What is gut health?

Gut health refers to the state and balance of the gastrointestinal system, which includes the stomach, small intestine, large intestine, and other associated organs. It is characterized by the proper functioning of this system, facilitating efficient digestion, nutrient absorption, and waste elimination.

A healthy gut is home to a diverse and balanced community of beneficial bacteria, known as gut microbiota or gut flora. These microorganisms play an important role in supporting various bodily functions, such as breaking down certain nutrients, synthesizing vitamins, supporting the immune system, and protecting against harmful pathogens.

Maintaining your gut healthy is crucial for overall well-being. Imbalances in gut health, such as an overgrowth of harmful bacteria or a lack of beneficial bacteria, can lead to gastrointestinal issues, digestive disturbances, and even impact other bodily systems like the immune and nervous systems.

Promoting gut health involves adopting a balanced diet rich in fibre and prebiotics to nourish beneficial gut bacteria, avoiding excessive use of antibiotics unless necessary, managing stress levels, staying hydrated, and getting regular physical activity. Probiotic supplements can also be used to support the gut microbiota when necessary. By taking care of your gut health, you can enhance digestion, boost your immunity, and improve overall health and vitality.

Do You Struggle With Digestive Difficulties?

Then might be the time to reset your digestive system. Take our free quiz now & discover the solution to your digestive problems! So don’t let the digestive issues hold you back any longer. Take the first step towards a healthier & happier you by taking our quiz today. Your digestive system will thank you!

arms around stomach

Would you like to know your score on your gut Health & receive personalised advice?

The digestive system plays a crucial role in your physical, & mental health & overall well-being. Find out your gut health score by filling out the free quiz.

book title

Proven secrets tips to decrease digestive disorders

Tired of discomfort after certain meals? Today, you can get our “Proven secrets to reducing flatulence and discomfort plus a 1-day mean plan” & Facebook support.

book

“Gut Health Revolution” Created for you!

Learn how to feed & heal your gut & get results in just 1 week. Get straight access to our “Gut Health Revolution + Recipe guide, Food Diary, Meal Plan, Shopping list & Suggested Meals” + tips & community support.

How can we help you to heal & restore your gut health and be free of digestive distress? At healthwellbeingfirst, we address the root cause of your symptoms.

The root cause analysis can provide us with an understanding of what is causing your symptoms and address the root cause. This analysis can include:

  • Imbalances in gut bacteria
  • Digestive insuficiencies
  • Vitamin deficiencies
  • Infections and medications
  • Food intolerances
  • Inflammation
  • Stress
  • Poort Immunity
  • Auto-immune conditions
  • Unpredictable bowel movement

Together we will create a bespoke programme based on clinical experience and your gut symptoms. Together we will identify your trigger foods and any other contributing factor to help you support your gut and allow you to start feeling like yourself again and regain your energy.

Could you imagine a day when you don’t need to worry about what/when you will eat?

Our approach is to treat the whole individual and not only their symptoms. We will help, support, and guide you step-by-step so that you can feel informed and in control of your gut health.

Gastrointestinal conditions affect your digestive system or gut. Your gut breaks down nutrients from the food to produce energy for the body and keep you healthy. As the food moves through your digestive system, it is digested and absorbed into your body. Your gut is around a nine-metre-long tube and extends from the mouth, oesophagus, stomach, small/large intestine, rectum, or anus.

Your digestive system is a vital organ in your body, central to your overall health and well-being. It is essential for digestion and absorption of nutrients and water whilst getting rid of waste. Therefore, the gut is the first barrier of defence in the body. It controls whether something passes into the bloodstream or is removed from your body. It does this with the help of other organs, e.g. liver, gall bladder, pancreas and other organs, which help by producing enzymes to help to break down nutrients or using filtration systems that filter nutrients into the bloodstream and remove harmful products of the body. The gut has extensive connections with these organs, which comprise the gastrointestinal system.

Your gut is at the centre of your whole body and is directly and indirectly, connected to other organs. It connects directly to organs involved in digestion, such as the liver, kidneys, and pancreas. And it connects indirectly with the heart, lungs, skin, bones and brain. Therefore, balancing the digestive system is crucial for health as some imbalances can impact other systems, such as immune, cardio-metabolic and hormones.

There are different conditions affecting the digestive system. Gastrointestinal issues can be very complex. It is essential to understand the functional and organic intestinal disorders:

Organic conditions are the term used to describe any medical condition affecting the body where abnormalities can be detected by measuring and observing. For example, Coeliac, Crohn’s disease, and ulcerative colitis are known as inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD/GERD) and gallstones. A gastroenterologist treats these conditions.

Functional intestinal disorders is a condition that causes symptoms of illness, where most of the time, all the standard tests are normal. These conditions are considered functional gut-intestinal disorders (FGIDs) and gut-brain interactions (DGBIs). IBS and functional dyspepsia are the most common DGBIs. The criteria used by some conventional practice is the Roma foundation for diagnosing DGBIs such as IBS and FD.

  • Infection and overgrowth of bacteria
  • Parasites and yeast/fungi
  • Infection treatments such as antibiotics use
  • Food sensitivity and allergies
  • Stress
  • Dysbiosis – imbalances in bacteria
  • Intestinal permeability
  • Nutrient deficiencies
  • Histamine intolerances
  • IBD – inflammation of the intestines
  • Hormonal imbalances
  • Small Intestine Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO)
  • Low energy & fatigue
  • Brain fog
  • Skin irritations
  • Food sensitivities
  • Appetite
  • Do you suffer from Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) – you often experience painful and distracting symptoms that can be tough to deal with.
  • Do you constantly suffer from indigestion, acid reflux or heartburn?
  • Do you constantly struggle with your digestion, constipation or loose stools?
  • Do you frequently feel bloated and have cramps?
  • If you are constantly worried trying to figure out which foods will set your symptoms
  • If you are afraid to eat in unfamiliar places or turn down social events because you live in fear to set on your symptoms
  • If you are experiencing unpredictable bowel movement

If some of the above sound familiar to you, we can help you to regain your energy, confidence and freedom from your symptoms. It can be overwhelming living with constant digestive upsets, but it is possible to change and reclaim your gut health.

The Microbiome

The gut microbiome is like the rainforest or a coral reef; the greater the diversity of life in these ecosystems, the healthier and wealthier our ecosystem is. The same is true of our gut; the more variety of microbes you have, the better your gut health.

The microbiome refers to a microbe population, predominantly bacteria, that live on our bodies and in our gastrointestinal tract (where your food is digested and absorbed). This microbe community includes thousands of different species and trillions of micro-organisms. Research shows links between the gut microbiome and aspects of health, including the immune system, cardio-metabolic health, and digestive symptoms and conditions (such as irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease and digestive cancers). Many different species of gut bacteria are found at each stage of the digestive tract – from the mouth to the large intestine. Now let’s look at how to feed your microbiome to decrease the inflammation in your system, which can lead to health benefits like increased energy, weight loss, clearer skin, and better sleep.

The gut is the centre of the immune system. Around 70% of the immune cells are in the digestive system. These immune cells constantly patrol anything travelling through your gut, such as microbes, food and anything else and then decide whether it is safe or whether the immune system needs to fight it and remove it from the body. In addition, the microbiome digests the fibre in the large intestine, as the human body can’t break it down fibre due to the lack of the enzymes necessary to digest fibre. The products of the digested fibre are essential compounds required for health, such as short-chain fatty acids. That provides various health benefits.

As the gut and its microbes control the digestion of food, they naturally play an important role in regulating blood sugar and cholesterol. Studies have reported that the gut microbiome may even predict how much blood sugar will spike after a meal or a particular food. Therefore, it may be possible to design a personalised food plan based on the individual’s unique gut microbiome.

Lastly, the gut is physically and biochemically connected to the brain through a complex network of nerves called the peripheral nervous system, also known as the gut-brain axis. In other words, the gut communicates with the brain meaning good health might help with good brain health.

Weight Control – a healthy gut helps to keep in shape

Immunity – the immune system is the body’s first form of defence. Around 70% of this system does rely on the health of your gut

Heart Health – the connection between your stomach and your heart is more central to your health and well-being

Brain health – a healthy brain requires a healthy gut; the relationship between these two organs could be the key to improving your health

Hormone balance – a healthy gut helps to rebalance the hormones.

The microbiome is a crucial factor in estrogen regulation. Therefore poor gut health raises the risk of estrogen-related diseases such as PCOS and endometriosis. On the other hand, Gut health can transform your physical and mental well-being

The digestive disorders, often are divided by upper and lower for better understanding:

Upper digestive disorders include the oral cavity, oesophagus, stomach, liver, pancreas, bile ducts duodenum and gall bladder. These disorders can cause acid reflux, fatty liver and high cholesterol

Lower digestive disorders include the small intestine, colon, and rectum. These dyspeptic disorders can cause bloating, constipation, diarrhoea, gluten sensitivity, Crohn’s disease, Inflammatory Bowel Syndrome (IBS)

The patient may be prescribed anti-acid pills and cholesterol-lowering drugs such as statins. Together with other high blood pressure and diabetic medications.

Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of various conditions that can occur together. These conditions include high cholesterol or triglycerides, high blood pressure, fatty liver, fat around the middle and insulin resistance. These symptoms are related to insulin resistance. In individuals with insulin resistance, the blood sugar levels rise as the body churns out more insulin to lower blood sugar.

Patients get their biological markers normalised and decrease a significant amount of fat, particularly around the middle, within a few weeks. They reduce and sometimes stop their long-term medications and feel safe and reassured.

The treatment focuses on symptom treatment and reducing inflammation using immunosuppressive drugs of steroids and cytotoxic drugs.

Common Forms of Food Hypersensitivity

A food intolerance involves the digestive system having difficulty digesting (breaking down) certain foods or ingredients, and you can experience an unpleasant physical reaction to this particular food or ingredient. Common symptoms cause bloating, diarrhoea, stomach pain, and other symptoms. These can happen after a few hours of eating the food or after four days. Most individuals produce IgG antibodies after eating the suspected food; the higher the IgG levels, the higher the potential for food intolerance. 

These food intolerances could trigger troublesome symptoms, which can persist or develop in the body if neglected. Unlike food allergies, these symptoms are not potentially life-threatening but can negatively impact the quality of these sufferers’ lives over time

Food sensitivity is a reaction of the body to food that can be associated with increased levels of specific IgG class antibodies that react to food. The symptoms can be delayed for a few days after ingesting the trigger food or can go unnoticeable and have vague symptoms such as bloating, diarrhoea, and migraines.

Food Allergy involves the immune system’s overreaction to a particular protein found in food or ingredients. The symptoms can occur when the person comes in contact with just microscopic amounts of the food or ingredients that trigger a response in the immune system and has the potential to lead to a severe or life-threatening reaction called anaphylaxis, so individuals with this type of allergic reaction must be cautious to avoid their food triggers.

Allergens are small antigens that often initiate an IgE antibody response, triggering a histamine reaction with severe symptoms like anaphylaxis. Most food allergies are diagnosed in children; however, they can also appear in older children and adults. For example, Coeliac disease is an immune system response triggered by eating some grains containing gluten, a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. The following foods are responsible for most allergic reactions: cow’s milk, eggs, fish, peanuts, shellfish, soya beans, tree nuts, and cereals containing gluten. The allergic response can be rapid, around 20 minutes or less.

  • Digestive problems – constipation, diarrhoea
  • Abdominal Pain
  • Fatigue
  • Fluid retention
  • Aches and pains
  • Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
  • Skin issues – rashes, eczema, and itching
  • Headaches, migraines
  • Weight gain
  • Tiredness

Many people’s experiences with food intolerances can be less specific, and they can’t pinpoint which foods are causing reactions. One of the reasons could be that food intolerances can be hard to identify, as food intolerances can happen after a few hours or up to 48 hours after the ingestion of the trigger food.

Some individuals may decide to take this investigation work into their own hands and practice the elimination diet; however, this can be lengthy and may not provide the answers you need. Unguided, you may inadvertently remove essential vitamins and minerals from your diet, leading to some health deficiencies.

  • GI mapping
  • Parasites
  • Bacteria and candida,
  • Nutritional deficiencies
  • Food intolerances
  • Digestion/absorption – pancreatic function, protein/fat breakdown and absorption
  • Inflammation/immunology – Calprotectin is a marker of neutrophil-driven inflammation produced at sites of inflammation. This biomarker is helpful in the differentiation between IBD and IBS. Eosinophil protein marker of eosinophil-driven inflammation and allergic responses. IgA marker of gut secretory immunity and barrier function. And Fecal occult blood test detects hidden blood
  • The gut microbiome – metabolic indicators and commensal bacteria

Between other tests, the food intolerance test analyses the IgG antibody reactions to a full range of foods and drink ingredients. You can complete the test at home.

How we can help you to improve your gut health with an integrative functional approach

There are many ways to improve gut health. A balanced diet high in fibre will give your microbiome enough nutrients to maintain diversity. Exercise can also significantly improve gut problems, encouraging muscles to continue working and improving symptoms of gas and bloating. Taking probiotics is another way to improve gut issues.

A healthy gut doesn’t only aid digestion. Improving your gut health ensures you feel great while helping your immune system.

Achieve the restoration of digestive disorders includes the application of the 5Rs approach:

Removal – identified and eliminate triggers, e.g. any allergens, toxins, bacteria or other infective agents

Replace – support the digestive function, e.g. digestive enzymes

Repopulate –  the gut with friendly bacteria, introducing a wider variety of foods while looking at sustainable lifestyle changes

Repair the gut wall and reclaim your gut health

Rebalance –  other lifestyle choices such as physical activity, sleep, relaxation and other personalised therapies.

These interventions restore gut health by decreasing intestinal permeability due to damage in the gut lining and stopping the auto-immune process. As a consequence, this will resolve the distressing bowel symptoms and will have a positive impact on the body’s overall vitality and well-being.

Your Next Step