MY~DIGESTION

“All disease begins in the gut.” ~ Hippocrates Asclepiades

Are you?

• Experiencing heartburn
• Suffering from reflux
• Noticing bloating
• Having frequent burping/belching
• Gassy
• Either constipated or having diarrhea
• Experiencing nausea/vomiting
• IBS ~ “Irritable Bowel Syndrome”

Did you know that if your intestinal barrier is injured this allows small particles to get into the rest of the body and can cause other issues elsewhere in the body?

There is so much interesting research going on right now about the microbiome (bacteria) that live in our intestines and the rest of our body! If our intestines are “leaky” and allow particles through, it can wreck havoc throughout your systems. When I was in medical school, even at Harvard, I can’t recall much mentioned about the microbiome other than in microbiology class. In these courses what we studied weren’t those bacteria that live on and in us, in harmony, but those that mostly caused harm. It seems now there is a bigger realization of the roles that both harmful and helpful bacteria play and balancing those can help restore so much in the body.

In fact, the researcher Alessio Fasano, at Harvard, identified the connection with a “leaky gut” and Celiac Disease (quite possibly this information is being taught at Harvard Medical School now!). He came to find that when exposed to gluten, particular individuals would develop a “leaky gut”, allowing the particles to get through and develop essentially, an immune response. This chain of events leads to poor function of the gastrointestinal system, can cause issues with nutrient deficiencies, weakened immune function, and lead to food reactions, intolerances and sensitivities.

The core of one’s health, it seems, is through the gut, it is one of the most sophisticated systems of the human body. Your lifestyle, such as diet, physical activity, sleep, toxins exposure and medications all can contribute to intestinal permeability. Over time these lead to damage of the protective barrier and susceptibility to different symptoms and diseases.

Many immune disorders are actually a result of damage to the intestinal lining that occur with time. The usual culprits of stress, whether it be emotional, environmental, physical or dietary contribute to immune responses and you become susceptible due to an inflamed gut and infections with harmful bacteria, yeast or parasites result. Even symptoms that don’t seen related to your gastrointestinal system may be related to intestinal permeability.

Because other health concerns can relate to the gastrointestinal system, ultimately the this system is addressed with every health concern and really foundational to management of long-term health.

If you have a specific digestion issue at the core of Functional Medicine is a 5R approach. This program: Removes toxins, Repairs the lining, Replaces the microbial balance, improves digestion and absorption, Re-inoculates the healthy microbes and Rebalances the overall system. Using this system your intestinal system can be healed and, in many cases, other health concerns slowly improve.

Disease does not develop overnight, it takes years before it appears and ultimately healing the gut will heal so much more! To assess the gastrointestinal system the My~Digestion Program will initiate a lifestyle program based on your individual health assessment and evaluate with Functional testing of your microbiome with stool testing to better optimize the 5R program and identify potential hidden infections and utilizing nutrient testing to determine if you have any nutritional deficiencies because of an impaired intestinal lining.

Healing your gut can be the foundation to good health and preventing future disease, and is key if you want to utilize the My~Wellness program.