.
Symptoms of a leaky gut can include:
- Gastrointestinal issues such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome
- Brain fog, confusion, anxiety, depression, fatigue
- Rashes
- Pain including muscle and joint
Basically, the symptoms of leaky gut occur due to your immune system being broken down from exposure to certain unhealthy foods, bacteria and chemicals that it’s not supposed to come in contact with(the protective barrier in your gut is broken).
Immune cells become activated increasing inflammation leading to the above symptoms as well as many more. When this process continues continuously, over time you become ill.
The most common disease processes related to leaky gut are:
- Acne and other rashes such as psoriasis and eczema
- Food sensitivities
- Hormonal imbalances and insulin resistance
- Chronic pain
- Insomnia and other sleep disturbances
- Autoimmune disease such as Crohn’s, thyroid, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, celiac
- Obesity
All of this might sound scary or complex but it’s possible to heal a leaky gut.
The following are simple steps that you can take to heal from leaky gut syndrome .
These are the steps that I followed when healing my Gut at the beginning of my wellness journey so I know they work.
- Get rid of toxic foods– sugar, gluten, dairy, processed foods, GMO, alcohol. You need to remove these foods from your diet for at least three months.
- Change to a plant-based diet- this means a diet high in fiber. Limited saturated fat and no trans fat. You want gluten-free grains, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds and healthy fats. Add in foods that act as pre-and probiotics such as asparagus, oats and sauerkraut.
- Increase healthy fat– This will allow your gut to heal. This includes coconut oil, avocado oil and fish oil. These are high in calorie so limit the amount ingested.
- Manage stress- “Stress less“ is my saying. You cannot get rid of stress but you need to learn how to handle it when it appears. Chronic stress causes a chronic increase in your body’s stress hormones. These hormones include cortisol and epinephrine. The ways to manage stress to get these hormones down is through meditation, breath work and other self-care activities.
- Take digestive enzymes– this may be temporary. These enzymes help you break down certain proteins in your food decreasing bacteria and increasing the healing of the gut.
- Use anti-inflammatory supplements- there are so many to choose from; how dp you know which ones are right for you? You definitely want to add an omega 3, vitamin D, vitamin B12, magnesium glycinate, turmeric and ginger. Stay away from the drug class NSAIDs. Remember, if you do not follow all of these step, your gut will remain “sick” and you will not absorb ANY of the supplements you ingest which can cause an increase in your symptoms and abdominal discomfort.
- Stay active and move more– increasing your movement and staying active will increase the oxygen to your body including all blood cells, digestive tract, heart and lungs.
- Aim for 6 to 8 hours of sleep per night- this means uninterrupted. Each one of us are different; each person requires a different amount of sleep.
Through my experience, I can feel confident in saying your gut is the epicenter of your health!
Taking care of what goes in the gut means you are taking care of YOU!
We spend so much time taking care of “things” in our life
- house
- car
- boat
- job
- lawn mower
Why are we NOT putting as much time and effort into protecting the most important thing we own……… THE BODY?
XO, Tina
Are you sick of feeling sick and tired?
Are you ready to get rid of the symptoms that you have such as pain, diarrhea, constipation, headaches etc.?
Are you ready to hold yourself accountable for the actions you’ve taken up till now and start all over?
If you answered yes then what are you waiting for?
You can join my Master Your Health Mambership to learn simple actionable steps to get you started and to continue on an anti-inflammatory path. Click here for details. Add FREEMONTH on checkout to get your first month FREE! https://www.qualifiedwellnesssolutions.com/membership