“Improving gut health” is a buzzword in health circles these days. It seems like everyone is continually coming back to the point that your gut is SO important—and for good reason!
If your gut is not healthy, nothing else in your body will work like it’s supposed to.
This is because your gut is really the foundation of every other system in your body! Inflammation or imbalances in your gut will translate into inflammation in your brain (brain fog), imbalanced hormones, sluggish energy, disrupted sleep, nutrient deficiencies, a poor immune system, and so much more.
Yes, it’s important to digest and eliminate food through your intestines, but what happens along the way, as well as the integrity of your digestive system itself, can really make or break your health.
Here are a few quick roles your gut plays in your whole-body health that you may have overlooked:
- Inflammation source. As I mentioned above, inflammation in your gut leads to body-wide inflammation. That’s why watching the food you eat, supporting the health of your intestinal walls, and optimizing gut bacteria are important steps to end the symptoms and long-term damage inflammation causes in your body.
- Dopamine and serotonin production. A majority of your relaxing, feel-good neurochemicals are actually produced in your gut! So if you feel constantly anxious or on edge, struggle to wind down at night, or have mood swings that feel draining and unpredictable, supporting your gut’s health and increasing these “happy chemicals” is an important place to start.
- Absorbing nutrients. Are you eating healthy foods, taking lots of supplements, and not noticing any difference? It could be that your gut is not actually absorbing any of the powerful nutrition you’re putting in your body. This is a roadblock for SO many women that leaves them stuck, confused, and miserable. If you feel like nothing you’re doing is working, supporting your gut health to reduce inflammation, heal your intestinal walls, and promote healthy gut bacteria could have a massive impact!
- Sleep. Did you know that the microbiome (healthy bacteria) in your gut have their own circadian rhythm? (1) This cycle of sleep-wake is what governs our days, and our guts actually follow the same pattern. So this is why eating late at night may keep you up late, and also why disrupted sleep is such a big deal for metabolic health, weight management, insulin sensitivity, and so much more. A foundation of healthy sleep is a healthy gut!
- The foundation of your immune system. Your ability to fight off sickness is based on the health of your gut. Inflammation slows your immune response, and the diversity and health of your gut bacteria determines your body’s ability to effectively protect itself and fend off disease.
- Autoimmunity also comes into play here—if your gut is compromised, such as with leaky gut, you are WAY more likely to develop Hashimoto’s or other autoimmune conditions because your body starts to attack particles that have escaped from your digestive tract.
This is not a complete list in any way. Researchers continue to uncover more and more ways that your gut determines your long-term health! This only goes to show how critical supporting this system is and how it can truly make or break how you feel each and every day.
WHERE THE GUT GOES WRONG: LEAKY GUT & GUT DYSBIOSIS
There are 2 big ways that your gut goes off track: leaky gut and gut dysbiosis, and BOTH of them are driven by one thing… inflammation.
Leaky gut occurs when the gut lining becomes permeable, meaning things can slip through, allowing bacteria, food particles, and other toxins to “leak” into the body and the bloodstream, leading to an inflammation wildfire that triggers a whole host of disruptive symptoms, autoimmunity, and more.
Gut dysbiosis refers to an unhealthy microbiome when the bad bacteria and microbes begin to outnumber the beneficial ones that usually keep your microbiome in check. Feeding on sugars that you supply within your diet, those unfriendly microbes can rapidly multiply and disrupt your body’s balance.
THE GOAL OF A HEALTHY GUT:
So what are we looking for when we say “healthy gut”? What does that even mean?
Here are 5 pillars that indicate your gut is actually thriving. If any of these seem like they’re not at their best in your body, it’s time to take that next step toward helping your body heal.
- Lower inflammation, because inflammation in your gut causes inflammation through your whole body.
- Strengthened intestinal walls so toxins, food particles, and excess hormones don’t escape and recirculate through your bloodstream (a.k.a. leaky gut). If you have Hashimoto’s, IBS, Crohn’s, or other related chronic conditions, this is even more important. The strength and health of your intestinal walls also determines if you’re able to absorb nutrients from the things you put in your body.
- A healthy microbiome because this is where so many of your “happy” brain chemicals, immune system, sleep rhythms, and more originate.
- Absorb nutrients from your food and supplements, since when this is off, the rest of your body will continue to suffer until it’s fixed. Without the essential building blocks you get from food and supplements, your hormones won’t work, your energy will plummet, stubborn weight will stick to your midsection, you won’t sleep well, and your health will deteriorate.
- Poop often, because if you’re not getting rid of the toxins, waste, and junk that is being cycled out by your liver, it will just re-circulate and put an even greater burden on your already stressed-out liver. We tend to normalize issues in this area, but if something’s off, it’s a sign that you need to take your gut health more seriously!
10 HELPFUL GUT-SUPPORTING NUTRIENTS AND HERBS:
The first step in healing your gut ALWAYS needs to be removing inflammatory foods and lessening your stress.
You can take a ton of supplements, but if you’re still indulging in sugar, carbs, gluten, or dairy every day (depending on your body’s response to them), the problems won’t go away.
The same goes for stress!
Stress causes so many gut issues, including weakening your intestinal walls, disrupting your microbiome, throwing off your digestion/absorption cycle, and more. You can take all the supplements in the world, eat all the right food, and STILL not be “healthy” if your stress is out of control.
Now let’s get to some important supplements and herbs! These are perfect tools to accelerate your body’s healing along with the changes I mentioned above. These herbal remedies and nutrients work with your body in a powerful way that you can’t do through food alone.
This is a long list, but here are 10 great options you can incorporate to help your gut heal, quickly and safely!
- Zinc is well-known to increase the strength of intestinal walls as well as improve the health of your microbiome. (2)
- L-Glutamine is a great one because it works to combat the effects of stress on your intestines. It has been found to improve the strength and lessen the permeability of your intestines, especially during times of high stress. (3)
- N-Acetyl-D-Glucosamine is a powerful tool to reduce inflammation and promote the health of the good bacteria that live in your gut. (4)
- Deglycyrrhizinated Licorice lowers inflammation and enhances healthy mucus production. This is important for absorbing nutrients, regulating bowel movements, making a suitable environment for your gut bacteria, and more! (5)
- Slippery Elm is a great herb to improve the consistency of your bowel movements and reduce inflammation through your whole digestive tract.
- Chamomile is well known for its relaxation benefits, but it is also an anti-inflammatory agent that can help your gut while promoting healthy bacteria. This is a great herb for soothing digestive discomforts, including gas and diarrhea.
- Cat’s Claw can help relax your intestines so bowel movements can be more regular. It also helps improve your immunity by fighting inflammation.
- Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) is known to help rebuild your intestinal lining to be stronger and more effective at absorbing the right nutrients and keeping harmful things within your digestive system so they can be eliminated.
- Marshmallow root forms a protective layer in your intestines to help keep in things (like toxins, food particles, and more) that are supposed to stay there. It also contains great antioxidants to reduce inflammation.
- Quercetin has been found to help foster healthy bacteria growth & diversity. (6)
These 10 herbs all work in unique ways to help your gut heal, but if you’re like me, you don’t have the time and energy to find all of them, let alone remember to take them!
That’s why I created Essentially Whole® Gut Restore!
This amazingly supportive supplement blend contains all 10 of these and MORE to be a simple tool that anyone can use along with diet and reducing stress to help accelerate your gut healing and protect it from future damage.
These key ingredients in Gut Restore prevent toxins, allergens, and microbes from entering your bloodstream, lower overall inflammation, and allow for the optimal absorption of vitamins and nutrients from the other supplements you take and the food you eat.
Beyond that, Gut Restore will also help keep you regular so constipation and slow digestion don’t get in your way.
This supplement is the best and easiest tool I can recommend to give your gut health a refresh and change the direction of your whole body’s health.
As I outlined above, everything comes back to the gut!
THIS is where you need to start if you’re feeling stuck in your symptoms, despite everything else you’ve been trying.
Click here to get Gut Restore today! >>
WANT TO TAKE IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL?
Along with the nutrients and herbs in Gut Restore, increasing your fiber intake is essential for optimal digestive health, detoxing excess hormones, keeping bowel movements regular, and more.
Combining Pure Daily Fiber + Gut Restore is a perfect way to give your gut daily support to work as it should!
Save 10% and get these two products bundled together today! >>
References:
1. https://www.cell.com/cell-host-microbe/fulltext/S1931-3128(15)00123-7
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4637104/
3. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24965526/
4. https://www.naturalmedicinejournal.com/journal/2015-04/n-acetylglucosamine-treatment-inflammatory-bowel-disease
5. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27588327/
6. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25762527/
No comments yet.