Gut Health Specialist
XBody Health, Wellness & Spa
Gut Health Q & A
What Is Gut Health?
Gut health involves maintaining a healthy and functional GI tract. This includes your esophagus, stomach, large intestine, small intestine, pancreas, liver, and gallbladder, which all work together to properly digest food and absorb essential nutrients. When any of these organs or your gut bacteria is thrown out of whack, your body might present with a GI disorder.
What Are The Symptoms Of GI Disorders?
The following signs and symptoms may indicate a GI disorder:
- Bloating
- Gas
- Heartburn
- Cramping
- Constipation
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal pain
- Rectal bleeding
The type and severity of GI symptoms you experience can indicate the health condition you have. Fortunately, you don’t have to live in discomfort as simple treatment options are available at XBody Health, Wellness & Spa.
What Causes GI Problems?
Numerous chronic or acute medical conditions can lead to unpleasant GI symptoms. Examples include:
- Food intolerances and allergies
- (Parasites (giardia, tapeworm, H. pylori, etc.)
- Ulcerative colitis, diverticulitis, and irritable bowel syndrome
- Crohn’s disease or celiac disease
- Gastritis and gastric ulcers
- Liver problems
- Gallstones
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- Hemorrhoids and other rectal problems
- Pancreatitis
- Leaky Gut
To determine the cause of GI distress, your practitioner reviews your medical history. They ask you about symptoms and may recommend blood, urine, stool, imaging, or non-invasive diagnostic tests to determine the cause of your symptoms and establish the best treatment.
If you’re suffering from GI problems, your healthcare provider might consider H Pylori as the culprit.
Helicobacter or H Pylori is a bacterium that causes chronic stomach inflammation or gastritis and is a common cause of stomach ulcers. Often there are no early symptoms. Recent studies show people with H pylori are six times more likely to get stomach cancer.
Symptoms of H Pylori can include:
- Burning pain in your stomach
- Frequently feeling sick to the stomach (nausea)
- Loss of appetite
- Frequent burping
- Sudden, sharp abdominal pain
- Weight loss
- Vomiting
- Bloody or black stools
At Xbody Health Wellness, and Spa, we strive to provide the quick and painless results to test for H Pylori through a 15-minute breath test.
What Is The Treatment For GI Disorders?
The treatment for maximizing gut health that’s right for you depends on the type and severity of your symptoms. Your practitioner might recommend one or more of the following:
Dietary changes
Sometimes eliminating foods you’re sensitive or allergic to helps relieve GI symptoms and restores gut health. Food sensitivities are reactions to foods that are reactions triggered by the digestive system that contribute to various problems including fatigue, brain-fog, skin rashes, acne, constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating, asthma, diabetes, weight gain, and more. Our goal is to identify food intolerances and sensitivities by utilizing comprehensive blood work analysis.
Dietary supplements
Taking dietary supplements, such as probiotics or fiber supplements, may help improve gut health and reduce or eliminate unpleasant GI symptoms. Your doctor lets you know which supplements best suit your needs.
Medications
Your doctor might recommend you take over-the-counter or prescription medicines to help relieve gas, bloating, heartburn, constipation, or other GI disorder symptoms.
Xbody Health, Wellness, & Spa’s approach to digestive health is very personalized, but typically includes three key parts: assessment, individualized treatment and the creation of maintenance strategies. There’s no cookie-cutter prescription to heal chronic GI problems. Everyone’s gut is different, with a unique mix of various microbes and food tolerances.
Contact us to schedule an appointment to learn more about optimizing gut health.