The Five R Approach for Gut Healing
Stress, processed foods, artificial sweeteners, birth control, medication, alcohol, STRESS.
What do all these things have in common?
They all wreak havoc on your gut!
We need our gut to function optimally in order for the rest of our body to function as well.
Our gut affects our health in many ways.
70-80% of our immune system is in and around our gut, meaning if our gut is not healthy, our immune system is also at risk.
Our body’s ability to absorb nutrients is directly linked to our gut health.
If our gut is not well, it will not matter how good the food we eat is, our body won’t be in a position to take in the nutrients we so badly need for good health.
Neurotransmitter production is linked to the gut as well.
Estimates suggest that 90% of serotonin is created in the gut - if our gut is off, our mood can be off as well.
To say that we need to get our gut right for health’s sake, is an understatement indeed.
SIBO, Candida, Leaky Gut
SIBO stands for small intestinal bacterial overgrowth, and just as the name implies, it is an overgrowth of bacteria in the small intestine.
Bacterial overgrowth can occur when there is a slowing of food and waste in the intestines, which then allows for fermentation, which then breeds additional bacteria.
Candida is another overgrowth that can occur in the mouth, throat, gut, and vagina.
Candida is a fungal infection, and while most people can live with Candida without any issues, an overgrowth of Candida can also occur given the right circumstances. Candida albicans is common and usually kept under control by our body’s immune system, unless conditions lead to an overgrowth.
Leaky gut aka intestinal permeability, while not commonly recognized by conventional medicine, is another key factor in our gut health.
For more on leaky gut, check out a post we did, Does Your Gut Actually Leak?
The Functional Approach- Finding the Root Cause
Taking a functional medicine based approach to healing the gut is a great start for anyone who is dealing with gut and digestive issues.
Functional medicine looks to understand the root cause of symptoms. Once the root cause of illness is known, a functional medicine approach will look to remove any toxicities, replace any deficiencies, putting the body in the position of removing the thing that caused the issue to begin with.
What is the 5 R approach?
Remove. Firstly, we need to remove any toxicities. This will include inflammatory foods, any foods that you are sensitive to, and of course, the removal of the overgrowth. Removing bacterial overgrowth can include the use of herbs and supplements that are beneficial in removing bacteria and fungal overgrowth.
Replace. We need to replace any deficiencies within the body. Poor gut function can also lead to vitamin and mineral deficiencies, as our body is not able to adequately absorb nutrients from the foods we eat.
Re-introduce. The reintroduction phase includes reintroducing foods that we had removed previously, to check for reactions. This ALSO includes reintroducing good strains of bacteria back into the gut.
Repair. In order to ensure optimal gut health, we must repair the gut lining. If the junctions in the gut become loose, proteins and bacteria and other particles are able to seep through the gut wall and into the bloodstream. This causes an inflammatory response as the body works to fight these invaders in the bloodstream. Healing the gut lining is also done with gut healthy foods and herbs. Top gut healthy foods are fatty fish, healthy fats like olive oil and coconut oil, collagen and gelatin (commonly found in bone broth), and ginger for inflammation.
Rebalance. We must rebalance our life!
Recognizing that work stress, life stress, emotional stress, medications, alcohol, processed foods, artificial sweeteners, chemicals found in drinking water, can all affect the health of our gut.
Finding balance is key. While it may be extremely difficult to avoid all the things that adversely affect our gut, doing what we can, when we can, to keep our gut healthy is one of the best things you can do.
GET. YOUR. GUT. RIGHT.
If you are dealing with any gut issues, if you find that you have not been able to find answers, despite all your best efforts (and perhaps those of your doctor)...
Book a consultation to see how we can take the next steps towards improving your GUT…
Because you deserve to feel great.