Gut Health
Our health is not just determined by what we eat, but also by how we digest our food, absorb nutrients, and eliminate waste. Various health issues can interfere with these crucial processes, signaling underlying internal problems. Conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, intestinal polyps, Crohn’s disease, acid reflux, bloating, heartburn, flatulence, SIBO, parasitic or bacterial infections, yeast overgrowth, constipation, diarrhea, and general digestive disturbances are all examples of this.
Digestive health problems are becoming more common, with antacid medications now being the third most frequently prescribed drug. In fact, one in two people experience some form of gastrointestinal dysfunction, which may range from something as simple as incomplete bowel emptying to something as serious as colon cancer. This makes it crucial to care for your digestive health, not only for digestive reasons but for your overall well-being.
Recent research has revealed that the digestive system is far more complex than we once thought. Beyond its digestive role, the gut plays a key part in immune function—about 70% of our immune system resides in the digestive tract—and also affects the brain, with roughly 90% of our neurotransmitters, including serotonin (our "happy hormone"), produced in the gut. This connection is why gut health is fundamental to our overall health.
The term "Irritable Bowel Syndrome" (IBS) is often used to label patients, but it's important to remember that IBS is not a diagnosis in itself—it's a symptom of an underlying issue. At our practice, we focus on identifying the root cause of your gut issues. Through targeted functional tests, we aim to uncover why your gut is behaving this way and work with you to develop a plan to resolve the symptoms and restore balance.
Function Testing Options:
- Complete Microbiome Mapping - designed to assess a patient’s microbiome from a single stool sample, with particular attention to microbes that cause disease or that disrupt normal microbial balance and contribute to perturbations in the GI flora and contribute to illness. The panel is a comprehensive collection of microbial targets as well as immune, digestive & metabolic markers. It screens for pathogenic bacteria, commensal bacteria, opportunistic pathogens, fungi, viruses, and parasites.
- SIBO Breath Test – to assess for small intestinal bacterial overgrowth
- PCR Stool Multiplex – to test for the presence of parasites or other pathogenic bacteria
- Coeliac Gene Test – to identify possible coeliac disease and gluten sensitivity
- Helicobactor pylori – to assess for H.pylori commonly associated with reflux, indigestion, ulcers
- Orgain Acid Test - measures the overflow or build-up of intermediate organic acid products in the urine which gives an overview of several major systems in the body including intestinal dysbiosis, energy production, nutrient deficiencies, cofactor requirements and neurotransmitter metabolism.
- Hair metal and mineral analysis - measures nutrient and toxic metal content of hair. A wide range of metals and minerals can impact your gut health and be measured in one sample to provide status of cellular activity and nutrient metabolism. Every physiological function in the body is catalysed by minerals.
