Leaky gut is a relatively new medical term, and one that can be very difficult to diagnose due to the symptoms being similar of other ailments. However, there are some signs you can look for to determine if you have leaky gut, which will help you decide on the best treatment options.
Increased Food Sensitivity
Everyone has some type of food sensitivity. They may not like hot foods, overly spicy foods, certain flavors, and certain textures. This becomes a sign of leaky gut when you start noticing it isn’t just your personal likes and dislikes and it is overall affecting your body as a whole. You may start noticing that pizza, for example, is irritating your stomach to a drastic level. That means you may be having adverse bowel issues such as constipation lasting more than one day or you may feel like bile is building up from it more than normal. These are signs that something is not processing right with your intestines and could be related to leaky gut issues.
Inflamed Bowel Syndrome
One of the first signs that you have leaky gut is inflammation in the bowel. This inflammation can first be misdiagnosed as a symptom of Crohn’s Disease. You will notice that you are having some pain in your bowels, sensitivity to the area, and overall pain and discomfort. If you are having this symptom it is a sign that something is wrong, regardless of it being leaky gut or not. If it is related to leaky gut you will have other symptoms alongside this and all of them are due to the leaking of the toxins into your system causing havoc on the rest of your body.
Malabsorption
If you take supplements or vitamins daily and you have noticed that you are not getting the same benefit or feeling from them, this could be a sign of leaky gut. What this means is that the vitamins and supplements you are taking are actually not being processed properly and are leaking out with the toxins. Your body isn’t being given the chance to absorb them properly and therefore it may seem like you need to take more or change brands. When you do this often, you may start thinking they aren’t working anymore. This is usually referred to as malabsorption and is directly related to leaky gut.
These are the three key signs that you do in fact have leaky gut. If you find that these signs sound like your issues, then contact a physician to help with your treatment plan. You can also consider using natural ways to improve your gut health or supplements
that may help with specific leaky gut issues.
What is Leaky Gut?
If you have had ongoing stomach and intestinal issues, you may have heard your doctor or someone online mention leaky gut. This may sound like something that you think you don’t have or you may have misconception of what leaky gut actually is. Before you move on from this as a possible issue you are having, that could explain other related issues you are having, consider the basics of what leaky gut is and what it means for your body.
Pores are the Issue
The clear cut answer to what leaky gut is can be defined in the pores of your intestinal lining. Overtime, with strain and other issues like diet, your intestinal tract can become more porous. This means that the tiny pores throughout the lining are now becoming more open allowing waste and toxins to leak. This is referred to medically as Hyper-permeable Intestines or leaky gut.
Immune System Issues
One of the first things that may clue you into have leaky gut issues is actually your immune system. You may find yourself getting sick more often, having bowel issues, or having ongoing issues with digestion. The reason for this is due to how your intestines work. The lining actually provides a barrier to keep your immune system safe from toxins as they exit the body. If the toxins are leaking out of the now porous areas of the lining, then you are leaching that fluid into your system. It is coming in contact with your immune system and causing you to be ill more often with reduced chances of getting better or moving on from the illness itself.
Foods Can Contribute But Are Not the Only Cause
You may be under the misconception that it is only the foods you are eating that are causing all the intestinal problems and leakage. The truth is that some food triggers, like gluten and sugar, unhealthy fast foods cooked in vegetable oils can all contribute as well as chronic use of over the counter anti-inflammatory medicines. If you are thinking about diet change then know that the diet changes you can make to improve the issues are to not only help heal the gut wall but also to maintain what is leaking in your system from being more harmful to your system as the food that’s leaking through is triggering your immune system to cause an inflammatory response.
These are only three of the major key points regarding what leaky gut is and how it can affect your overall health. If this sounds like what you are going through, contact me for a free consultation to find out more and to see what can be done about your overall situation.
