We are sharing information for knowledge. Presented by. SocialDiary.Net
It’s been blamed for anything from anxiety to abdominal pain, diarrhoea, migraine, mood swings and lowered immunity.
The term “leaky gut” may sound like what happens to you after a bad prawn curry, but this diagnosis is now being offered as the culprit for as many as 40 psychological and physiological problems. However, it’s a diagnosis you’re far more likely to hear from a naturopath rather than your local GP or gastroenterologist.
The term leaky gut is shorthand for what medicos call increased mucosal permeability in the small intestine, the six metre tube that connects your stomach to your colon and sits folded in your abdomen. The small intestine absorbs nutrients from food and passes them to the blood stream as amino acids, sugars and fats. If the lining of the small intestine is damaged, it may become “leakier” – or have increased permeability – meaning larger particles could potentially pass through to the blood stream.
It’s here that medical doctors and complementary therapy practitioners part ways, over who suffers a leaky gut and what effects it might have. Naturopaths and some other alternative practitioners believe that larger particles than normal, including undigested food, bacterial toxins and germs, pass through the lining of the small intestine, setting off the immune system and causing a range of health problems including food allergies, migraines and chronic fatigue. Stress, what we eat and drink, medications and even high intensity exercise have all been suggested as causes of increased gut permeability.
Mainstream doctors say a leaky gut does exist but it’s usually a consequence of having a serious illness that affects only a limited number of people. These would include some elderly people, those with digestive illnesses including untreated coeliac disease, as well as liver disease and cancer, all of which might have an effect on gut permeability.
Waiting for proof
Gastroenterologist Dr Peter Katelaris, an Associate Professor at the University of Sydney, says the small intestine is by definition “leaky” but selectively so, because its key function is to digest food and absorb these nutrients into the blood stream. “However, the term ‘leaky gut’ is also used very loosely by practitioners who are not constrained by evidenced-based medicine, to make unsubstantiated claims about people’s health,” Katelaris says.
“The possibility that increased intestinal permeability occurs in well people in a way that might cause a wide range of symptoms such as backache, headache and fatigue, is unproven. “These claims are easy to make and may sound plausible but are based on belief and theoretical possibilities rather than medical evidence.”
More common
For Sydney nutritionist and homeopath Christine Pope, even the fact that the established medical fraternity has acknowledged the existence of a leaky gut is progress.“If you’d asked doctors 20 years ago if there was such a thing as leaky gut they would have laughed at you,” says Pope, who is also head of nutritional medicine at Sydney’s Nature Care College. She says science is starting to catch up with what complementary therapists have been observing for years – that leaky gut is real, causes a wide range of symptoms and can be treated through dietary changes and supplements. “We attribute such a long list of symptoms to it because that is what clears up when we deal with it,” Pope says.
Pope, who has a special interest in treating patients with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), says dealing with IBS often involves sorting out leaky gut issues too. She says she’s not aware of any statistics about the occurrence of leaky gut, but feels it’s becoming more common. “I wouldn’t put it down to one factor. Diet, lifestyle and stress all have a role to play in leaky gut,” she says.
Testing times
Associate Professor Terry Bolin, a gastroenterologist and the president of The Gut Foundation, has been researching poor absorption of food for 30 years, especially among the elderly and malnourished children. He says although it’s unlikely that large numbers of people in Australia have a leaky gut, it’s gaining scientific credibility. “To be fair, I don’t think many doctors really understand it and they regard it as a naturopath’s dream!” Bolin says.
Although leaky gut produces no detectable changes to the lining of the small intestine, there is a simple and reliable test that measures whether or not larger molecules are passing through your intestinal wall.
Bolin suggests anyone who is told they have a leaky gut should ask their GP or complementary therapist to arrange a lactulose/mannitol urine test. If the results of the test are normal, it’s time to start looking for other causes of your symptoms, he says.
What is leaky gut?
When the small intestine is working well, nutrients are passed into the bloodstream via the intestinal lining. In a “leaky gut” that lining becomes more permeable, allowing bigger particles through.
Why is it a big deal?
Because research suggests having a leakier than normal gut may be associated with health problems such as malnutrition, diabetes and digestive disorders. Many complementary medicine practitioners believe it can also cause a much wider list of symptoms.
What can be done about it?
Probiotic supplements are one area of promising research in treating leaky gut.
Source: bodyandSoul
