So How Do You Tell If Your Gut Is Healthy?
Following on from my article: that gut feeling: your gut microbiome and health, the question to ask is: how can you tell if you have a healthy gut?
Some Self Monitoring Observations
You can monitor your bowel health very simply. Read the following to see how healthy your bowel is.
Signs of Healthy Gut Environment
1. You have regular bowel motion: can be daily, twice a day, every few days
2. Your stool is soft, formed and sinks.
3. Your tummy is not bloated.
4. You are not burping a lot or passing wind a lot.
5. You feel well most of the time.
6. You hardly have antibiotics.
7. There is no burning sensations when you defecate.
8. You wake up in the morning with a clear head, box of birds.
Signs of Possible Problematic Gut Environment
1. Your bowel motion is not regular.
2 You have diarrhoea or constipation or your poos are fluffy and floats.
3, Your tummy is frequently bloated.
4. You burp a lot or pass wind a lot
5. You feel nauseous, bloated, or you have bad breath (halitosis), fatigue.
6. You have had repeated antibiotics.
7. There is no burning sensations when you defecate.
8. You wake up in the morning with foggy brain, head ache.
What To Do If You Suspect You Have A Gut Problem
You can talk to your GP.
If you suspect that you have inlammatory Bowel Disease, get him/her to test for stool calprotectin – a marker for inflammation of the bowel and which is related to inflammatory bowel disease.
If he/she does not, then order this test from this website: https://www.maximisednutrition.com/calprotectin.
If this test is positive, then you may be referred to a gasteroentologist to see if you have other conditions such as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis.
If the test is negative, only then you can be diagnosed with possible Irritable Bowel Syndrome (there are other tests that the GP can do to see that you do not have cancer or other issues with your gut)/
Then come and see me. A thorough assessment of your food intake, your symptoms, medical conditions etc will give me clues to what is wrong with your gut and how to fix it.
If you need to talk about this article, just call me or make a free 15 minute discovery call.