The connection between gut health and health at large is one I think most of us have heard raised. The gut is referred to as the seat of all health in naturopathic medicine philosophy. If you have been wondering how this relationship works and the impact of the gut brain connection or axis, gut skin axis and the link between gut health and immunity, here is an exploration from the perspective of a gut health naturopath.
Gut Microbiome
When we refer to the gut we aren’t primarily talking about your cells. The gut houses diverse and plentiful ecosystem of bacteria, fungi, yeast and sometimes parasites or viruses known collectively as the gut microbiome. Diet practices, chemical exposure, alcohol intake, antibiotics and other medications, artificial sweeteners, stress and exposure to contamination and infection all influence the microbiome balance.
The tone of the microbiome is set to some degree by the early age of 3 to 4 depending on birth conditions, breast feeding and exposure to microbes or antibiotics early in life. The initial setup can be built on with positive diet and lifestyle practices and supplementation or depleted by agents that negatively affect our protective commensal bacteria.
Where there is deficiency of positive protective bacteria, changes to PH and low fibre or plant diets, high sugar diet and or diet practices that include a disproportionate fat consumption, negative opportunistic bacteria or other microbes such as opportunist yeast can thrive and become overgrown.
Gut Health and Immunity
Around eighty percent of the immune system function occurs within the gut. Our immune system and our gut microbiome are intimately connected and work synergistically alongside one another. Our gut microbiome organisms communicate with our immune system and can influence the immune cells to express anti-inflammatory support or autoimmune or allergy type dysfunction. If the immune system is in a state of autoimmune or allergy dysfunction, resources are being exhausted on these responses and can lead to a lack of defensive immune protection. While a robust bacterial microbiome works to maintain a PH and environment that protects against infiltration from negative organisms and supports a regulated systemic immune system, capable of mounting appropriate protective defences against infection. Healthy gut bacteria with access to prebiotic fibres in a balanced diet, generate adequate quantities of compounds called short chain fatty acids (SCFA). SCFA support immune function and regulate inflammation both in the gut and systemically. Inflammation is part of the immune systems protective function, but when it is unregulated systemic health concerns can arise.
Gut health and Systemic Inflammation
This relationship between the gut and the immune system and the generation or control of inflammation is a huge element of the connection between gut health and the health of the body at large. Opportunistic or pathogenic microbes trigger inflammatory responses in the immune system in large part through the release of toxins known as endotoxins or lipopolysaccharides (LPS). Imbalance in the gut microbiome and toxin production that goes along with overgrown bacteria, leads to inflammation of the gut wall and a loss of the integrity of the intricate structure of the gut lining. This increased permeability of the gut wall allows for unregulated substances to pass through, activating the immune system and negatively affecting other organs. These extremely inflammatory toxins put pressure on our detoxification systems, cross the blood brain barrier all while triggering immune generated inflammation that has been connected to allergies and autoimmune conditions, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, respiratory, skin and liver conditions.
Gut Brain Connection
Inflammation of the gut lining and toxins produced from negative bacteria can cross the brains protective barrier and lead to inflammation of neurons. This can lead to a sense of foggy thinking, difficult concentration and focus, headaches and mental health concerns. In this way the gut brain connection is influenced by the gut immune connection, however other systems are at play. Our nervous system has a branch in the gut called the enteric nervous system, messages are continuously sent between the gut nervous system and brain primarily via the vagus nerve. Our vagus nerve, a large nerve that runs from the brain control centre to the gut like a communication highway, allows for influence from either direction. Numerous studies have now shown the connection between gut microbiome dysfunction and mental health concerns while also presenting positive outcomes in mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety with the use of specific probiotic therapy.
Help from a Gut Health Naturopath
Gut microbiome treatment and gut health management to support overall health is complex. It goes much beyond the use of a probiotic or fibre supplements. Those strategies can be supportive in many cases but can however, often ends up feeling like a band-aid treatment and can even aggravate depending on the concern. It’s also common for additional inflammation to be generated when strong agents are utilised at a time when the gut has not been primed to tolerate strong natural or other therapies.
An experienced gut health naturopath can assess and rebalance the gut microbiome, while ensuring inflammation is controlled then set the gut health up specifically to manage subsequent health concerns such as a those pertaining to the gut skin axis, gut brain axis or gut immune connection. Diet and lifestyle strategies can also be hugely beneficial secondary strategy in maintaining a robust resilient gut that serves one as a long-term systemic health support. However, once the gut is in a state of significant imbalance diet and lifestyle are often not enough bring back homeostasis and an experienced approach is required to truly restore balance.
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