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How Stress Weakens Your Gut Lining (and what to do about it!)

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Today I want to talk with you about something really important involving your gut lining.

Why?

Because your gut is truly at the ROOT of your health.

Your gut is where you take all the good stuff you eat and drink and transform it into the many building blocks your body needs to make energy, think clearly, sleep well, maintain a healthy weight, build muscle, fight infections, and clear out toxins that need clearing out daily so you can thrive. 

It is my passion is to work with people like you whose health symptoms–like low energy, gut/digestive issues, excess weight, mood imbalance, chronic infections, and skin & sleep problems–are getting in the way of you living life fully and with a sense of freedom in your body. I help you to regain your health so you can feel great and free to enjoy life fully.

Part of what protects you is a part of your immune system called Secretory IgA (or SIgA). This is a substance that your gut makes and it acts as your first line of defense against toxins and microorganisms (like unfriendly bacteria, yeast, and other pathogens). Think of SIgA as your powerful gut warriors! You want to keep these warriors happy (functioning well and in the right amount).

What Disrupts Your Gut Lining

Some things that can get in the way of your gut and SIgA levels from doing their best are:

  • Highly processed foods
  • Pesticides and insecticides
  • Poor sleep
  • Sugar
  • Refined carbohydrates
  • Gluten
  • Parasitic infections
  • Fungal infections
  • Imbalances in your gut flora
  • Heavy metal toxicity
  • Chemical toxicity
  • GMO’s
  • Hormonal imbalances
  • Stress!

Common symptoms you might experience are:

  • Gas and bloating
  • Constipation or diarrhea
  • Indigestion or heartburn
  • Thyroid problems
  • Low or inconsistent energy
  • Food sensitivities
  • Chronic skin problems
  • Joint pain
  • Anxiety and Depression
  • Poor sleep

How to Support Your Gut Lining

You can do a lot to support your gut lining and reduce or eliminate your symptoms through diet and lifestyle. Don’t underestimate the value of stress management!!! It can make a world of difference in your gut health and quality of life. There are lots of ways to help manage your stress including breathing and meditation, but I’m an especially big fan of things that you can do on the go, during your day, to nip the damaging effects of stress in the bud and break out of the habit of stress (yes, it can become a habit!).

Here are some things that you can do to support your gut:

  • Avoid vegetable/industrial seed oils (like soy, cottonseed, corn, canola, and safflower) 
  • Get to bed by 10:30-11pm
  • Move your body
  • Reduce or phase out processed foods, refined carbs and sugar
  • Increase whole, unprocessed foods that are right for YOUR body
  • Hydrate
  • Use stress management tools DURING your day to reset your stress hormones (like HeartMath tools)

Beyond these basics, there are TONS of ways to create a customized self-care plan to help you take your health to the next level and feel great.

If you’re ready to discover where your best health has been hiding, I’d love to connect with you!
Apply for a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session. http://bit.ly/schedulinghealth (subject to availability).

Until next time, I’m wishing you unstoppable health!

~Rebecca

Autoimmunity and being “too clean”

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Today I’d love to share some helpful information on how you can support your immune system.
You or someone you care about may be struggling with your immune system (and I’m not just talking about getting an occasional cold: I’m talking about autoimmunity). Autoimmunity is when your immune system attacks YOU rather than invading germs. It affects about 14-22 million people in the United States (heart disease, the most common disease in the U.S. affects 22 million).

Examples of autoimmune disease are celiac disease (intestines), inflammatory bowel conditions such as Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis (intestines), Hashimoto’s and Grave’s (thyroid), multiple sclerosis (nervous system), and eczema and psoriasis (skin).

I’m reading this great book right now called Healthy Gut, Healthy You and there is a whole section on the research behind autoimmunity and hygiene.

Did you know that about 80% of your immune system is in your gut? Since a big part of how I help people to regain their health is through creating foundations for a strong healthy gut, I wanted to share a couple tidbits with you.

Your gut is the root of your health and it is where you take all the good stuff you eat and drink and transform it into the many building blocks your body needs to make energy, sleep well, maintain a healthy weight, build muscle, clear out toxins that need clearing out daily, and have a properly functioning immune system so you can thrive. 

Everything you eat has an impact on your gut health. So does your environment.

Why am I telling you this? Because my passion is to work with people like you whose health symptoms–like gut/digestive issues, excess weight, low energy, and skin & sleep problems–are getting in the way of you living life fully and with a sense of freedom in your body. I help you to regain your health so you can feel great and free to enjoy your life.
 

Hygiene and Your Immune System

What we’re realizing is that being too clean and disinfecting everything from our hands multiple times each day to every surface of our work and home could actually be a big problem.

Is it good to wash your hands after you go to the bathroom? Yes. Is it good to wash up before you eat in general? Yes. But the research shows that people “who live in non-Westernized societies have far less inflammatory, autoimmune and allergic diseases” (H. Okada The Hygeine Hypothesis, Clinical & Experimental Immunology).

Using anti-bacterial soaps, hand sanitizers, anti-bacterial household cleaners reduce our interaction with bacteria–because they kill them off. And we need bacteria in our lives: our lives depend on it. You are more bacteria then you are human cells! It is now believed that by constantly reducing our exposure to bacteria makes your immune system restless. It is also believed that those who develop autoimmunity or allergies have a strong immune system…but it doesn’t have the constant exposure to dirt and germs it needs to train it to function properly. So when that immune system is really strong, bored and poorly trained from having a sterile environment, it is more prone to react quickly and strongly to your own tissues (autoimmunity).

If you already have developed one or more autoimmune condition, absolutely work with someone who can help you dial in your diet and support gut function. This can help you from anywhere from managing symptoms to going into remission. If you are having symptoms with allergies, skin, gut, energy, weight, poor sleep…well, these are signs that your health needs support. You can make a huge difference to the direction your life and health are headed by taking action now before autoimmune disease develops.

Generally, you can support your body by getting regular contact with nature. Get outside in nature as often as possible. Get your hands dirty if you’re taking a hike. Breathe in the fresh air. Have plants in your home and a pet if you can and aren’t allergic. Your body needs interaction with bacteria! Wash your hands with soap (not anti-bacterial) and warm water.

This is the tip of the iceberg. There’s so much you can do to support your health in addition to this. 
Please contact me if you’d like to explore what you can do to support your health and immune system. I’d love to help you.

Until next time, I’m wishing you unstoppable health!

~Rebecca


P.S. Do you know someone who is struggling with their weight, digestion/gut, or energy?
Send them my way! They can set up a complimentary Unstoppable Health Discovery Session with me here and so can you!