Gut Health Doctors Maryland

Did you know that what goes in your gut can directly affect your mood? 70% of our immune cells are in our gut.

There are actually more nerve cells in the overall digestive system than in the peripheral nervous system. Major neurotransmitters found in the brain including serotonin, dopamine, glutamate, norepinephrine, and nitric oxide are in the gut as well. Poor digestive health can lead to mood disorders and other neurological disorders.

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Your Gut Microbiome

There are trillions of microorganisms and skin. These microscopic bacteria, fungi, viruses, and other living things are also called microbes and a good amount of those live in your intestines, in particular the large intestine pocket called the cecum. 

Within this microbiome, thousands of different species of bacteria live and each of them plays a different part in how our bodies function. These bacteria due to their home in your intestines play a part in the digestive system. They are paramount when dealing with absorbing and using nutrients. They play a role in everything from your metabolism to your immune health, to your body weight.

Though they have a huge effect on the way our body systems work, that is not the only place the gut microbiome plays a role. It can also affect cognitive functions and mental health. There are a lot of different factors that can play a role in how many bacteria and what type are hosted within our gut microbiome. Just like with our treatment plans you have to look at everybody's gut microbiome as a unique feature of them.

This uniqueness comes from the uniqueness of everyone's gut microbiome comes from the development process. The gut bacteria Biome begins to form very early in life some even say while still in the womb. Once you have been born though many things influence the types of bacteria that you begin to develop and grow in your gut. 

Factors that could play a role and the creation of your gut microbiome are your parent’s health and genetics, the type of birth (vaginal or cesarean), and if you are breastfed. Your gut microbiome though as you age continues to be affected by your environment and lifestyle. As you age things like genetics, diet, stress, and illness all can affect the health of your gut microbiome. 

Overall this microbiome weighs up to about 5 pounds and functions as an extra organ that helps our body function properly as long as it is healthy.

Why is Gut Health So Important?

Gut health is important. After all, the microbiome plays an important role in the gut-brain axis as well as other vital organs like the heart and pituitary gland. 

The gut and the body's nervous system communicate by utilizing several different pathways and nerves. The gut microbiome is responsible also for helping with the control of inflammation and the creation of different hormones and compounds that can alter brain health.

Gut health also plays a role in controlling reactions to stress. Along with having the ability to help control these reactions the gut microbiome through its relationship to the hypothalamus pituitary adrenal gland also plays a role in energy creation and thyroid functionality. That means that if it is imbalanced one can have problems with fatigue, and even how effective their immune system works to stave off infections.

Speaking of infections your gut microbiome partners with your immune system as well to help fight off infections. The guide itself contains a thin wall and beyond that are cells that your immune system uses to tell what is in your gut. These cells are an important part of your body's process to have proper responses to bad bacteria. 

The gut microbiome when healthy plays a vital role in all of those as well as in your heart health and skin health. It is the partner to your immune system and many other systems that maintain your body's proper functionality.

Signs Your Gut Health is Not Good

Just like with every system in your body your gut can find itself out of balance. This is what we call dysbiosis and can be caused by a ton of different things. Some of the most common reasons for your gut microbiome to find itself disrupted or out of balance are:

• stress
• medication
• poor diet
• illness
• being overweight

Identifying whether you have poor gut health can be tricky as many of the symptoms are tied to other health concerns. But if you have any of the following signs the doctors at Shakthi Health and Wellness could use their integrative medical practices to develop a treatment plan to get you back on your path to Wellness. 

Here are some of the signs that could mean that your gut health is not so good:

• Those with an unhealthy gut may experience stomach distress. This includes everything from gas to Constipation to diarrhea. This is because the unbalanced gut has difficulties processing food and getting rid of waste.
• Craving sugar incessantly could be a problem. This could further exacerbate the imbalance in your gut because too much sugar can potentially kill off good bacteria and reduce the diversity in the gut could potentially kill off good bacteria and decrease the diversity of that bacteria in your gut. This will lead to inflammation in your body.
• Sudden weight gain or weight loss without any change in your eating habits or physical activity levels could be a sign of an imbalance in your gut. This often leads to your body's ability to regulate blood sugar, store fat, and absorb the nutrients from your food being hindered.
• If you find yourself having trouble sleeping or are constantly tired your gut microbiome may have a part in this.
• Food intolerance is a big sign that your gut is imbalanced. Food allergies are caused by your immune system and when you begin to have food intolerances it is widely accepted that this is due to poor bacteria quality in your gut microbiome.

Treatments to Improve or Repair Your Gut Health

The most important way that you can improve or repair your gut health is through diet. Our doctors will create a treatment plan that is focused on high-fiber foods like whole grains and cruciferous vegetables. Finding ways to use a diet to help promote a healthier gut is the very first step but it is not the only thing you can do to treat an unhealthy gut microbiome.

On top of a dietary plan, our doctors will also guide you through other important complementary and alternative treatments that when working together with the traditional treatment of dietary change can have a huge impact on your gut health. Here are some of the other ways that you can improve or repair your gut health:

• High levels of stress are hard on every aspect and system of your body. And that includes your gut. So utilizing stress management and mindfulness techniques can be a great tool to help with your gut health. Things like meditating, the use of essential oils and other herbal remedies, or even yoga can all help.

• Sleep is so very important to the proper functioning of every single system in our body. By not getting enough sleep you can be really affecting your gut health.

• One way to improve your overall health is by making smart choices especially when eating. Sometimes when you're eating quickly that can't happen. That means eating slower could potentially help reduce any digestive distress and that is always going to improve your gut health.

• Hydration is key in every aspect of your body's systems functioning properly. But in regards to getting healthy, drinking enough water will help diversify the bacteria. This does depend on the type of water you're drinking but the more water you have the more different types of bacteria you will house within your microbiome. Along with this, staying hydrated helps other processes like your bowel movements be more regular and that is always going to keep the waste and toxins from growing within your gut microbiome.

• Prebiotics and probiotics can also be super helpful prebiotics and probiotics can also be helpful as a way to improve your gut health. Prebiotics are helped prior biotics are foods that can help grow good bacteria and probiotics are actual live good bacteria.