What's Causing Your IBS And How To Heal Your Gut

This episode is sponsored by InsideTracker and Athletic Greens. Believe it or not, the surface area of your small intestine, which is where your food is absorbed, is the size of a tennis court. Your small intestine is also the home of your gut-immune system, which accounts for about 60 percent of your total immune system. The lining of this sophisticated system is just one cell layer away from a toxic sewer where all of the bacteria and undigested food particles live in your gut. If that lining breaks down—from stress; too many antibiotics or anti-inflammatory drugs like aspirin or ibuprofen; steroids; intestinal infections; a low-fiber, high-sugar diet; alcohol; and more—your immune system will be exposed to foreign particles from food, bacteria, and other microbes. This, in turn, creates havoc that can lead to an irritable bowel and other system-wide problems including allergies, arthritis, and autoimmune and mood disorders. In today’s episode of a new series called Health Bites, I discuss how to heal irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and upregulate your gut health, which is at the forefront of Americans’ most common health complaints. This episode is sponsored by InsideTracker and Athletic Greens. InsideTracker is a personalized health and wellness platform like no other. Right now they’re offering my community 20% off at insidetracker.com/drhyman. Right now when you purchase AG1 from Athletic Greens, you will receive 10 FREE travel packs with your first purchase by visiting athleticgreens.com/hyman. Here are more details from the episode (audio version / Apple Subscriber version): What is irritable bowel syndrome? (4:05 / 1:12) Symptoms of IBS (4:30 / 1:35) Causes of IBS (4:54 / 2:00) Identifying food allergies as the potential cause of IBS (8:00 / 5:11) How gut imbalance leads to IBS (9:36 / 6:44) Diagnostic testing to access gut health (12:14 / 9:25) What is SIBO, how does it cause IBS, and how is it diagnosed? (15:20 / 12:29) Assessing if yeast overgrowth is causing your gut issues (15:58 / 13:05) Treating yeast overgrowth and SIBO (16:40 / 13:50) Strategies for rebooting the gut and restoring optimal gut health (17:44 / 14:55)