Leaky gut syndrome, also known as intestinal hyperpermeability, is a disorder that never appeared in any medical textbook I encountered in school. I first learned of its existence at an integrative medicine meeting many years ago, and since then, I\u2019ve lost count of how many times this condition has turned out to be the root cause among patients with previously undiagnosed chronic conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Over the years when I mentioned leaky gut to gastroenterologists I know professionally, they answered rather evasively with a variation of, \u201cI read about it somewhere\u201d, or \u201cOh yeah, some patients have asked me about that.\u201d Once, during an extremely uncomfortable meeting with a very large insurance company, I was told that \u201cleaky gut\u201d and \u201cdysbiosis\u201d were unproven diagnoses and that if I submitted future bills with those diagnoses, they would review all previous bills and demand refunds (the term for this among doctors and hospital administrators is \u201cclawback\u201d). When patients ask, \u201cWhy don\u2019t you submit the test to my insurance and see if they\u2019ll pay it?\u201d. Because we dread \u201cclawback<\/a>\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The Wikipedia article<\/a> on this condition, written by psychiatrist Stephen Barrett, MD, founder of the anti-alternative medicine website quackwatch.com, calls \u201cleaky gut\u201d a \u201cfad diagnosis\u201d and a \u201cdishonest ploy to make money\u201d. Answering your anticipated question, yes, Dr. Barrett and Wikipedia are often quoted by insurers seeking a clawback from an alternative or functional medicine provider. <\/p>\n\n\n\n On the opposite end of this spectrum is the supremely-credentialed Alessio Fasano, MD<\/mark>, head of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition at Massachusetts General Hospital. Over a period of 30 years, Dr. Fasano has authored several hundred papers on the subject, and his research has produced newly available diagnostic tests for leaky gut that I\u2019ll discuss later in this Health Tip. His article, which is very technical, is considered the \u201cgold standard\u201d of leaky gut research. Much easier, is to glance at the list of diseases linked to leaky gut<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Elena Ivanina, D.O., Director of the Center for Integrative Gut Health, was interviewed on Medscape<\/a> just last week about what she referred to as, \u201cthe steep costs of disrupting the gut-barrier harmony\u201d. This interview gives a nice overview of what causes leaky gut, how to prevent it and how to repair it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Leaky gut was first described in a South African medical journal in the 1980s by a physician dealing with the consequences of intestinal parasites and chronic diarrhea. Current research now links leaky gut to virtually all autoimmune disorders, including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and multiple sclerosis.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Neurophysiologist, Dale Bredeson, MD, in his best seller, The End of Alzheimer\u2019s<\/em>, <\/mark>has shown the importance of diagnosing and treating leaky gut for all patients who are at risk for Alzheimer\u2019s or are in its early stages. Izabella Wentz, doctor of pharmacy, in her immensely popular book on Hashimoto\u2019s thyroid disease, The Root Cause<\/mark><\/em>, places leaky gut front and center. Amy Myers, MD, does the same in her bestseller, The Autoimmune Solution<\/mark><\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In leaky gut disorder, any of several triggers damages the lining of the small intestine, where food is absorbed. The most thoroughly researched trigger is the chronic inflammation of Crohn\u2019s and ulcerative colitis, and electron microscopists have observed the actual leaking. However, the most common trigger among patients themselves is an irritating food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n All four doctors \u2013 Fasano, Bredesen, Wentz, and Myers \u2013 hit hard on gluten, which nutritionists call a pro-inflammatory grain. This is neither a gluten allergy nor in most cases celiac disease, but rather a food sensitivity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Let\u2019s say you\u2019re sensitive to the gluten in wheat. Every time you eat a wheat-containing product, it irritates and inflames the lining of your intestine. Ultimately, this constant inflammation damages the protective barrier between the lining of your intestine and your bloodstream. After weeks or months of this low-level inflammation, the intestinal lining becomes increasingly porous, and large molecules that were once kept away from your bloodstream now leak through.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Depending on your individual intestinal lining susceptibility, other irritating triggers might include dairy, egg, corn, citrus, soy, and various chemicals (including pesticides), additives, and preservatives. A significant culprit is the very low fiber, Western diet (high fat, high salt, high sugar and less than 15 grams of fiber a day). Leaky gut is unknown among certain tribes in Africa with an intake of over 80 grams of fiber a day. Non-food triggers include alcohol, intestinal parasites, candida<\/mark>, and NSAIDs like ibuprofen and naproxen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If the lining of your intestine is excessively porous, it is leaking incompletely digested molecules of food, bacteria, and toxins directly into your bloodstream. Ideally, these would be filtered by your liver and destroyed by your immune system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The immune system, ever on the alert for foreign invaders like viruses and bacteria, identifies the large molecules (called antigens \u2013 Greek for \u201cforeign substance\u201d) as the enemy, generates antibodies to clear them out of your body. These antibodies attach themselves to the antigen, creating what\u2019s called an antigen-antibody complex.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This antigen-antibody complex circulates through your body, becoming trapped in certain susceptible areas and immediately causing trouble by triggering local inflammation. For example, if caught within the microscopically small blood vessels in your skin, you can get a rash like eczema or psoriasis. Trapped in your lungs, you might develop asthma. In your nasal passages, chronic sinusitis; in your joints \u2013 especially the small joints in your hands and wrists \u2013 joint pain, swelling, and stiffness; in your nervous system, multiple sclerosis; and in your thyroid, Hashimoto\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Dr. Bredesen has shown that these antigen-antibody complexes trigger the production of a protein called amyloid in the brain, the root cause of Alzheimer\u2019s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On the other hand, instead of specific illness, leaky gut might trigger a constellation of symptoms such as fatigue, brain fog, indigestion, and weight gain from fluid retention. The False Fat Diet<\/mark><\/em>, by Elson M. Haas, MD, blames much of America\u2019s obesity on undetected leaky gut syndrome, since all this newly generated inflammation causes a lot of fluid retention (hence \u201cfalse fat\u201d).<\/p>\n\n\n\n But since neither primary care doctors nor gastroenterologists routinely test for leaky gut, what you\u2019ll commonly hear after you\u2019ve described your symptoms will most likely be \u201cWe can\u2019t find anything wrong with you. Your tests are normal.\u201d And when you mention leaky gut, expect to hear, \u201cI don\u2019t know anything about that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Diagnosing leaky gut isn\u2019t really all that difficult, but can only occur if your doctor is willing to suspect and recognize the possibility. Patients who have virtually any chronic symptom, and no positive test results, should consider leaky gut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Find a functional physician (MD, DO, or chiropractic physician), PA or NP to help you with this protocol:<\/p>\n\n\n\n All these tests are available at all the offices of WholeHealth Chicago, including our newest in Melbourne, Florida. Whether or not they\u2019re covered by your health insurance depends on your policy. On the plus side, prices have dropped considerably when you pay the lab directly. Also, if you have a health savings account, you can cover them from there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once you\u2019ve located your leaky gut triggers and eliminated them, your intestine will start to heal itself. However, you can take several steps to speed the process. Our WholeHealth Chicago nutritionists created a highly effective nutritional program to quickly heal leaky gut. I\u2019ve seen many patients with undiagnosed, chronic illnesses health simply blossom under this program.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In addition to avoiding trigger foods and clearing parasites or candida, a typical regimen for leaky gut also includes:<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s mildly irritating that almost 40 years after the original description of intestinal hyperpermeability and scores of articles in medical journals worldwide that conventional US physicians, especially gastroenterologists, are so reluctant to explore this condition further. Oh well, who needs \u2018em?<\/p>\n\n\n\n Be well,<\/p>\n\n\n\n David Edelberg, MD<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Leaky gut syndrome, also known as intestinal hyperpermeability, is a disorder that never appeared in any medical textbook I encountered in school. I first learned of its existence at an integrative medicine meeting many years ago, and since then, I\u2019ve lost count of how many times this condition has turned out to be the root […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4902,"featured_media":31170,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[29,195,2316,2366,50,43],"tags":[2568,2554,2561,2563,2567,2565,2557,2553,2556,2555,2552,2560,816,2559,2564,2562,2558,2566,2569],"class_list":["post-31159","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-digestion","category-diseases","category-featured","category-gut-health","category-healthy-lifestyle","category-nutrition-nutritional-supplements-vitamins-herbal-remedies","tag-alessiofasano","tag-alternativemedicine","tag-autoimmunedisorders","tag-chronicconditions","tag-davidedelbergmd","tag-diagnostictests","tag-dietarysensitivity","tag-functionalmedicine","tag-gastroenterology","tag-healthandwellness","tag-healthcarecontroversies","tag-holistichealth","tag-inflammation","tag-integrativemedicine","tag-intestinalhealth","tag-leakygutsyndrome","tag-medicalcontroversies","tag-nutritionalprogram","tag-patientadvocacy"],"yoast_head":"\r\nHere\u2019s what happens with leaky gut:<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
What exactly is \u201cleaking out\u201d?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Now the trouble begins.<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Leaky Gut Diagnosis<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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Healing Leaky Gut<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
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