Melissa hear to talk to you about leaky gut, as I promised in last week’s blog.
What is leaky gut? It is a condition that occurs when the lining of our gut, which is only 1 cell thick, gets small tears in it, and food gets through these tears and into the bloodstream. Every time we eat wheat, we will get little tears in our gut, as the hybridized wheat we now eat, that was developed to produce larger crops even in a drought year, unfortunately causes damage to our gut. Our body is designed to self heal, BUT it can’t keep up, if we keep damaging it with every meal, 3 times / day, 7 days /week, all year long. When food gets into our blood stream, it can be very painful, as well as triggering our immune system to attack, as it considers these food particles to be foreign, and starts attacking. Left unchecked, this can lead to many other issues, such as auto immune disease,
Here are 10 signs that you may have leaky gut:
- Chronic diarrhea, constipation, gas or bloating
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Poor immune system
- Headaches, brain fog, memory loss
- Excessive fatigue
- Skin rashes and problems such as acne, eczema or rosacea
- Cravings for sugar or carbs
- Arthritis or joint pain
- Depression, anxiety, ADD, ADHD
- Autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, celiac disease or Crohn’s
What to do about it?
Some of the first steps you can take are to remove the following foods from your diet:
- Wheat
- Alcohol
- Advil, Tylenol
- Any foods that you are intolerant to.
Once you do this, you will notice very quickly that your body feels better and appreciates you not ingesting those items, which is motivating to keep going. This can happen within just a few days, but true healing takes longer. It takes commitment to a lifestyle change, in the way you eat, and the supplements you use. Very often, supplements such as digestive enzymes, pre & pro-biotics, as well a Zinc, Vitamin A, Fish Oil, Quercetin, Curcumin and L-Glutamine will be recommended to help your gut lining heal. At the same time, you may need support in changing your eating habits, to remove wheat, and find new delicious recipes that you can enjoy, without wheat.
The good news:
You can heal your leaky gut and gain back your good health and energy, with the right changes to your diet and bolstering your nutrients. It takes time, and support, and this is a great time to enlist the support of a coach to guide you through this journey and make it as easy as possible for you. Often mainstream medical doctors will not suggest that “leaky gut” may be your problem if you are going to them asking why you have pain in your gut, or any of the other symptoms above. A holistic doctor or health coach are more likely to help you discover this condition based on your symptoms, and then be able to guide you back to health. This is not something mainstream medical tests for.
What now?
If you are struggling with gut issues, or know someone who is, have them reach out to me for a complimentary consult here. You can also do this questionnaire here to discover for yourself whether you need to be making some changes in your diet. The health of our micro-biome or gut, is now known to be very important for the health of our immune system, and the prevention of many chronic illnesses as a result. Don’t ignore the signals your body is sending you. Listen to them….and reach out for support.
To your Health!
Melissa