Leaky Gut Syndrome

Image Credit: GHC

Leaky Gut – Cause of Several Health Problems

Leaky gut is an ailment which is the cause of several health problems. Most of the individuals are often unaware of this condition and have no clue with regards to this condition. The leaky gut which is an important organ is the small intestine where most of the vitamins and minerals in the foods that are consumed are absorbed here.

 For the vitamins and the minerals to get absorbed, the small intestine which contains microscopic pores enable the nutrients to get transferred into the bloodstream which when transferred are then shuttled and deposited in the body by the blood. Semipermeable which is the wall of the intestine allows only certain things to enter the bloodstream and blocks things not needed from entering the bloodstream such as specific molecules and nutrients which are permitted to pass through though toxins and large undigested food particles tend to get blocked from passing through.

The issue with leaky gut is that it causes the widening of the pores in the intestine and when it occurs, the undigested food particles as well as the toxins which are not supposed to pass through are allowed to make their way into the bloodstream causing the immune to go in attack mode and often leading to several allergies.

Expansion of Pores in Small Intestine 

A few different forms of developing leaky gut for instance is when one is chronically constipated and over a period of time the toxins in the stool tend to irritate the lining of the intestine which could lead to inflammation. This in turn would then cause the pores in the small intestine to expand. If the irritation and inflammation goes on for a long period of time, it could lead to irritable bowel syndrome known as Crohn’s disease or colitis.

Another common cause is an imbalance of the flora in the gut where we tend to have the good as well as bad bacteria in our digestive system. When the flora here is balanced, the bad bacteria are not harmful but when the bad bacteria tend to outweigh the good, it leads to irritation together with inflammation causing the pores of the intestine to open up leading to several health issues.

Symptoms of Leaky Guts 

Some of the symptoms of Leaky guts could include problems like gas, diarrhoea, bloating or irritable bowel syndrome, seasonal allergies or asthma, hormonal imbalances like PMS or PCOS, mood and mind problems like getting into depression, anxiety, skin problems like rosacea, acne or eczema, diagnosis of an autoimmune disease like rheumatoid arthritis, Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, lupus, celiac or psoriasis disease, diagnosis of chronic fatigue or fibromyalgia, food allergies/intolerance and diagnosis of candida overgrowth.

For the treatment of leaky gut, it is essential to take amino acid which has the ability to heal soft tissue such as the lining of the intestine and is also very good in improving the health as well as the integrity of the gut. Another option is to take probiotic which are full of good bacteria and helps to restore the balance of the gut flora