How leaky gut can cause havoc on your health…  

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StomachacheSome of you may have read my previous blog posts about leaky gut. It is a condition I repeatedly find in many of my patients and can lead to many other health issues if left undetected. Most often, by the time a patient makes their way to my office they have a long list of symptoms and complaints that they want help addressing. To most these symptoms can seem unrelated. It’s not until we look deeper at your health and WHY these symptoms have appeared that I can often find a common link- leaky gut. This is because it affects how your whole body is balanced.

For those who need a recap- here is an explanation taking from a previous leaky blog post:

‘Leaky gut is an inflammation of the digestive tract lining. The lining of our digestive tract, primarily the small and large intestines, become inflamed and damaged. This causes the pores (through which our food and nutrients are absorbed) to become larger, allowing for undigested food molecules, toxins, antigens and other molecules that would not normally be able to be absorbed, to end up circulating in our blood stream. The inflammation and damage in the gut lining means that the bacteria that live in our digestive tract no longer have a suitable place to live and therefore a microbial imbalance can occur. This is known dysbiosis. The lack of beneficial gut flora disrupts our immune balance, as does the ‘leakage’ of other particles as our immune system is left to deal with the copious amounts of waste material that cross into the blood stream. This is a huge problem for our immune system, as 80% of our immune cells actually sit inside our digestive tract and our entire immune regulation is affected by leaky gut. Lastly, our livers become stressed as they need to mop up the mess”.

 

To simplify- think of it as damage to the gut wall, increasing the pore sizes, which allows things that are not normally allowed to enter the bloodstream to cross the barrier and enter our circulation. This increased permeability increases inflammation in various tissues and causes toxic insult to the liver.

Now you can see why it is such a big problem! Here are some of the most common health concerns and symptoms that can be attributed to leaky gut:

  • Tiredness, fatigue, lethargy
  • Brain fog, poor memory, poor concentration and an inability to focus
  • Allergies, hayfever, asthma, eczema, hives
  • Food intolerances
  • LOTS of digestive symptoms such as aches, pains, bloating, gas, loose bowel movements, irregular motions or constipation
  • Joint pain, arthritis, muscle aches and pains
  • Poor mood, depression
  • Poor immunity, recurrent infections
  • Iron deficiency
  • Autoimmune conditions
  • Systemic inflammation
  • Headaches
  • Weight gain
  • Sugar cravings

If you have 3 or more of the symptoms above, I would suggest leaky gut could be playing a role on your health. If you have digestive symptoms then this is even more likely that you have a leaky gut.

Hayley Stockbridge Naturopath Sydney

If you would like help in addressing your gut health, please call to make an appointment today on 02 9518 0722 or email Hayley directly hayley@betterhealthpractice.com.au