My gut-healing journey started in 2022. I did two food sensitivity tests that said I was sensitive to 66 food items. Many people have concerns about food sensitivity tests because some claim they pick up on foods you consume most often. This was not my experience.

I was already plant-based when I did my food sensitivity tests, but the tests indicated a sensitivity to most animal products. This sensitivity wasn’t too surprising for me, considering I dealt with migraines simply from smelling most animal products, let alone eating them. Overall, that result wasn’t a big deal for me, but it was a bit more difficult when other foods came up that had to be eliminated.

Of course, after months of planning, I started (and completed) a 66-food elimination diet and found I only had sensitivities to a handful of foods that I frequently consumed. I used an elimination diet to focus on healing my gut. I noticed a drastic difference in my overall health and felt amazing. Interestingly, after focusing on improving gut health, when I retested for sensitivities, I was no longer sensitive to most of the foods originally on my list.

At the end of this blog, I will discuss the beginner, intermediate, and advanced steps that can be taken to positively influence gut health. When preparing to heal your gut, I highly recommend taking a food sensitivity test through companies like Check My Body Health (includes gut health analysis) or EverlyWell and executing an elimination diet to ensure you do what’s best for your body. Now, for the moment you’ve been waiting for – gut health.

What is Gut Health

We’ve all heard of gut health, followed by terms like “leaky gut” and “elimination diet,” but we often don’t understand their importance. Gut health is the foundation of health. We have the gut-brain connection, which directly influences your mental health, associating anxiety with stomach problems and vice versa (1). Then you have overall gut health, or the “gut microbiome.” The gut microbiome is a distinct ecosystem characterized by good and bad bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites (2). These organisms live in harmony until something comes along and unbalances them.

Gut health is an important topic because poor gut health is linked to several health concerns, including:

• Autism (3,4,5)
• Autoimmune diseases (6,7,8)
• Behavioral and mental health disorders (9,10,11)
• Cancer (12,13,14)
• Cardiovascular disease (15,16,17)
• Diabetes (18,19,20)
• Eczema (21,22,23)
• Endocrine disorders (24,25,26)
• Food allergies (27,28,29)
• Gastrointestinal disorders (30,31,32)
• Obesity (33,34,35)

That’s basically everything out there, so yes — gut health matters.

Contrarily, when beneficial probiotic bacterial strains are consumed, the health benefits are endless. For instance, having a large variety of bacteria in the gut may help reduce the risk of conditions like diabetes, inflammatory bowel disease, and psoriatic arthritis (36). If you read my blog, The Importance of Probiotics, you know that’s where bacteria or probiotic strains come in, so let’s discuss several strains and their benefits:

• Bifidobacterium bifidum may help with Helicobacter pylori infection, irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, lung infections, ulcerative colitis, necrotizing enterocolitis, pouchitis, some types of diarrhea, and even intestinal bacteria restoration following chemotherapy (37).
• Bifidobacterium infantis may help with ulcerative colitis, chronic fatigue syndrome, psoriasis, and even abdominal pain, especially associated with irritable bowel syndrome (38).
• Bifidobacterium lactis may help with colic, constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, cavities, hay fever, diarrhea, and respiratory tract infections (39).
• Bifidobacterium longum may help with eczema, athletic performance, constipation, and colic (40)
• Lactobacillus acidophilus may help with diarrhea, vaginal inflammation, yeast infections, urinary tract infections, constipation, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), irritable bowel syndrome, gum disease, and lactose intolerance (41).
• Lactobacillus gasseri may help with hay fever, asthma, common cold, diarrhea, indigestion, and obesity (42).
• Lactobacillus plantarum may help with eczema, high cholesterol, irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, diarrhea, constipation, and even prevent the common cold or other respiratory tract infections (43).
• Lactobacillus reuteri may help with stomach pain, colic, constipation, diarrhea, Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection, high cholesterol, eczema, canker sores, and diabetes (44).
• Lactobacillus rhamnosus may help with diarrhea, irritable bowel syndrome, gut health, cavities, urinary tract infections, weight loss, insulin sensitivity, cholesterol levels, allergies, and acne (45).

The Gut-Brain Connection

The brain directly influences the gut and the intestines, associating anxiety with stomach problems and vice versa (1). When something transpires, inducing substantial mental or emotional pain, it is a “gut-wrenching” experience for a reason.

Disguised in the walls of the digestive system, this “brain in your gut,” or enteric nervous system (ENS), is changing the interpretation of digestion, mindset, health, and even the way you think. The ENS can activate powerful emotional changes, often overlooked by individuals struggling with irritable bowel syndrome and functional bowel problems such as constipation, diarrhea, bloating, stomach upset, and pain. The brain and gastrointestinal systems are interconnected, resulting in heartburn, abdominal cramps, or loose stools (46).

The gastrointestinal tract is hypersensitive to emotions such as anger, anxiety, sorrow, and contentment — all of these feelings, amongst many others, can initiate symptoms in the gut. Therefore, an individual’s stomach or intestinal distress can be the reason or consequence of anxiety, stress, or even depression (47).

Mainstream medicine is catching onto the gut-brain connection. For this reason, it’s becoming more common to see antidepressant medication prescribed to treat bowel disorders (48).

Signs of an Unhealthy Gut

Many wonder how to know if you need to focus on gut healing. The answer is nearly all of us do, and the body gives us many clues. Of course, we must slow down long enough to evaluate and interpret what’s happening. Some key indicators of an unhealthy gut include (49,50):

• Stomach discomfort
• Gas
• Bloating
• Constipation
• Diarrhea
• Abdominal pain
• Heartburn
• Unintentional weight changes
• Sleep disturbances
• Constant fatigue
• Mood issues
• Skin irritation
• Autoimmune conditions
• Allergies
• Food intolerances
• Food cravings
• Migraines

Sometimes, individuals may experience more subtle symptoms (usually not associated with gut health). If you’re experiencing the following symptoms, you may need to focus on healing your gut:

• Low back pain (with no apparent physical cause)
• White/yellow coating on the tongue
• Chronic congestion or mild productive cough
• Bloating/pain in the center of your abdomen, just below your ribs
• Tiny white bumps on arms or legs
• Trouble falling asleep before 2 and 3 a.m. or waking between 2 and 4 a.m. and being unable to fall back to sleep
• Difficulty waking/feeling alert in the morning
• Mild, aching pain around joints or along the inside/outside of arms and legs (feels like you need to stretch/move, but that doesn’t quite make it go away)
• Urine has a bacon-like smell (this can also be a urinary tract infection)
• Intense and frequent sugar cravings
• Inability to lose weight, despite diet/exercise changes
• Frequent heartburn
• Irregular menstrual cycle

It doesn’t seem like these symptoms could all be related, but they can be. For example, candida overgrowth can cause several of the symptoms listed. Now, let’s discuss what influences gut health.

Influences on Gut Health

We live in a modern world, with technology advancing daily. In other words, gut-influencing factors surround us, whether helpful or harmful. Some of the most common threats to gut health include the following:

• Sedentary lifestyle (51)
• Drinking too much alcohol (52)
• Cigarette smoking (53)
• Not getting enough sleep (54)
• High stress levels (55)
• Mold exposure (56)
• Environmental pollutants (57)
• Pesticides on produce (58)
• Ultra-processed foods (59)
• Pharmaceuticals like antibiotics, birth control pills, statin drugs, antidepressants, vaccines, etc. (60,61,62,63,64)

Of course, there are also many ways to positively influence and heal gut concerns. Healing the gut may look different for everyone, depending on where you are on your journey. I recommend starting with the beginner steps while adding in and working through the intermediate and advanced steps to maximize your gut-healing potential.

Beginner Steps to Support Gut Health

• Increase water consumption.
• Focus on consuming whole foods.

Intermediate Steps to Support Gut Health

• Incorporate gut-healing herbs (e.g., calendula, clove, and pumpkin seeds).
• Eliminate food toxins (e.g., food coloring, refined flour, sugar, and vegetable oils).

Advanced Steps to Support Gut Health

• Eliminate or limit pharmaceutical medications (do this to the best of your ability with the help of a trusted medical professional).
• Consider checking out The Brother’s Apothecary’s Gut Health Bundle.

Product Disclaimer

Product recommendations are affiliate links. I do not own or make these products. Recommendations are selected according to ingredients at the time article was written and can change at any time. I encourage you to double-check ingredients and research each company to ensure they’re suitable for your journey.

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