Feel like you’ll just keel over and die some days from intestinal pain while your doctor just keeps saying “it’s all in your head”?

Do you get bloated at almost every meal and can’t figure out why?

Do you fear restaurant menus because you fear something will just “set you off” and you won’t be able to predict what that is.

Then this post is for you!! Here are some eye openers that unfortunately aren’t common knowledge… unless you’re seeing a functional medicine-trained gut specialists!

✳️ FODMAPs
There are some “healthy foods” that can really throw a wrench in your digestion – like raw onions, bananas, and black beans. If you suffer from IBS (which symptoms can be confusingly similar to  SIBO), then these foods  can literally keep you up at night! So what does FODMAP stand for?

FODMAP stands for “Fermentable Oligosaccharides, Disaccharides, Monosaccharides And Polyols”. These fermentable carbohydrates are prevalent in normally “healthy foods”…

One of the reasons this causes fermentation is that the small intestine does not absorb FODMAPs very well. They increase the amount of fluid in the bowel while creating more gas (ouch!!). This excess fluid and gas in the bowel leads to bloating and changes in the speed with which food is digested too – which can mean more pain and then diarrhea.

✳️ IBS and SIBO

There is a strong link between IBS and SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth). If you’ve been diagnosed with IBS by your GI doc – be sure they ruled out SIBO (because it requires a totally different treatment approach!!). SIBO occurs when bacteria that normally grow in other parts of the gut mistakenly get into the small intestine and overgrow there.

✳️ Iberogast
Made in Germany, Iberogast is an herbal remedy that has a number of healing herbs for your gut.  An estimated 20,000,000 patients use Iberogast, and it has only 18 reported adverse events over the years. Many of my patients use this remedy to help them balance while they follow my protocols to heal and balance faster, and especially patients with dyspepsia find it very helpful.

✳️ Bone Broth
Bone broth is an important building block for gut health because it’s high in collagen (a protein that contains amino acids essential for rebuilding bone, connective tissue, and skin). Not only does it taste great, but it’s very healing to the lining of your intestines (after you’ve rehabbed your eating habits). Check out the bone broth recipe on my website (https://updateyourlinkhere.com), and check out my recommended bone broth products!

✳️ Stress Triggers
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention of the United States estimates that stress accounts for around 75% of all doctor visits!!! Stress is particularly hard on your digestion, because it immediately affects your nervous system: Once your sympathetic nervous system triggers your “fight or flight” response – your stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline get released into your body and shift your gut’s function.

✳️ Gut Toxins in Our Food
If you don’t eat strictly organic at home, most likely you are ingesting things that are going to hurt your gut. Between gluten, GMO foods, glyphosate contamination, high levels or sugar and HFCS, artificial colorings, preservatives, and heavy metals – our food supply is seriously toxic.

That’s why getting up to speed about your food is just one of the many things I teach our clients at PracticeName, so that they can avoid the pitfalls of toxic foods that create illness.

If you’re interested in learning more, sign up for a free discovery call to chat with someone who understands!

Kay Spears, CCN

P.S. If you haven’t already, join my free FB Community of like-minded health seekers… or claim your free health consult!