How To Heal The Gut

How to heal the gut naturally in 4 easy to follow steps.

Nearly every day someone comes to me with gut-related health concerns and is faced with the question of “how to heal the gut”.

It is no surprise considering it is estimated that 350 million people suffer from gastro-intestinal issues. According to the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, colon and rectal cancers are surging and are expected to be the number one health concerns of millennials and generation x. The research shows that someone born in the 90’s has double the risk of early colon cancer and quadruple the risk of early rectal cancer than someone born in 1950.

The worst part is that most people have no idea how to heal their gut and fix the root cause of their gut issues. Many people are in search of the magic diagnosis and magic prescription, which can in some cases be more dangerous than the gut issue itself.

What you may not realize is that gut health literally affects function of the whole body. When your gut is unhealthy, it can disrupt anything from nutrient absorption to hormonal regulation, and even brain function.

A comprehensive list of health concerns which can be rooted in gastro-intestinal issues:

• Adrenal Fatigue
• Asthma & Allergies
• Acid Reflux
• Acne / Eczema
• Auto-Immunity
• Bad Breath
• Bloating
• Chronic Fatigue
• Chron’s Disease
• Constipation
• Depression
• Diarrhea
• Food sensitivities
• Hormonal Dysfunction
• IBS
• Irritability
• Joint Pain
• Leaky Gut
• Liver & Gall Bladder Dysfunction
• Low Energy
• Mental Disorders
• Malabsorption
• Rashes
• Stomach Ulcers
• Skin Fungus
• Ulcerative Colitis

If you are experiencing one or many of these symptoms, you are going to want to pay attention and learn how to heal the gut.

What destroys gut health?

In most cases you were not born with poor gut health nor are your genes setting you up for poor gut health. It is your environment and lifestyle that have broken down your gut year after year. There are a 5 categories that I consider to be the main sources of poor gut heath.

1. Stress – Stress negatively affects the gut microbes causing an imbalance in gut bacteria, weakening the good gut microbes, driving inflammation, and leading to damage of the gut lining.
2. Toxins – Toxins include but are not limited to pesticides, herbicides, processed foods, GMO’s, dyes, artificial sweeteners and preservatives.
3. Drugs – I am referring to prescription drugs. For example, simple pain killers that most people take on a regular basis have a disclaimer that it causes intestinal bleeding. Another major example are antibiotics, which destroy healthy gut bacteria.
4. Pathogens – People have many unwanted critters living in their gut. I know it’s gross but tests I have done with patients reveal anything from enormous amounts of bad bacteria, to parasites to yeast overgrowth.
5. Organ Malfunction – Both the liver and gallbladder play a large role in gut dysfunction through the breakdown of toxins and fats.

Like most health issues, gut problems first start off minor problems, nearly undetectable. But as you continue through daily life, it begins to escalate day after day, month after month. Most people find themselves trying to heal their gut issues with a probiotic, or maybe even a digestive enzyme. Though those can be very beneficial to maintain gut health, it is rare that a probiotic and enzyme are enough to heal the gut.

I had a patient suffering from Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO). Her doctor was trying to heal it with enzymes alone. After 5 years of countless medications and no luck, she turned to me and I explained to her the healing stages she must go through.

I worked with another patient who suffered from Leaky Gut and was trying to heal it by avoiding nearly every food under the sun, all of which she had become sensitive to. Once again, we had to go through the stages of healing in order to see real results that were going to last.

4 Steps to Healing Your Gut Naturally

1. Clearing Phase – In the clearing phase, you must remove all factors that disrupt gut health. This includes toxins, foods, and all the disruptors mentioned above. You must then clear the gut of bad bacteria, yeast, and any pathogen that does not belong there.
2. Replacing Phase – Just as there are foods that destroy gut health there are foods that heal and repair gut health. There are eating habits such as intermittent fasting that are beneficial to gut health. So we have to upgrade our lifestyle in a way that supports gut health.
3. Repair Phase – The repair phase is so essential in gut healing. When the gut is unhealthy, it affects the gut lining. The gut lining will become more porous with larger holes that allow undigested food molecules to slip into the bloodstream setting off a chain of immune issues and symptoms like those previously mentioned. In order to truly health the gut, you must repair the gut lining.
4. Rebalance Phase – Rebalancing your gut with the right bacteria is a major part of the healing process. Many of my patients are found to have a complete lack of particular species of bacteria in the gut. When the microbiome is restored in full your gut is much more resilient and functions the way it was intended.

Top Formulas I Use To Heal The Gut

To heal the gut, I like to use specific formulas. The reason I use formulas is because they are dynamic blends of several gut healing herbs and vitamins that work synergistically to give you real results that last.

Just as it would make sense, I use a specific formula for every stage of gut healing.

1. GI-Clear – In the Clearing Phase, I like to use GI-Clear. GI-Clear is formulated with an array of nutrients that support gastrointestinal health and balanced detoxification. This formula includes powerful hypoallergenic nutrients, amino acids, and minerals for those with sensitivities. It also contains no sugars, which makes it ideal for anti-yeast diets. It contains 26 grams of high quality vegan protein without any sugar or stevia. GI-Clear is also intended to support liver detoxification and chemical biotransformation with targeted nutritional cofactors.
2. Complete Enzyme – When in the Replacing Phase, I like to add an incredible digestive enzyme in order to support the digestion of the high quality foods you are now consuming. Complete Enzyme incorporates a broad spectrum of digestive enzymes that functions in a wide pH range to support healthy digestion. Flexible dosing is allowed for each individual’s needs. Digestive enzymes are an incredible tool that should be utilized when facing gut conditions or distress. People lack proper levels of digestive enzymes in their gut for many reasons, but they are absolutely crucial. Digestive enzymes break down food into amino acids, fatty acids, cholesterol, and simple sugars, which all help to make DNA. In the clinical setting, I use digestive enzymes with many gut conditions.
3. GI-Repair – GI-Repair literally is the Repair Phase. When considering how to the gut, you must repair the gut lining. GI-Repair offers all of the most impactful nutrients that are necessary to repair the intestinal lining. The ingredients include glutamine, licorice, arabinogalactan, and aloe leaf extract. When healing the gastro-intestinal tract, it takes more than enzymes and probiotics. Though those are great to support the gastro-intestinal system, it is very important to use the proper nutrients to balance bacteria, dampen inflammation, calm immune response, and strengthen gut mucosa.
4. Probiotic Strength – Probiotic Strength is utilized here to support the Rebalance Phase. Probiotic strength is a vegetarian, dairy- and gluten-free, four-strain probiotic totaling 30 billion CFUs per capsule. This advanced formula incorporates specially selected active strains that do not need to be refrigerated and are viable at room temperature. These strains are resistant to stomach acid and may pass through the stomach to help fortify the intestinal microbial environment. Key ingredients include Bifidobacterium lactis HN019, Lactobacillus acidophilus La-14, Lactobacillus plantarum Lp-115, and Bifidobacterum longum BI-05.

Final Thoughts

Your gut health is very significant to your overall health. If your gut health is poor, you will be fatigued, suffer from brain fog, and even possibly be one of those statistics that suffer from major colon and rectal disease. We all think that we are exempt from these statistics, but the truth is that the numbers don’t lie. If we are living like everyone else is living, then we will suffer like everyone else is suffering. Take control of your gut health today.