Leaky gut? Catch all term??

[Courtney Bush]

So as I understand it, " leaky gut" can have many different symptoms - so how exactly do you know if that is something you are suffering from? I guess the reason why I'm really putting this out there is because I'm starting to feel a little discouraged on day 23 of my Whole30.... I still have this bloated feeling in my stomach and at the risk of beginning way TMI, have some bathroom issues and horrible smelling gas... Too much protein?? Before going paleo 6 mos. ago and eating a SAD full of crap, I never thought I had food sensitivities or allergies... Actually just the opposite! If anything I would have been one of those " iron stomach" people... So fast forward w30 day 23, I just expected to be feeling light and loosing weight like crazy! Any thoughts/ideas on how to break through this wall? Are nuts really the enemy??

[Moluv]

I think leaky gut is more common than anyone knows at the moment- and yes, the symptoms cover such a wide range- it could be anything- but basically your body starts attacking itself (that's autoimmunity) and people can have a mild case of that for DECADES before it becomes serious enough to be diagnosed as one of the major ones. I've been doing w30 since end of January and have some really good stretches and some bad stretches- my bad stretches always involve something forbidden on the AIP or IBS protocols, so today is my first official day of AIP. I spent a lot of time reading on the Internet by googling "paleo and autoimmune" and re- reading ISWF chapter 12, and what I found out was very eye opening.

And long story short, for some people, yes, nuts really ARE the enemy.

[Tom Denham]

Leaky gut is a good description of what may happen inside of us if we are especially sensitive to some foods or eat a lot of troublesome foods. It is not a fully accepted diagnostic term. But your troubles don't really depend on the term. So you are having some bloat, loose stools, and bad gas?

It is difficult to chew too much protein. However, you might have some difficulty digesting protein and fat. You might want to try taking a digestive enzyme like Now Foods Super Enzymes for a while and see if it helps. If your body does not have all the digestive enzymes it needs, you could get an upset stomach, bloat, gas, etc. Taking enzymes might not be a life long need. Most people adjust after a period of time and can stop taking enzymes.

Many people eat lots more nuts when they go Paleo and nuts can be stressful in the gut. It might help to stop eating nuts and seeds for a while and see if you improve.

To go further with troubleshooting your situation, we would need to see a log of what you are eating for a few days. Some foods produce more gas than others. High gas foods include broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, etc.

[notacommittee]

I still have this bloated feeling in my stomach and at the risk of beginning way TMI, have some bathroom issues and horrible smelling gas... Too much protein?? Before going paleo 6 mos. ago and eating a SAD full of crap, I never thought I had food sensitivities or allergies... Actually just the opposite! If anything I would have been one of those " iron stomach" people... So fast forward w30 day 23, I just expected to be feeling light and loosing weight like crazy! Any thoughts/ideas on how to break through this wall? Are nuts really the enemy??

You sound a lot like me. I used to be like that too...could eat just about anything and feel great (I joked that I was the "goat" of the family as opposed to my vegan sister and cholesterol-fearing dad). Then I started doing a more Paleo diet about a year ago and suddenly I looked pregnant all the time from the gas and bloating I seriously recommend that you look into FODMAPs. They're a class of veggies that cause a lot of people digestive problems and if you're eating more veggies on a W30 your intake might have gone up a lot. I know it seems restrictive but it really helped me a lot and I'm finding that I can add some of them back in now that I've taken them out for a while.

[Joey]

I think elimination/reintroduction is the best education, but if you're really curious or your doctor requires it, you can test for leaky gut. The test requires ingestion of sugars, so not an option while you're on a W30. I really can't say how accurate it is, but I've done it a couple of times and and am glad I did, if for no other reason than it's nice to have confirmation that all this bone broth isn't for naught! But there are a lot of other things besides intestinal permeability that can cause digestive problems, so I would warn against it as a catchall diagnosis.

Tom has a good point that people tend to increase their nut consumption when they go Paleo (or raw vegan, but that'sfor a different board). I never thought I had a problem with nuts, but I overdid it when traveliing (so much more portable than a steak) and now I can't even have small amounts yet.