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Your body has an incredible capacity to heal it self, but only if you supply the right conditions to allow it to do so. Food sensitivities are no exception.

Leaky Gut Syndrome (increased intestinal permeability) is a very common condition today that is causing not only food sensitivities and allergies but has also been identified as a factor in Atopic Eczema, Crohns Disease, Celiac Disease, Chronic Liver Disease, Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus, and several other autoimmune diseases.

Food sensitivities and allergies are often early indicators of leaky gut syndrome, long before other more serious diseases may occur if the intestinal permeability continues to exist.

What Is Leaky Gut Syndrome?

Leaky Gut Syndrome is exactly how it sounds – partially undigested food and other fragments from your digestive system are passing what is supposed to be an impermeable intestinal lining, entering straight into your blood stream.

Ideally, only adequately digested food molecules that benefit your body should pass through the intestinal lining into your blood stream. The intestinal lining acts like a barrier to bacteria, endotoxins and undigested food matter blocking them from entering. These are then eliminated naturally when you go to the toilet – well that is what is supposed to happen.

But, if you have leaky gut syndrome, the garbage that should have been eliminated like large undigested food molecules and harmful bacteria, are instead absorbed through the intestinal lining since the holes are now big enough for them to fit.

In turn, this produces a massive burdern on your immune system and liver.

It’s Relation To Food Sensitivities

If you were your immune system and you saw weird looking molecules floating around in your blood stream that you had never seen before, what would you do?

Do you think attacking and destroying it before it could harm you would be a good idea? Well your immune system sure does think so – and that is exactly what it does.

Destroying bacteria and viruses are great but if your immune system identifies your food and attacks it like a harmful invader then a food sensitivity will be created.

As a result, your immune system initiates an attack every time it sees that same food molecule – and it’s got a pretty good memory.

Certain weapons are released to destroy it, and as a result inflammation occurs which creates the terrible symptoms of a food sensitivity such as bloating, stomach cramping, itchy skin, or joint pain.

What Causes Leaky Gut Syndrome?

Leaky Gut Syndrome occurs overtime from long term irritation to the lining of the intestinal wall. This irritation causes inflammation and ultimately tears the thin lining of the intestine creating the leaking of substances from the gut into the blood stream.

• Alcohol - Creates cellular damage in the intestinal wall when absorbed causing porous holes to form
• NSAIDS (Non Steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs) – Cause gastrointestinal damage in the upper and lower gastrointestinal tract
• Overuse of antibiotics reduce the protective good bacteria (probiotics)
• Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth

How To Heal Leaky Gut Syndrome

You can heal the damage created to your digestive system but not without hard work and persistance.

Step 1. Improve Digestion

As discussed in Part Three of “Food Sensitivity – What Causes It And How You Can Fix It,” addressing poor digestion (if present) is the primary step you need to take, to ensure you are digesting your food into small molecules. If this is not addressed first, your intestinal lining will take a lot longer to heal because the large undigested molecules will continuously create inflammation that maintains your leaky gut.

Step 2. Eliminate Foods You Are Sensitive To

Inititally eliminating foods you are sensitive, allergic or intolerant to are absolutely necessary to allow your leaky gut to heal. Yes this can be very hard work, but bare in mind this is only temporary.

Avoiding these foods over time will eliminate the IgG antibodies in your blood stream that have been produced by your immune system against these foods, thus inhibiting the reaction usually experienced when the allergic food is eaten.

Soon you will be able to tolerate a lot of these foods much better when re-introduced into your diet at a later date when your intestinal tract has healed.

Opting for a healthy balanced diet and eliminating the following will ensure a faster recovery

• Refined Sugar - Soft drinks, lollies, biscuits, sauce, white bread, fast food.
  Sugar can hide absolutely everywhere. Once you start looking for it in your ingredient labels you will shocked at how much sugar you could be consuming on a daily basis.
• Alcohol - This is a major irritant to the intestinal lining. When alcohol is consumed in leaky gut syndrome, the absorption rate is even greater straining your liver even further. Leaky Gut Syndrome and alcoholism is a good combination for chronic liver disease.
• Caffeine - Coffee, soft drinks, energy drinks, black tea. Try to substitute with herbal teas. Roasted dandelion is often used as a replacement for coffee. Not only that but it’s also a great digestive and liver detoxifier.

Realistically, you won’t be able to avoid all of these foods every day. But if you can cut them down so that you are only having them once a week instead of everyday then you will be on your way to a faster recovery.

Step 3. Use Natural Medicine To Heal Your Gut

Probiotics

Probiotics literally meaning for life, are beneficial bacteria found in your digestive system that exert a positive effect on your health. Such good bacteria that are commonly found are Lactobaccillus Acidophilus, and Bifidobacterium.

They inhibit the growth of bad bacteria which can contribute to intestinal permeability. They also assist with lactose digestion by producing the enzyme lactase necessary for it’s breakdown.

Probiotics most importantly control chemicals that induce inflammation of the intestinal lining, preventing intestinal permeability whilst inhibiting food allergy reactions in the gut.

Directions - Take 1 capsule 20 minutes before breakfast on an empty stomach, and 1 capsule before bed 2 hours after meals.

Glutamine

Glutamine is the most abundant amino acid found in your digestive system, and the necessary fuel for the cells of your intestinal lining.

In many studies, glutamine has shown to stablize gut barrier function reducing the permeability of the intestinal tract that leads to increased allergy susceptibility.

Directions – Glutamine is best taken in a powder as it is more easily absorbed and at a higher therapeutic dose than most tablets or capsules. Placing 1 teaspoon in room temperature water on rising and before bed.

Slippery Elm

This herb has long been used in a number of digestive system problems including ulcers, IBS, heart burn, diarrhoea, constipation and abdominal pain. It’s a mucilaginous herb that acts to soothe and coat the digestive tract, reduce inflammation and enhance the secretions of mucous to protect the intestinal lining.

It is wonderul at repairing the impermeability of the intestinal tract, whilst also preventing further damage from occuring.

Directions - Place 1 – 2 heaped teaspoons in boiling water last thing at night.

*If you are on any medication, please talk to your Doctor before taking any of these natural supplements.

Though there are many other nutrients that are beneficial for healing Leaky Gut Syndrome, the three that have been mentioned seem to have the longest track record for benefiting intestinal permeability.

Your Road To Health

If you have read my four part series on “Food Sensitivity – What Causes It And How You can Fix It,” I hope that you feel empowered and better educated about the causes and actions necessary for self healing.

Treating food sensitivities and preventing further ones from developing can be a daunting task even after reading this information. So contacting a health professional that specialises in allergies and sensitivities will be able to supply you with a personalised treatment strategy to help you achieve the desired results.

Good luck on your journey to better health – and to eating anything you want without having a reaction!

References

1. Bjarnason, I., So, A., Jonatha, A, L., Peters, T., et al. Intestinal permeability and inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis: Effects of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. The Lancet,1984; Volume 324, Issue 8413, Pages 1171 – 1174.

2. Pearson, A. D., Eastham, E, J., Laker, M. F., Craft, A. W and Nelson, R. Intestinal permeability in children with Crohn’s disease and celiac disease. Br Med J (Clin Res Ed) 1982; Volume 285, Pages 20-21

3. Bjarnason, I., Ward, K & Peters, T. The Leaky Gut of alcoholism: Possible route of entry for toxic compounds. The Lancet, Volume 323, Issue 8370, Pages 179-182

4. Isolauri, E., Majamaa, H., Arvola, T., Rantala I., Virtanen, E., & Arvilommi, H. Lactobacillus casei strain GG reverses increased intestinal permeability induced by cow milk in suckling rats. Gastroenterology, 1993; Volume 105, Pages 1643-1650.

5. R.R.W.J. van der Hulst., M.F. von Meyenfeldt., N.E.P. Deutz., et al. Glutamine and the preservation of gut integrity. 1993, The Lancet, Volume 341, Issue 8857, Pages 1363-1365

6. A. Keshavarzian., E. W. Holmes, et al. Leaky gut in alcoholic cirrhosis: a possible mechanism for alcohol-induced liver damage. The American Journal of Gastroenterology, 1998; Volume 94 Issue 1, Pages 200-207

7. V. Rosenfeldt, E. Benfeldt, N. Valerius, A. Pærregaard & K. Michaelsen. Effect of probiotics on gastrointestinal symptoms and small intestinal permeability in children with atopic dermatitis. The Journal of Pediatrics, 2004; Volume 145, Issue 5, Pages 612-616

8. Carratu, R., Secondulfo, M., Magistris, L., et al. Altered Intestinal Permeability to Mannitol in Diabetes Mellitus Type 1. Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology & Nutrition, 1999; Volume 28 Issue 3, Pages 264-269

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