Which Diet Helps Heal A Leaky Gut
What is the best diet for healing a leaky gut? A leaky gut has been linked to chronic disease and inflammation, two things that negatively impact your overall health. Information regarding leaky gut and ideal treatments is controversial and confusing.
Everyone seems to have a different cure. How do you decide which path to follow? Diet is one part of most treatment options. Is one diet better than another? Lets look at leaky gut and the diets that claim to treat it.
Best Gut Healing Foods
If youre looking for how to heal your digestive health fast then start eating these 10 gut healing foods.
Theres no doubt the Standard American Diet causes many chronic health problems today. For decades we were told to eat more processed carbohydrates and foods the ended up causing stomach pain and ruining our gut microbiome.
These inflammatory foods made up a big part of our carbohydrate diet and have led to serious digestive problems like inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, celiac disease, Crohns disease, and gut dysbiosis.
The key is to first start avoiding problem foods that feed the bad gut bacteria and kill your good gut bacteria. Research shows poor gut health can not only cause an upset stomach but will also lead to weight gain and type 2 diabetes.
Below youll discover the top 10 gut healing foods you should start eating. Along with the worst foods you should avoid, and a plan of action to cure the pain in your stomach.
Best Foods To Heal Leaky Gut
In this article I go over some of the top foods that help the body heal and seal a leaky gut. Food is medicine and we can use various foods to heal leaky gut.
It is important to know that everyone is different and may respond in their own unique way to the various foods listed. What is one mans medicine can be another individuals poison. Try consuming these foods and pay attention to how your body responds to them. If you see unwanted symptoms, then stop eating that particular food.
Out of this list, most of you will respond well to all of these foods, but those of you who tend to be more sensitive will find at least 56 of these foods that your body responds well to.
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Finally Compare Yourself Against The 10 Symptoms Of Leaky Gut
Given that testing can be somewhat inconclusive, a quick way to work out the probability of leaky gut is to speak to your doctor about your symptoms.
And then of course, contrast them against the most common symptoms of leaky gut:
What Is The Fastest Way To Heal Leaky Gut
Leaky gut doesnt happen alone. Its always part of a picture of poor gut health, and is often accompanied by conditions like IBS, autoimmune disease or allergies. Solving your health puzzle is never a quick fix, but testing can help you find a good place to start.
For example, a Gut Health Test could reveal you have dysbiosis, a yeast overgrowth or an H. pylori infection. Tackling these issues will also address leaky gut.
The fastest way to start healing leaky gut is to clean up your diet.
However, nothing is a quick fix. It takes more than a couple of weeks of cutting out pizza to get good gut health.
Because everyone is different, everyones ideal diet is different too. For example, some people like to include lots of whole grains, like quinoa, brown rice and oats in their diet. Whole grains feed their good gut bacteria, regulate their bowel movements and maintain their energy levels throughout the day.
For other people, grains can exacerbate their gut dysbiosis , resulting in bloating, diarrhoea or constipation.
Still, there are some diets which have been found to be helpful for leaky gut:
- Gluten free5
- Intermittent fasting9
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Beef Gelatin And/or Collagen Peptides:
Gelatin and collagen are the main nutrients in bone broth and so they are rich in the key amino acids that help make up our joints, gut lining and skin. Using these products adds additional healthy protein to the diet and provides the key building blocks for these supportive structures in the body.
These are also considered beauty foods because they help to strengthen the skin tissue, reducing skin damage and wrinkle formation. In this way, they help to improve complexion and reduce the effects of aging on the skin.
Gelatin can be used to make collagen or to thicken up soups and stews. We have the grass-fed gelatin here. Collagen peptides can be used in a similar manner as any other protein powder in smoothies and shakes.
Goal: 24 scoops daily in smoothies, collagen marshmallows, soups and stews.
You can also use our Bone Broth Power Protein, which is full of collagen protein from grass-fed beef. This protein helps support the gut, skin, joints and the immune system.
Eat My Clean Leaky Gut Diet Consisting Of Fish Meats Nuts Good Fats & Vegetables
Ive never understood why people say the leaky gut diet is complicated. Out of the top 10 leading diets out there its probably the simplest.
To make it really clear for you, Ill run through my favorite foods to eat. Importantly, Ill distinguish the healthiest foods from the rest, so you also get an idea of what to prioritize.
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The Role Of Leaky Gut In Overall Health Remains Unclear
Leaky gut could be the cause of some health problems, or a sign of something larger, says Dr. Fasano. The science is still up in the air. For example, digestive conditions like inflammatory bowel disease, celiac disease, and Crohns disease share many of the same symptoms as leaky gut, and all are linked with chronic inflammation, but its not known how, or if, they are connected.
The challenge is that its difficult to measure the strength of a persons gut barrier, so you cant know for certain when leaky gut is really present, or what influence it may have elsewhere in the body, says Dr. Fasano.
A Hint Of Truth Intestinal Permeability
In some individuals, for a variety of reasons, the physical structure of their intestines is compromised. The tight junctions, which control what materials the intestine absorbs, dont work properly, allowing larger substances to cross over into the bloodstream. This is known as intestinal permeability.
Physicians sometimes find increased intestinal permeability in those who have Crohns disease, celiac disease, in individuals receiving chemotherapy, and those who have a high intake of bowel-damaging substances such as aspirin and alcohol. However, intestinal permeability is a symptom of these ailments, not a cause it does not lead to anything more than inflammation of the bowel walls, and it is not leaky gut syndrome. Furthermore, research shows that increased intestinal permeability sometimes has beneficial effects, such as improving water and nutrient absorption as well as activating the immune system.1
The Myth: According to the proponents of leaky gut syndrome, bacteria and toxins enter the bloodstream through these defective tight junctions and wreak havoc throughout the body, causing bloating, gas, cramps, inflammatory bowel disease , as well as fatigue, food sensitivities, joint pain, moodiness, irritability, sleeplessness, autism, and skin problems like eczema and psoriasis.
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Pay The Premium And Eat Organic Veg Grass
Yes, I know. This can get expensive. Especially if you are hitting up Wholefoods weekly and going all raging bull in there! Unfortunately, there is just such a wide gap between conventionally farmed food and the organic stuff.
For starters, organic meats and fish will come packed with more omega-3s, vital for taming the inflammation being caused by your leaky gut83.
And these foods, devoid of the toxins from conventional farming , will ensure fewer poisons make their way into your gut and through to your blood stream.
Thats a double win for leaky gut syndrome.
One other advantage is that these products dont suffer from the omega imbalance84 found in conventional meats and fish ie the overload of omega 6 that is so pervasive throughout the Western world.
When To See A Doctor
It is always important to visit your doctor anytime you notice a change in your digestive system after consuming fatty and gluten-based foods. Most people ignore such mild symptoms, as they mostly disappear within hours or a couple of days. However, it is essential to immediately contact your doctor, even when experiencing mild symptoms, especially when those symptoms keep recurring. However, as we have already mentioned, symptoms can also become very severe. Therefore, when you start experiencing signs like bloody stools or abdominal pains that last for several days, then you should visit your doctor as soon as possible. Your doctor will conduct the necessary examinations to confirm your condition before starting the appropriate treatment.
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What Is Leaky Gut
Leaky gut syndrome is a condition that affects the integrity of the gut lining, which normally serves as the barrier of the intestines. Also called intestinal permeability, it occurs when the gut wall becomes damaged, allowing compounds to enter become absorbed into the bloodstream that normally shouldnt.
For example, partially digested proteins and fats may seep through the intestinal lining, making their way into the bloodstream, which causes an allergic response.
Avoid All Grains And Legumes For The Next Month
Life without any grains or legumes whatsoever can be tough. Whenever you plan a meal that is just meat/fish and vegetables it can feel like something is missing.
But if youre suffering from leaky gut and are really motivated to repair it fast, then leaving grains and legumes off the table, at least temporarily, is a no brainer. Especially GMO grains, which by design are the highest in anti-nutrients like lectins7,8.
Now, I will say, most grains & legumes dont quite irritate the gut lining as bad as those with gluten , but they are still loaded with anti-nutrients like lectins and phytates9,10, which your digestive system simply cant necessarily handle when it is in already poor shape.
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The Mystery Of Leaky Gut
The reason doctors cannot agree on the reality of leaky gut syndrome is that research produces conflicting evidence regarding the specifics of it. The symptoms are reported and tests are done to confirm inflammation, but much of what causes the condition is a mystery.
The condition is related to the intestinal permeability of your gut, which typically only allows nutrients to pass through. With leaky gut, other, toxic particles are able to escape too.
Tight junctions are gaps in your intestinal wall that allow nutrients to pass into the blood. Leaky gut is marked by increased intestinal permeability and the loosening of these junctions.
What specifically causes that is still under research, but the result is very well known: Undigested food, toxins, and other harmful substances are allowed to pass into the blood. Once these are in your body, the immune system marks them as foreign targets.
While this may seem like a good thing, it is not. Your immune system targeting something foreign is good, but not when those particles or toxins reach a healthy organ in your body. The result is that this organ or part of your body is also attacked.
Studies have shown the link between autoimmune problems and the presence of leaky gut, and because of the severity of autoimmune diseases, clogging the leak is becoming a point of focus.
Ditch All Sugars And Dairy Except For Some Gut
First I asked you to ransack your house and bin all the grains and legumes.
Now Im asking you to find anything with sugar or dairy in it, and add that to the scrapheap as well! By the end of today youll probably have no food left in the house
But thats alright.
In fact, the process of elimination is without doubt the most important step towards healing your leaky gut and feeling great again.
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Symptoms And Conditions Associated With Leaky Gut
If you suffer from digestive symptoms, brain fog, headaches, depression, joint aches, skin conditions or fatigue, it may be worthwhile trying a modified elimination diet in conjunction with the leaky gut protocol. Consider trying this diet even if you dont go on the entire leaky gut protocol. As a minimum take a good probiotic supplement at the start.
You may feel deprived having to give up some of these foods, but the question you need to ask yourself is-Would I rather be deprived of some of these foods or deprived of my health?
How Is Leaky Gut Diagnosed
Leaky gut, also known as intestinal permeability, is common. Its hard to know exactly how many people have it because few doctors test for it. Parsley Health doctors usually diagnose leaky gut through a combination of specific specialty testing such as comprehensive stool cultures and detailed assessment of your symptoms and medical history. If you are diagnosed with intestinal permeability, the good news is, there are ways to heal a leaky gut.
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So What Actually Is Leaky Gut
To understand leaky gut, you first need to have a bit of background on how the digestive tract works. Your digestive tract includes over 4,000 square feet of lining, all of which is just one cell layer thick. These cells, called enterocytes, are like security guards, forming a secure barrier between your body and the outside world. The digestive tract isnt just responsible for getting the good stuff from the food you eat its also responsible for keeping the bad stuff out.
As foreign items food, drink, medications, air particulates, etc enter your digestive tract through your nose and mouth, theyre broken down and digested as they pass through your gut. The enterocytes maintain a tight barrier, ensuring that only fully digested nutrients that your body can properly absorb pass through the gut lining and into your bloodstream and organs. Intestinal permeability refers to how easily substances pass from your gut into your bloodstream. In a healthy gut, intestinal permeability is low. But when the gut isnt functioning as it should, the gaps between the enterocytes loosen, resulting in increased intestinal permeability, aka leaky gut. These bigger holes allow substances that are only partially digested to get into your bloodstream, which has a cascade of negative health effects.
- Digestive issues like diarrhea, constipation, nausea, bloating, gas, and cramps
- Fatigue
Avoid Excessive Cardio Or Heavy Weight Lifting Leave That For Arny
If youre slogging through 3 or more intense exercise sessions a week like a Arnold Schwarzenegger-Richard Simmons crazed lovechild, you could easily prevent your gut from healing fast or even fully119.
Its kind of counterintuitive, but if youre a bit of a fitness fanatic, then less exercise could actually be better for your health!
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How To Make The Green Hulk Shake
- Grab a decent blender, something that can crush ice, and toss the 1/2 avocado, handful of spinach and lemon juice in.
- Then put a big handful of ice cubes in and fill with 14 oz / 400 ml water. You might want to experiment with the amount of water, as some people like their shake less thick than mine.
- Now add your green powder in, followed by any of the optional add ons. I personally add in all of them, unless Ive already eaten a big meal. And when I do this, I find the green shake keeps me full for hours as it packs a beautiful macro combination of clean protein and healthy fats. What a way to lose weight!
- Finally, make sure to properly blend it of course, to avoid any green chunks of food or powder dancing around your glass as you go to take your first sip.
IDEA #28
Treating Leaky Gut Syndrome
So while we know that leaky gut syndrome can cause gastrointestinal distress, doctors still arent completely sure about whether a leaky gut is a symptom of larger conditions or a contributing factor to these related conditions. Either way, if you are experiencing any of the above symptoms, its important that you reach out to your primary care physician or a gastroenterologist.
Treating leaky gut needs to be done on an individualized basis, because there could be varying factors and related conditions at play. However, some lifestyle adjustments that can help improve your gut health and work to prevent leaky gut include:
- Improved Diet Eating healthier and cutting out things like fats and carbohydrates can help to improve your overall gut health and limit symptoms associated with leaky gut.
- More Exercise Exercise has also been shown to be great for your gut health and your overall health. Work to get 30-45 minutes of moderate intensity exercise 3-5 times a week.
- Better Sleep Getting plenty of quality sleep is also helpful for a number of bodily processes, including your gut health and immune system.
- Stop Smoking Finally, smoking has been shown to negatively impact your gut health and can affect the healthy bacteria that helps to digest food. Stop smoking, and your gut health will certainly improve.
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How To Live Leaky Gut Free Forever