If you’re experiencing chronic diarrhea, nutritional deficiencies, poor immune system, headaches, excessive fatigue, or other chronic issues, you may be suffering from leaky gut syndrome. The good news is that you can do something about it.

Did you know the lining of your digestive tract is only a single cell layer in thickness? The cells, called enterocytes, form a barrier between your bloodstream, your immune system, and all the unwanted bacteria and toxins that seek to enter your system as passengers with food, drink, and medication.

“These cells are cemented together with proteins called tight junctions, which form a protective barrier that ensures that everything you eat is properly processed by the enterocyte cells in a way that your body can handle without getting sick,” writes Robin Berzin, MD.

“Things like chronic stress, poor nutrition, bacterial infections, and autoimmune disorders can all cause gaps in this protective barrier. When these proteins, or tight junctions, break down, you get ‘Leaky Gut.’”

Leaky gut syndrome can lead to a whole host of symptoms ... and they vary from one person to the next. Common symptoms include food sensitivities, diarrhea, abdominal pain, and bloating.

There are also non-digestive-related symptoms such as body pain, insomnia, brain fog, hormonal imbalances, and even autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis.

To repeat, however: leaky guts can be healed. The key is to strengthen the permeability of your intestines and eliminate anything that could be encouraging the deterioration of your gut, and/or causing unwanted bacteria and toxins to enter your internal world. 

The greatest challenge of leaky gut is that most doctors aren’t specifically taught to diagnose and treat it. Instead, many of them target symptoms with medication and far more invasive procedures.

But if you understand the signs and symptoms of leaky gut and how it happens, you can put a stop to it. Here are five essential tips.

Anything that could attack the sensitive cells which line your gut should be avoided. This includes processed foods, gluten, sugar, GMO crops, alcohol, and even dairy products. For the best results, strip the items from these categories from your diet completely for 90 days. After that, try to avoid consuming them in large quantities.

Although you want to stay away from anything that could harm you and/or wreak specific havoc on your digestive system, there are plenty of foods you should aim to consume more of.

The following are excellent options for improving digestive health: broccoli, cabbage, kale, potatoes, carrots, squash, kimchi, coconut, blueberries, kiwi, lemon, chia seeds, sunflower seeds, buckwheat, gluten-free oats, avocado, coconut oil, salmon, herring, lean cuts of chicken, yogurt, bone broth, tea, peanuts, and almonds … and these are just a few!

It’s not just unhealthy foods that hobble your system. Chronic stress hormones will also attack and break down those tight junctions that hold your digestive tract together. Furthermore, this diverts blood from your system, which can lead to further complications.

The best solution is to limit your stress through exercise, meditation, and simplification of personal responsibilities and obligations. 

It’s not enough to do away with the problem foods and eat healthily. Many people with leaky guts have such damaged tracts that they need a leaky gut repair supplement to heal the lining proactively.

The key is to look for a supplement that includes natural ingredients. GutAssist is a physician-formulated non-laxative supplement without any fillers, binders, and additives. It’s formulated with a special blend of glutamine, arabinogalactan, licorice root extract, and aloe leaf extract.

Believe it or not, certain kinds of exercise can actually improve your gut health. In particular, you want to focus on cardio.

Multiple studies suggest that cardio exercise improves the transport of oxygen through the body and digestive tract, which promotes better diversity and activity of gut microbes. (This includes the fatty acid n-butyrate, which is responsible for healing your GI tract.)

Aim to get at least 150 minutes of heart-rate-elevating physical activity per week. This means roughly 20 to 25 minutes a day.

You don’t have to live your life in a chronic state of discomfort. By understanding leaky gut syndrome and how to treat it, you can attain relief from its many unwanted side effects and symptoms. And as a result, you’ll be free to live your life on your terms!