Thriving Well
LEAKY GUT - WHAT IS IT?
Peak fitness starts from the inside out with your gut health
27 Aug 2020
What is Leaky Gut?
Leaky gut is a condition where intestinal cells become damaged, and unwanted substances like undigested food particles, microbes, toxic waste matter and bacteria pass through the intestines and ‘leak’ into the blood stream, travelling through the entire body.
Your gut is naturally permeable to small molecules to absorb all vital nutrients, and a healthy guy regulates your intestinal permeability. The intestinal lining in your gut can be damaged however, and can break apart due to infections, toxins, or even stress.
The symptoms of leaky gut can come up in any of the following forms.
11 Signs of Leaky Gut
- Poor immune system
- Chronic constipation, diarrhoea, gaseous distension or bloating
- Nutritional deficiencies
- Headaches, poor memory, brain fag
- Unusual cravings for sugar or carbohydrates
- Excessive fatigue
- Anxiety, depression, attention deficit hypersensitivity disorder
- Arthritis or joint pains
- Skin rashes and complaints like acne, eczema, rosacea
- Autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, coeliac disease
- Food allergies and sensitivities
What causes a Leaky Gut?
Most cases of leaky gut arise from your diet. Certain foods that you consume daily, including gluten, dairy and soy could have been taken as foreign invaders by your body that required to be fought off.
After eating such foods, your body goes into war to produce antibodies that trigger an autoimmune response leading to diarrhoea, fatigue, headaches and joint pain. Leaky gut also occurs due to intake of medicines like antibiotics, steroids or over-the-counter pain killers taken without consulting your physician. These medicines irritate the intestinal lining and erode the protective mucous layers. This irritation restarts or continues the inflammation cycle leading to intestinal permeability.
How can you heal your leaky gut?
- In order to heal your leaky gut, you can try to change your diet and eliminate the foods which
- Follow the ‘4 R-rule’ to live a closed gut life!
- Remove the foods causing your leaky gut, like gluten, soy, refined sugar, dairy, caffeine, etc.
- Replace these foods with healthier options which are necessary for fulfilling your daily nutritional requirement.
- Reestablish your balance of healthy bacteria in your gut by including foods like yogurt, probiotics, etc. in your diet.
- Repair your body with the help of essential nutrients. Include vitamin supplements to your daily diet, to fulfil the losses. Amino acids like L-glutamine, help rejuvenate the inner lining of the gut wall.
Adhere to these dietary changes and start feeling lively again within 4-6 weeks.
