COMMON GUT HEALTH QUESTIONS, ANSWERED

BY ANGELA BUSBY, NATUROPATH

Gut health impacts your thyroid health, immune health, brain, mood and skin. It’s important to overall health regardless of whether you have a thyroid-condition. It is also quite complex.

Angela Busby joins me on the podcast to answer many of the common gut health questions you might have. Angela has a particular interest in gut health in her naturopathy practice which stems from her her gut health issues.

In this episode, we cover:

Why is gut health so important?

1. The gut is ‘outside’ the body and acts as a first line of defence. The immune system can become overwhelmed if the gut isn’t working properly.
2. It’s the pathway to the body getting nutrients.
3. Most (90%) of our serotonin is stored in the gut. (gut-brain -mood connections)

What do we need to be doing for GOOD gut health?

If you have serious gut issues, you will need to test to see what’s going on first – and then make a plan (together with a knowledgeable practitioner) to help bring the body back to homeostasis (balance).

If you are stearing yourself towards better gut health:

1. Remove food intolerances which maybe triggering leaky gut (very common with autoimmune diseases).
2. Heal the gut eg bone broth, slipperly elm, oats (get GF ones), glutamine.

What should you look for to see if you have leaky gut or gut health issues?

1. How are your poos?

If you are constipated or have diarrhea, you have a gut problem. You should be doing 1-3 well formed (type 4) poos a day.

2. These are all indications you might have gut issues:

•  bloating
• tummy pain
• distention of the belly
• burping
• gas
• heartburn
• indigested food in your stools
• feeling ‘full’ when you haven’t over eaten
• nausea

3. Skin issues: rashes, eczema

4. Recurring illnesses

5. Nails eg ridges, cracking or white spots.

Is there a best gut healing diet?

Angela Busby says ‘no’ – many roads lead to Rome, however leaning towards a paleo diet is generally good for gut health.

Be wary of too many grains as many people have grain intolerances and there are issues with how our modern wheat is grown.

There are specific diets for dealing with specific gut issues that practitioners may recommend.

Which herbs and supplements can be used for gut health support at the different stages of gut healing?

1. The first step is to heal & seal the gut lining (ie heal leaky gut) and the things that can help here include glutamine (feeds the gut cells), slippery elm, zinc. Anti-inflammatory things like turmeric, boswelia (comes from Frankincense), oats and calendula.

NB Angela advises not to ‘detox’ whilst you have a leaky gut as then the toxins will get into your blood stream.

2. The second step is to optimise digestion. Digestive enzymes, bitter herbs, zinc can be considered.

3. The third step is to balance the gut microbiome – this is where pre and probiotics come into play – just make sure you get good quality ones.

Thank you so much Angela for sharing so much knowledge with us.

related podcast episodes

If you enjoyed this episode and are looking for similar discussions, check out these episodes:

#17 Living a Thyroid Wellness Lifestyle.

#51 Unfunc your Gut with Dr Peter Kozlowski

#52 Reversing Hashimoto’s with Dr Anshul Gupta

Bloating & Hashimoto’s

Constipation & Hashimoto’s

Meet Angela Busby

Connect with Angela:

busbynaturopathics.com.au

Instagram @_angelabusby

Podcast: Healthy Living with Angela Busby. Spotify link.

IS IT TIME FOR YOU TO TAKE ACTION?

Suspect you have a thyroid issue? PLEASE trust your instincts and get it thoroughly checked out with your health practitioner. This thyroid basics page has an overview of what tests to ask for and an affiliate link to use a private lab if your doctor won't order them.

Disclaimer: This information is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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