If you suffer from a digestive problem, you’re not alone...
Around 70 million people suffer from a digestive issue in the US!
We tend to underestimate the importance of our guts until things go wrong.
Not long ago, we used to think that the gut is a relatively simple system — a long tube from the mouth to the anus that helps with food digestion.
But as science moved forward, we’ve come to realize how intricately different parts of the human body are connected with each other.
The same is true for the gut — it’s highly interconnected with other aspects of our health.
In this article, we’ll discuss what exactly a “healthy” gut means, the problems that can arise if you don’t care for your gut, and what you can do to improve gut health.
Let’s begin!
What is a healthy gut?
A healthy gut is one that has a well-balanced microbiome.
Our gut is home to around 500 species of bacteria. Some of these are bad but most are good, which means they have positive effects not only on gut function but also on your overall health.
In a healthy gut, the balance between good and bad bacteria is tightly regulated and maintained.
A well-balanced microbiome allows the gut to perform digestion well and has a wide range of protective health effects (more on them later).
A wide range of gut conditions (like Crohn’s disease and Irritable Bowel Syndrome) involve an alteration in the gut microbiome, which can lead to serious gut dysfunction.
One classic example that highlights the importance of a healthy gut microbiome is a C. difficile infection. A C. difficile infection commonly occurs in patients who are being treated with antibiotics.
Antibiotics kill off good gut bacteria, which allow harmful bacteria (C.difficile) to proliferate and cause life-threatening diarrhea and inflammation in the gut.
What is the importance of a healthy gut?
Other than making sure the body never runs out of its “fuel” and making important vitamins (like vitamin B), a healthy gut has been linked to a wide range of health effects.
Gut health has been linked to:
- Immune function
- Mental health (there are extensive interconnections between the brain and the gut)
- Cancer
- Eczema (and other skin conditions)
- Endocrine diseases
One good example of how gut health can directly affect your overall wellbeing is that of atherosclerosis.
Atherosclerosis refers to the buildup of cholesterol plaques in arteries and is the reason behind heart attacks and strokes. There is evidence that bad bacteria in the gut can lead to cholesterol buildup in blood vessels.
This is believed to occur from a chemical these bacteria produce in response to certain kinds of food. This chemical is then converted into trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) by the liver and is what ultimately leads to atherosclerosis.
Too much TMAO has also been linked to an increased risk of chronic kidney disease, which comes with a plethora of complications including:
- Stroke
- Anemia
- Heart disease
- Weak bones
Similarly, an unhealthy gut has been linked to a variety of mental conditions including autism, depression, anxiety, and neurogenic pain.
This is because there are extensive interconnections between the brain and the gut, and your gut microbiome can influence how the brain perceives the various aspects of your surroundings (like colors, textures, and sounds).
All of these examples — atherosclerosis, kidney disease, and mental health — show how important it is to take care of your gut. But how do you know when your gut needs help?
Let’s find out.
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What are the clues that you have an unhealthy gut?
Depending on the exact problem that’s occurring, an unhealthy gut can manifest with a wide range of signs.
But here are 5 of the most common signs that can indicate the symptoms of an unhealthy gut:
1. You feel bloated after eating
Bloating is a very non-specific sign and can mean a lot of things. But one particular cause of bloating points towards an unbalanced gut microbiome, and that’s food intolerance.
There are many types of food intolerances where the body finds it difficult to break a particular molecule in the diet. And there is some evidence that these intolerances stem from bad bacteria in the gut.
2. You’ve lost weight without trying
Unintentional weight loss is an alarming sign.
There are many causes of weight loss and an unhealthy gut is one of them. If the gut is unable to absorb nutrients, you start to lose weight.
3. You find it hard to sleep
Our gut is responsible for making a hormone called serotonin. One of the functions of serotonin is sleep regulation.
An unhealthy gut fails to produce serotonin, which in turn makes it difficult for you to sleep well. And a lack of sleep is associated with a wide range of health complications.
4. Persistent abdominal symptoms
We all experience abdominal pain, diarrhea, constipation, and bloating once in a while (and that’s normal).
But if you experience these symptoms persistently (or too frequently), it may be a sign that your gut is unhealthy and that there is an underlying gut condition.
5. You develop autoimmune conditions
An autoimmune condition develops when the body’s immune system becomes dysregulated and starts attacking its own tissues.
An unhealthy gut has been linked to increased immune activity in the body, which can trigger autoimmune conditions.
One example is eczema, which is when the immune system attacks the skin.
Eczema can occur when the gut becomes “leaky” and allows harmful proteins to enter the blood. These proteins lead to an immune reaction that gets misdirected towards the skin.
A word on keeping the gut healthy
If you think you have an unhealthy gut, you can some of the following steps to improve it:
Eat a healthy diet. This includes a high-fiber, low fat and sugar diet. Also consider eating prebiotic foods, which increase the good bacteria in your gut and restore its microbiome balance.
Manage stress properly. Since the brain and gut are interconnected, managing stress well is an easy way to achieve good health. Here are some ideas to deal with stress.
Chew food properly. The gut’s main job is to break down food and you can help it with this by chewing your food properly.
Sleep well. Just like an unhealthy gut can disrupt sleep, bad sleep hygiene can harm the gut.
Try an elimination diet. This is for people who think they might have a food intolerance. You can read more about an elimination diet here.
