This test gives us insight into the health of your gut microbiota, helping us to understand the root cause of your digestive symptoms. It provides biomarkers indicating how balanced your gut bacteria is, if you are properly digesting and absorbing your food, and if there is inflammation and/or immune system dysregulation due to diet and lifestyle habits. Based on these results we may recommend a 5R protocol that uses diet, lifestyle and supplementation to rebalance your gut, reduce digestive symptoms and improve nutrient absorption and overall health.
Getting to the Root Cause of Symptoms
While the symptoms of 100’s of gut diseases are literally the same (bloating, gassiness, diarrhea, constipation, abdominal pain), they may be caused by very different mechanisms that require a specialized approach.
That’s why it’s dangerous to mask the warning symptoms with over-the-counter remedies like antacids, laxatives or antidiarrheals – without investigating the true root causes.
In the 1990’s, we made incredible advances in understanding that our health is deeply linked to our microbiome: The microbiome is a collection of microbes including bacteria, fungi, protozoa and viruses that live on and inside the human body.
The bacteria in our gut microbiome help digest our food, protect our immune system, fight harmful bacteria or viruses, and produce important nutrients like B12, thiamine (B1) and riboflavin.
They also produce important neurotransmitters that allow for proper brain function. This is why people with poor gut health oftentimes report brain fog.
Unfortunately, these new advances in science take around 17 years to find their way into conventional doctors’ practices… so that’s why you may be better served by a functional medicine provider like our team at Shine Functional Health.
