In this day and age, it is almost unheard of in my practice for someone not to have a digestive complaint. It can range from simple gas and bloating to more significant issues like Crohn’s or Colitis. Whatever one is suffering from, there are many dietary and lifestyle modifications that one can enact to help with healing an unhappy gut. Gut health is very important, as it has an impact on pretty much every other system in our bodies.
Digestion &
Gut Health
Who can benefit from improved digestive health?
The answer is probably everyone. However, if you deal with any of the following conditions, improving your digestive health might be especially beneficial for you.
• Gas and/or bloating
• Brain fog
• Fatigue
• Low moods, depression
• IBS
• Heart Burn, GERD
• Food sensitivities
• IBD – Crohn’s, Ulcerative Colitis
• Eczema, Psoriasis, Urticaria
• Joint inflammation, Arthritis
Dissecting the Digestive
Health Protocol
We often break out the 5-R Protocol in Naturopathic Medicine when we are looking at a holistic approach to achieve optimal gut health. Remove, replace, reinoculate, regenerate, retain. Not everyone needs to work on every step, and sometimes several steps are worked on simultaneously.
Remove.
This is the elimination of any type of undesirable organism that may be residing in the gut. The latter condition is often referred to as dysbiosis, and may include undesirable bacteria, fungi, or parasites that can impact the health of the GI tract.
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This step would also include the removal of any irritants that may be coming in through one’s diet. Foods such as wheat and gluten, dairy and casein, corn or eggs can trigger inflammatory responses in the gut and contribute to immune system deregulation, irritation, and damage to the gut.
Replace.
Our digestive tract health is crucial to breaking down complex foods so that we can have proper nutrient absorption, which gives us energy, rebuilding, and repairing. When the gut is not functioning properly, it may require a few different types of digestive enzymes, including hydrochloric acid in the stomach, pancreatic digestive enzymes, and sometimes bile acid to get the gut back to normal.
Reinoculate.
We have trillions of bacteria that live in our gut and are part of our microbiome. These bacteria can be negatively affected by our diet, stress, lack of sleep, or medications like antibiotics. Reinoculation means bringing a few desirable species and strains of bacteria and/or yeasts back into the system, as well as providing prebiotics to help feed the good flora we have. This allows the GI tract to become a hospitable environment once again.
Regenerate.
The GI wall is where all the action happens. It is where we let the desirable compounds in, and let the undesirable ones out. It is constantly turning over through regeneration and repair, so when trying to help it heal we provide macro and micronutrients to keep the cells healthy. We do not want this tube to become leaky, which creates other systemic issues in different areas of the body. A leakiness in the gut can impact every other system in the body, making us feel unwell or prompt us to start developing problems such as eczema, fatigue, joint stiffness, mood changes, etc.
Retain.
Maintaining the healthy GI environment requires the maintenance of a healthy diet, proper nutrient intake, stress management, rest, and a variety of other lifestyle activities. Your body’s condition reflects how you take care of it, and so long-term healthy habits will be your key to long-term good digestive health.