You don't have to look very hard to find articles and research about gut health. In fact, recent Parkinson's research (as well as other auto immune issues) is showing a link to an imbalanced gut biome and inflammation. Searching inflammation and; gut health, auto immunes, or movement, pull up a long list of research and scholarly articles as well as some blogs.
So why are we not more aware of the importance?
Could it be that we are more interested in the official diagnosis rather than the underlying issue which prevents our body from being adaptable?
Could it be we just want something to make it all go away with one magic pill, instead of a multifaceted approach that will teach us how to listen to our body?
Do we even want to listen to our body?
One thing I do know is that the symptoms of a challenged gut appear here and there, not all at once. So getting to know our body and connecting with it's signals is a magnificent thing. Not to brag but this is what I do. I listen to a person's history and connect the dots to see what the symptoms are trying to share. The quality of the gut biome can be improved but, left alone and the storm is left to increase until it gets your attention. Let's face it life is full and sometimes it gets messy.
So how do you know if you need to take gut health more seriously? You can certainly look at your ankles after a long day of being on your feet. Do they have sock rings from the elastic band? Even worse. are they obviously swollen at the end of the day? If you are not showing either of these signs what about any of these:
Pain cycles that have lasted more than 6 months
Bloating
Flatulence
Chronic Fatigue
Stiff Joints
Memory or recall issues
Sugar Cravings
Salt Cravings
Skin rashes or unexplained itchiness
Unexplained inflammation
Brain fog (aka squirrel brain how I wish this was an official dx.)
Difficulty Losing Weight
Food Sensitivities
If you've said yes to any of the above, even if it is sometimes but not all the time, then keep reading. I'll do my best to articulate the individualized approach to gut health I have been taught.
How can the body that seems to have a mysterious list of symptoms with or without a diagnosis be helped? For starters, I look at your health history. If you have ever heard of Bruce Lipton, the father of epigenetics and stem cell researcher, you know that when the environmental input of cellular quality changes the body has an opportunity to heal itself as the cells regenerate.
Your history will reveal patterns for system struggles. Our immunity and emotions play a big role in maintaining gut adaptability. Did you know there are 4 different styles of immune preferences? When you learn your body's immune preference you will also learn why some symptoms reoccur. Our body's preference is set at an early age and a lot of components go into it's preference. Understanding my immune preference and how to influence it brought me freedom from the long standing symptom of brain fog.
Remember when I mentioned health history? The health history is the second important key to this work. Some might recognize that the symptoms have a correlation to a recent viral infection, a bad bout of bacteria, a pregnancy or an emotional or physical trauma that left us in survival mode fighting for some sort of normalcy. Some might not recognize a correlation to their new found symptoms and anything. Regardless of time frames, whether or not we recognize the cause to our symptoms. The fact is, we are not feeling like our normal self.
Maybe our gut has been struggling longer than we realize and all of a sudden we are putting on weight while putting some serious hours in at the gym only to see our waist size and scale remain the same. There is a reason why your brain is in protective mode and not allowing the weight to come off.
Our gut health is a major component to keeping us safe, healthy and mobile. Without good gut health we have lessened our ability to breakdown food, absorb nutrients and eliminate waste. Which means we expend more energy to do simple tasks and throw more stress into the system. Stress is a key component for many individuals. No one will ever live a stress free life, but you can learn to interact with nervous system and gain the ability to experience the stress then walk away as we should. Instead loading up your backpack and carrying with you all day long into next month eventually deciding to unload bits of it years down the road. Maybe you just grow stronger muscles and choose the anger or build a thicker wall so you can carry it even longer. Carrying this backpack of emotions will in fact lessen our immune system's ability to be able to flux with adaptability. In all reality, the limbic system is the king of our nervous system. We want to be freed from the heavy backpack of emotions and traumas. By doing so we learn how to side step stress triggers and maintain adaptability. By keeping the backpack loaded, we could be sitting around laughing and bonding with friends and family only to be struck with an overwhelming negative or anxious feeling. If you have experienced this, it is time to unload that backpack.
I am always talking about how miraculous our bodies are. I know you have heard stories of super human feats. Stories of everyday people who persist amongst many hurdles. To be honest if you have not heard of any lately and it helps you carry on, let me know, I am surrounded by many of these stories. Here is a short one of my own, not that I am super human I just have an insane amount of perseverance, thank you parents. My body has been a mysterious running machine ever since 1990 when I was diagnosed with T1D. Long story short, I have had many occasions of mysterious issues along the way. Back in 2017 I was really struggling to get predictable glucose results after meals. I was calculating everything in. Sometimes the glucose results were spot on sometimes it was like a game of roulette you never knew if it would be up or done. So I started eating the same thing repeatedly. Still my body gave me roulette like results. I was trying to lose weight and doing everything in my power right done to counting macros and measuring all food input. Still not one pound lost after a year. This is when I discovered I had food sensitivities. Not just dairy and gluten but to others as well. In the next two years the list grew, eventually to include insulin I was on. After taking my initial Functional Health class I started my own adventure to see what I could do for my body. I can officially share that some of us will have to peel away layers. While others will be at the start of the spectrum and it will seem easier for them. I can also say that this work is amazing. Not only have my food sensitivities healed but many more improvements have been made to my overall health. I can officially enjoy food freedom, yay! Well minus the sugar monitoring but that one is easy.
Our health matters now more than ever and I wish the conversation about self care would expand. I am not the one to change the global conversation, but I can help you change your symptoms and teach you better self care that you can take with you for years to come. Join me in choosing your best self regardless of what you may or may not have been diagnosed with. Quality gut health that is customized and goes deeper than a one sized fits all approach will bring you noticeable results.