If you want youthful, clear, glowing skin, you must not overlook gut health.
A recent study showed that SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), a condition where the wrong bacteria overgrows in the small intestine, is ten times more likely in people with acne than in healthy control groups. The best part is, correction of SIBO lead to marked improvement.
Research has also shown that skin manifestations are more likely in people with chronic digestive disorders such as ulcerative colitis and crohn’s. It’s also interesting to note that 25% of celiac patients have dermatitis.
A Russian study even showed that 54% of acne patients had significant alterations to their normal gut flora (the healthy, probiotic bacteria).
So how does poor gut health affect the skin?
Intestinal permeability (a.k.a. “leaky gut”) causes both local (GI) and systemic (all over) inflammation.
How do you know if you have leaky gut? If you eat what I call the ‘Standard American Diet’ (SAD) then you likely have leaky gut. Or if you have any GI symptoms like gas, bloating, constipation or diarrhea then you have leaky gut.
So topical creams and face washes may help some, but to really get to the root of the issue you must fix your gut. But how? Here are some simple steps you can take to start that process. Pay close attention to # 4.
- Clean up your diet- stop eating foods that contribute to leaky gut like gluten, dairy and processed sugary foods.
- Sleep- get 7-8 hours of sleep each night. This helps all organ systems heal and repair.
- Hydrate- drink half your body weight in ounces of water each day.
- Address chronic underlying infections- If you experience regular gas, bloating, constipation or diarrhea you may likely have one of the following microbial GI imbalances. SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), fungal overgrowth, parasites (my wife had two and once we cleared them up her acne’s been gone for good) and GI inflammation all contribute to leaky gut. Leaky gut can’t be completely fixed until these stealth infections are addressed. The best way to find them is through a GI Map stool test followed by an herbal antimicrobial protocol from a well trained functional medicine practitioner (me :).
- Nutritional support- the right nutritional support for the GI as well as assuring healthy liver detoxification and essential fatty acids are important for good skin health.
Here’s the key takeaway to all of this. If you have any GI symptoms or brain fog (the brains form of leaky gut) along with skin breakouts of any kind, then you must address your leaky gut.
If your current diet hasn’t helped, then you’re likely still eating something that’s causing GI inflammation or you may have an underlying chronic infection, at which time I’d recommend doing the GI Map stool test.
Stop guessing and test. Fast track to optimal GI functoin and clear, beautiful skin.
Click here if you have questions or would like to speak to me about how functional medicine could change your gut and skin for the better.
