What Are the Gut Symptoms You Need to Pay Attention To?

The Benefits of Berberine

Berberine is a compound found in several plants, including barberry, goldenseal, and Chinese goldthread. Here are some potential benefits:

1. Gut Health: Berberine can support gut health by promoting the growth of beneficial gut bacteria and improving digestion.
2. Blood Sugar Regulation: Berberine may help to lower blood sugar levels and improve insulin sensitivity, making it beneficial for those with type 2 diabetes.
3. Weight Loss: Some studies suggest that berberine can aid in weight loss by enhancing metabolic rate and fat breakdown.
4. Anti-inflammatory Effects: Berberine has anti-inflammatory properties, which can help reduce inflammation in the body.
5. Antimicrobial Activity: It has been shown to possess antimicrobial properties, potentially helping to fight infections caused by bacteria, fungi, and viruses.

Take note that it's important to consult a healthcare provider before starting any new supplement, including berberine, to ensure it's appropriate for your individual health needs.

How Can You Test Your Gut?

One very highly rated gut test is Viome which, after monitoring your microbiome, lists foods for you to minimize or even avoid. Its site also offers toothpaste, supplements and lozenges that help your gut.

For a deeper dive into testing your gut microbiome, check out our article What Tests Can I Take to Figure Out What's Going On in My Gut?

Where in the Stomach Are You Feeling Discomfort?

Does the location of my stomach pain determine what the issue could be?

Are you suffering from Diarrhea, Bloating or Gut Pain?

What if the pain location can tell you what the issue is?

What can the location of your stomach pain tell you?

So What's the Deal with IBS?

Does the diagnosis Irritable Bowel Syndrome really mean anything?

How Do You Heal the Gut?

Dr Barbara O'Neil says to heal your gut, you need to do these 3 things.

1. Stop the irritants:

• Wheat
• Dairy
• Refined Sugar
• Alcohol

Yes all the fun stuff in life... But one or many of these could be the reason for your gut aches. So eliminating them and seeing if that makes you feel better, and then bringing them back 1 by 1 will allow you to figure out which one is causing you harm. It's a much more scientific approach to figuring out your issues, instead of just complaining.

2. Add Probiotics - so that could be Supplements or fermented foods like Kimchi, Sauerkraut, or Greek Yoghurt.
3. Have you heard of Slippery Elm, Dr. O'Neill says it's an ancient herb that coats and soothes the belly. Sounds lovely! Gotta' try it.

Definitely check out Dr. O'Neil's book Self-Healing by Design on Amazon, she's a legend when it comes to the microbiome and the gut!

7 Ways to Heal the Gut

What does Dr Vyas say our gut is damaged by? And how does he say that we can reclaim our gut health using natural products?

7 things you can do to improve your gut health:

1. Get rid of the boxed, bagged and canned foods - they cause inflammation
2. "Eat the rainbow" all the colors of fruit and vegetables found in nature - they are polyphenals that are antioxidants and anti-inflammatory
3. Eat Prebiotics (insoluble fiber) that you don't digest but your gut bacteria feeds on and keeps them healthy, these are things like artichoke, onion, mushroom, asparagus
4. Drink more water, important for elimination of toxins and waste from the gut, and moving your food through the gut, aim for half your body in water per day
5. Get Moving - regular exercise increases energy, keeps you happy, helps you lose weight, and also stimulates your gut function and moves your bowels
6. Get some good Sleep - During Deep Sleep your brain does housekeeping on your gut and does deep cleaning and healing
7. Take a Gut Supplement L-Glutamine - This is an amino acid that helps heal leaky gut by tightening the gut linings, helps improve microbiome, helps inflammation on the mucosal lining. Take 15 - 20 mg on an empty stomach as has shown to help in 2 - 3 weeks.

What Shake Contains 16 grams of Fibre and Tastes Good?

Here's the recipe for a 16g high fiber smoothie to power your day:

Raspberries, blueberries, white beans, flax seed, avocado, milk, greek yoghurt

Where do you get high-quality Discounted Groceries?

We recommend:

Thrive Market's mission is to make healthy living accessible. They offer organic and natural products at discounted prices, including groceries, supplements, personal care items, and household products. They use eco-friendly packaging and support various nonprofit organizations.

What's the program at Thrive Market? They offer monthly and annual subscriptions which let members shop for specific dietary needs like gluten-free, vegan, or keto options. Think of it like a Costco but only high quality, nutritious foods. PS: There's also a "Thrive Gives" program which donates memberships to low-income people so they have access to healthy food.

Misfit Market is a grocery delivery service that reduces food waste by selling "imperfect" or 'the misfits' that are surplus - this lets them offer their products at lower prices. Think of the weird shaped carrots or not so perfect apples. They taste the same in your belly, but Grocery Stores usually just throw these away! So you're not only getting a deal on groceries but helping stop the crazy amount of food waste that happens in America. Their service includes fresh produce, dairy, pantry staples and snacks, including organic, all delivered directly to your home.

What's the program at Misfit Market? They have a subscription service that lets you choose the frequency of delivery and the types of products you want, including organic options.

Lisa Schwartzman

Boost Health Daily Host

Dr. Stephanie Nichols

Naturopathic dr helping you GLOW inside & out

Mike Muellner, M.D.

Doctor with way too many hobbies

Dr. Efrat Lamandre , The NP with a PHD

🤯 Medical Disruptor 🔥 It’s NOT in your head

Barbara O’Neill

Author, educator, naturopath, nutritionist & international speaker on natural healing

Dr. Pranav Vyas

➡️ Functional Medicine Doctor Specializing in Natural Hormone Balancing