When you have an unhealthy gut, it can take a toll on your entire body. In order to understand why this happens, it helps to first know how a properly functioning gut is supposed to work and how to tell if it’s healthy or not.
Rarely, if ever, are we given a precise view into what’s actually going on within our own gut, despite it being an immensely important component of overall functioning and health.
Gut health affects many things, including mental health, immunity and hormones. Many people suffer problems with their gut and don’t even realize it. But how do you know if your gut is unhealthy?
There are a few ways to test out gut health. Two of which can be done at home, for free. The other two ways come at a cost but are thoroughly worth it. By testing your gut health, you’ll know what to work on and whether or not your gut is causing other issues.
Why Food Sensitivity Testing is Important?
Food sensitivity refers to a person’s reaction to a type of food group. Your body may react in a myriad of ways including:
- Migraines
- Gas & Bloating
- Irritable bowel
- Indigestion Or Heartburn
- Joint Pain
- Slowed Muscle Recovery
- Weight gain
- Skin Concerns such as Acne or Eczema
- Feeling Anxious or Blue
- Impaired cognitive function
- Feeling constantly fatigued
Food sensitivity testing aims to find reactionary foods so they can be removed from your diet, so that your digestion has the opportunity to heal itself. This means your body can resume normal function and start operating at its best again.
Who Should Test Their Gut Health?
Testing gut health is a good idea for everybody. The gut is linked to the health of many other parts of the body. Other reasons to test your gut include if you experience problems such as digestive issues, food allergies, sleep issues, skin rashes such as eczema or psoriasis and allergies, sugar cravings and unexpected fatigue.
4 Simple Ways to Test Gut Health
- Inspect Stools Visually
Before seeing your naturopathic doctor in Vancouver, it is a great idea to visually inspect your own stools. While this might seem off-putting, observing your stool can be a great first indicator of what is going on in your gut.
For the best results, inspect every time you go, especially after you eat different meals. Here’s what to look for and what it means:
The Color of Your Stool
Stool colour tells you a lot and could help to identify an issue. Here’s what stool colour means:
Red or black – This could point to internal bleeding. Although eating beets can have a similar effect. Best to get checked out with your doctor immediately.
Green – If you eat a lot of veggies, but have green stools, this could indicate the nutrients are not being digested. Talk with your naturopathic doctor in Vancouver on how to improve this.
Greenish/yellow – This may be a sign of fat malabsorption or bile obstruction. Talk to your doctor about how to improve these digestive issues.
Yellow – Can be an indicator of intestinal inflammation or infection and needs to be checked out by a doctor.
Physical and Visual Signs
Straining while passing a stool – Straining occasionally while passing a stool isn’t cause for concern as it could be a sign of dehydration. But, if it happens frequently, this indicates constipation and an issue in the gut.
Stool floats in the toilet bowel – If a stool floats in the toilet bowl, this means fats are not being digested or could be a sign of a gastrointestinal infection or fat malabsoprion.
Bristol stool scale analysis – The Bristol Stool Scale puts forms of human stools into 7 different categories so you can evaluate bowel health.
How often you go – Everyone goes to the loo a different amount of times. But not having at least 1-2 daily bowel movements or rushing to the bathroom with diarrhea after every meal is a sign to look into your gut health.
Bowel Movement Beet Test
The beet test is a simple way to measure your bowel transition time. Knowing this information teaches if you’re constipated or passing stools too quickly and not absorbing nutrients. Follow this guide to do the beet test at home:
- Add beets to your next meal and record the time
- Look for a red/purple color in your next stool
- Take note of your results. If your stool passes within 12-24 hours, this is generally considered normal. If you’re well before that or well after, it’s time to take your results to a doctor
Lab Stool Analysis
To get an in-depth view of exactly what is happening in your gut, a functional stool analysis reveals all. Your doctor in Vancouver will send your stool sample to a lab and analyze the results.
If you’ve been experiencing gut issues, this is the best way to see what is causing them, so you can make a plan to manage what is happening. Stool tests show:
- Enzyme levels
- Any parasite infection
- Type of microflora in the gut
- Any fungal or bacterial overgrowths
- Issues such as leaky gut, fat or nutrient malabsorption
To get a functional stool test, talk with your Vancouver naturopath. Cost varies from $300 – $600, but it’s the best way to find out what is going on in your gut.
Lactulose Breath Test
If you’re experiencing constant bloating and have a suspected small intestine Bacterial or Fungal overgrowth (SIBO/SIFO), your doctor may recommend you have a lactulose breath test.
This test involves drinking a sugary drink followed by giving breath samples at specific time intervals according to a handy guide provided to you by the lab.
Results show the type and amount of certain gas types that are produced by unfavourable organisms in your digestive tract, so you can make a plan to solve any issues.
The day before the procedure begins, you’ll be required to limit your diet to specific food groups, or alternatively opt for a 24 hours period of fasting.
Testing for Food Sensitivities
Testing for food sensitivity is a blood test that can be done both in office by your naturopathic doctor or done at Life Labs just like the rest of the bloodwork you get done through your doctor. The blood sample collected in the office is then sent to a medical lab.
In the lab, they measure the levels of IgG antibodies in your blood when it comes into contact with between 120 and 225 different food groups. Antibodies are highly specialized proteins that bind to specific antigens.
These antigens can trigger the overproduction of antibodies which can cause reactions to certain types of food, which leads to inflammation and digestive upsets as well as a host of other signs and symptoms.
How to Improve Your Gut Health Moving Forward?
There’s no one size fits all solution to improve gut health. It really depends on the results of your gut tests and which problems you’re facing. However, there are a few general ways to help all guts:
- Follow your doctors customized gut healing plan
- Eat plenty of fruit, beans, legumes and beans
- Add fermented foods to your diet (unless you are diagnosed with SIBO)
- Eat prebiotic rich foods
- Take a good quality probiotics supplement based on your naturopathic doctor’s recommendations
- Consume lots of fiber
Conclusion
A happy gut really can lead to a happy life. If you’re experiencing issues, don’t wait to get them sorted. Consult your local naturopath doctor in Vancouver as soon as possible.