Did you know that 60-80% of your immune system is located in your gut? That’s why a properly functioning digestive system is essential to maintaining good health.
Aside from your immune system, the gut is responsible for 90% of your body’s neurotransmitters – the chemicals responsible regulating mood. Gastrointestinal tract issues have been linked to conditions like hormonal imbalances, autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and hashimotos thyroiditis, diabetes, chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia, anxiety, depression, eczema and rosacea.
So what can you do to heal your gut? Dr. Amy Myers has put together the 4 R program to help you heal your gut, and heal yourself.
The 4 R Program
1. Remove
Remove the bad. The goal is to get rid of things that negatively affect the environment of the GI tract such as inflammatory foods, infections and gastric irritants like alcohol, caffeine or drugs. Inflammatory foods such as gluten, dairy, corn, soy, eggs and sugar can lead to food sensitivities. I recommend an Elimination Diet and IgG food sensitivity testing to determine if any foods are a problem for you. Infections can be from parasites, yeast or bacteria. A comprehensive stool analysis is key to determining the levels of good bacteria as well as any infections that may be present. Removing the infections may require treatment with herbs, anti-parasite medication, anti-fungal medication or even antibiotics.
2. Replace
Replace the good. Add back in the essential ingredients for proper digestion and absorption that may have been depleted by diet, drugs (such as antacid medications), diseases or aging. This includes digestive enzymes, hydrochloric acid and bile acids that are required for proper digestion.
3. Reinoculate
Restoring beneficial bacteria to reestablish a healthy balance of good bacteria is critical. This may be accomplished by taking a probiotic supplement that contains beneficial bacteria such as bifidobacteria and lactobacillus species. I recommend anywhere from 25 -100 billion units a day. Also, taking a prebiotic (food for the good bacteria) supplement or consuming foods high in soluble fiber is important.
4. Repair
Providing the nutrients necessary to help the gut repair itself is essential. One of my favorite supplements is L-glutamine, an amino acid that helps to rejuvenate the gut wall lining. Other key nutrients include zinc, omega-3 fish oils, vitamin A, C, E as well as herbs such as slippery elm and aloe vera.
No matter what your health issue is, the 4R program is sure to help you and your gut heal. I have witnessed dramatic reversals of chronic and inflammatory illnesses in a very short period of time by utilizing this simple approach.
Sources:
Eat Local Grown
Amy Myers MD
