Gut health & Restoration:

Hormonal function, mood, immune system, digestion, inflammation, rationale & food ranges are just some of the functions your gut microbiome affects.

It can be important to address Gut health before thinking about changing body composition. This could be in a fat loss or muscle gain phase. By doing so you will feel better in those phases and get better results.

Stages: Remove, Replace, Repopulate & Repair.

Stage 1: Remove: This stage is dependent upon the individual and the foods causing stress, inflammation, constipation, diarrhoea, or bloating. Once identified, remove the cause of inflammation in the gut. These could include any of the below depending on triggers:

• All grains except rice unless causes issues (wheat, corn, oats, spelt, etc)

• All milk based dairy foods including whey protein.

• Artificial sweeteners, processed sugars, caffeine and alcohol.

• Soy, beans, and legumes including peanuts.

• Stressors (not diet)

Eat:

• Protein sources, fat sources, Food sources which don’t cause reactions above.

Stage 2: Replace: Next you replace or promote substances that will help you digest foods. This phase compliments the removal phase and should be done at the same time.

• Start with digestive enzymes: Protease, Lipase & Amylase. These are needed to break down Carbs, protein and fats. Food sources such as Kefir, Bananas, Avocados, Sauerkraut, Pineapples, Papaya, Kiwi.

• If you have problematic reactions with protein digestion then try adding teaspoon of apple cyder vinegar before each meal.

• Supplement with HCL only if stomach acid is low. Add in zinc carnosine too as this will help your own secretion of HCL and help heal tight junctions in the intestinal wall.

• Any problems digesting fats then supplement with ox bile.

• saccharomyces boulardii mainly for gastrointestinal problems.

Stage 3: Repair: Begin Healing!

You do this by supporting intestinal cell regrowth, help probiotic bacteria repopulate your gut, reduce inflammation, support healthy mucosa within the gut. Eat nutrient dense foods which help cell structure formation and healing. Increase fat soluble vitamin uptake (A, D, E) as well as vitamin C, zinc, glutamine, bone broth (for intestinal permeability), amino acids, omega 3’s.

The repair process and repopulate process (stage 4) are usually done together.

Repopulate: Add Healthy bacteria to repopulate the gut

• Prebiotics such as Onions, artichoke, Garlic, Leeks, asparagus, Flaxseed, Jicama root, Seaweed etc. or supplement with prebiotics.

• Fermented foods: Kefir, kombucha, Sauerkraut, Kimchi, Pickles, Tempeh, Yoghurt etc.

• Soluble fiber.

• Probiotics: lactobacillus, Streptococcus, Bifidobacterium.

After stage 4 add in food that used to cause issues slowly (e.g. Pasta) and monitor any stress reactions.