by Gabi Giacomin
There are no bad bacteria in your gut
When speaking with Dr Henry Butt from Bioscreen a few weeks ago he told me “there are no bad bacteria in your gut”. I always thought there were. Isn’t that why we take antibiotics to kill the bad bacteria? According to Dr Butt it seems the idea of ‘killing bad bacteria’ to improve our health is an out-of-date concept. Everything in the gut is sacred. We don’t want to get rid of microbes, we want to maintain diversity and keep all species in balance. A better treatment approach is to compare species overgrowth with undergrowth and find balance.
You need to aim for balance among microbes in the gut
Dr Butt told me another interesting thing: “what you need to do is aim for balance in the gut, for example, if there are low levels of certain species, there will always be opportunistic species that want to fill that space”. Candida is commonly referred to as an ‘opportunistic’ yeast, but its not the only one. Many microbes will strive for dominance when presented with an opportunity. Research suggests that even after high-dose extended-treatment with multiple antibiotics for Clostridium difficile, 65% of patients will have a relapse; “Reoccurrence is associated with a low diversity microbiome.” It’s the same with Urinary Tract Infections. Lactobacillus probiotics are replacing antibiotics as a method of treating UTI’s. This is because if you have a deficiency of Lactobacillus in your gut you will have a reoccurence of infection until you increase the numbers of these beneficial bacteria. So, we are starting to get the idea. Encourage diversity to prevent overgrowth.
Amino Acids + Vitamins feed bacteria
This got me thinking. With the right probiotics we can improve gut diversity? Did you know many species of bacteria don’t come in a bottle from the shops. We need to find alternative ways of feeding them. Amino acids, vitamins, supplements and foods feed each strain of bacteria in your gut. And they aren’t what you would first think of; they are specific foods designed to feed individual species.
What is so good about Comprehensive Stool Testing?
Naturopaths subscribe to the Hippocratic Oath that “All disease begins in the gut”. Science supports this theory today with vast amounts of research looking to the gut for answers to our health issues; from hypothyroidism to obesity, PANDAS, depression, insomnia – it all begins and ends in the gut.
Working with clients who have Down Syndrome and addressing gene over expression using TNI is a crucial first step in any treatment programme. Secondary to this is gut healing. An Organic Acids Test/ Hair Mineral test/ Basic pathology test etc. will improve after you treat the gut. That’s why I rank it at the top.
Comprehensive stool testing gives us a detailed description of whether our gut is thriving in balance or struggling in disharmony. Using antimicrobials to selectively target bacterial overgrowth alongside amino acids, vitamins, herbs, food and probiotics to target undergrowth, we can achieve a state of harmony in the gut which impacts our physical, mental, emotional, intellectual state of being.
If you would like to have a Comprehensive Stool test done, you can make an appointment for an Initial Consultation to get your Stool Test Kit. When your results become available, a Comprehensive Programme will be designed based on your unique Microbiome Profile and you can start the journey to vibrant health.
Listed here are our Comprehensive Stool Test recommendations:
Australia
SmartGut $330AUD – sample kit available from a practitioner/ results explained to practitioner by laboratory
Bioscreen $446AUD – sample kit authorised by a practitioner/ results explained to practitioner by laboratory
US
Ubiome ‘SmartGut’ free with health insurance – practitioner orientated results/ no practitioner authority required/ no consultation with laboratory **** Note ***** they will not do this test on children under 18 years**** adults who wish to order test without Dr consent click the option “I would like my SmartGut request information sent to a physician for review” on the doctor screen.
Great Plains Stool Analysis – $375USD – sample kit authorised by a practitioner/ results explained to practitioner by laboratory
Genova ‘GI Effects’ Stool Analysis – @$507USD – sample kit authorised by a practitioner/results explained to practitioner by laboratory
Global
Medivere Microbiome Testkit – Euro 120 – can be purchased online, comes with report in English or German
Ubiome ‘Explorer’ $89 – $399USD – very comprehensive raw data report with dietary recommendations/ available globally/ no practitioner authority required/ no practitioner consultation from laboratory
Bookings with Naturopath Gabi Giacomin can be made here: www.theconsciouspod.com
