Microbiota & leaky gut

Taking care of your intestinal flora

Studies link its composition to metabolic diseases as well as arthritis and even depression. ^1,2,3,4,5

A leaky gut means a damaged intestinal barrier that can allow particles to pass into the bloodstream, some of which can trigger the immune system. ⁶

Possible symptoms:

• Slowed metabolism, metabolic syndrome & metabolic disorders such as type 2 diabetes and may contribute to the associated low-grade inflammation. ¹
• Lack of energy & migraine
• Joint & Chronic Pain ⁷
• Bloating, food intolerances ⁸ & irritable bowel syndrome ⁹
• Skin Problems ¹⁰

Possible causes:

• Unbalanced intestinal flora
• Medicines (antibiotics among others) ¹¹
• Gluten, grains, GMOs, sugar (which feeds bad bacteria) ¹²
• Accumulation of toxins from chemicals (pesticides and other contaminants)

To repair leaky gut

Power supply:

• Limit or even remove possible major irritants (grains, gluten, sugar, dairy products), antibiotics and hormones in food, pesticides (GMOs) ^13,14
• Polyphenols are now known for their beneficial effects on intestinal flora. ^15,16 Furthermore, a healthy intestinal flora helps prevent metabolic diseases and, in principle, also prevents the associated increase in intestinal permeability.

Supplements:

• Glutamine is essential in an anti-inflammatory process ^17,18 as is zinc, as well as for tissue repair ¹⁹
• Collagen, ²⁰ certain amino acids. It was shown in this study that the use of a daily 20 g collagen peptide supplement can reduce bloating and improve mild digestive symptoms in otherwise healthy adult women, in the absence of any other dietary or lifestyle interventions. ²¹ A review focused on dietary interventions for the treatment of inflammatory bowel disease, particularly the role of dietary peptides* and amino acids in reducing inflammation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis in the intestine, as well as recent advances in the cellular mechanisms responsible for their anti-inflammatory activity. Dietary peptides and amino acids have therefore been shown to modulate intestinal immune functions and influence inflammatory responses, and may be useful as alternative or adjunctive treatments in inflammatory bowel disease. ²²
• Probiotics ²³ & fibers ²⁴ (to nourish the flora & help the growth of good bacteria)
• Digestive enzymes to ensure digestion ²⁵
• Vitamin D ²⁶ & Omega 3 ²⁷ remain basic essentials

*Peptides are found in hydrolyzed collagen.

References:

1. Pascale A, Marchesi N, Marelli C, Coppola A, Luzi L, Govoni S, Giustina A, Gazzaruso C. Microbiota and metabolic diseases. Endocrine. 2018 Sep;61(3):357-371. doi:10.1007/s12020-018-1605-5. Epub 2018 May 2. PMID: 29721802.

2. Bischoff SC, Barbara G, Buurman W, Ockhuizen T, Schulzke JD, Serino M, Tilg H, Watson A, Wells JM. Intestinal permeability--a new target for disease prevention and therapy. BMC Gastroenterol. 2014 Nov 18; 14:189. doi:10.1186/s12876-014-0189-7. PMID: 25407511; PMCID: PMC4253991.

3. Barandouzi ZA, Starkweather AR, Henderson WA, Gyamfi A, Cong XS. Altered Composition of Gut Microbiota in Depression: A Systematic Review. Front Psychiatry. 2020 Jun 10;11:541. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00541. PMID: 32587537; PMCID: PMC7299157.

4. Appleton J. The Gut-Brain Axis: Influence of Microbiota on Mood and Mental Health. Integra Med (Encinitas). 2018 Aug;17(4):28-32. PMID: 31043907; PMCID: PMC6469458.

5. Maes M, Kubera M, Leunis JC. The gut-brain barrier in major depression: intestinal mucosal dysfunction with an increased translocation of LPS from gram negative enterobacteria (leaky gut) plays a role in the inflammatory pathophysiology of depression. Neuro Endocrinol Lett. 2008 Feb;29(1):117-24. PMID: 18283240.

6. Di Vincenzo F, Del Gaudio A, Petito V, Lopetuso LR, Scaldaferri F. Gut microbiota, intestinal permeability, and systemic inflammation: a narrative review. Intern Emerg Med. 2023 Jul 28. doi: 10.1007/s11739-023-03374-w. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37505311.

7. Pak R, Cho M, Pride K, Abd-Elsayed A. The Gut Microbiota and Chronic Pain. Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2024 Feb 12. doi: 10.1007/s11916-024-01221-x. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 38345694.

8. Chen T, Liu X, Ma L, He W, Li W, Cao Y, Liu Z. Food allergens affect the intestinal tight junction permeability in inducing intestinal food allergy in rats. Asian Pac J Allergy Immunol. 2014 Dec;32(4):345-53. doi: 10.12932/AP0443.32.4.2014. PMID: 25543046.

9. Krisztina Gecse, Richárd Róka, Teréz Séra, András Rosztóczy, Anita Annaházi, Ferenc Izbéki, Ferenc Nagy, Tamás Molnár, Zoltán Szepes, László Pávics, Lionel Bueno, Tibor Wittmann; Leaky Gut in Patients with Diarrhea-Predominant Irritable Bowel Syndrome and Inactive Ulcerative Colitis. Digestion 1 January 2012; 85 (1): 40–46. https://doi.org/10.1159/000333083

10. Łoś-Rychalska E, Gołębiewski M, Grzybowski T, Rogalla-Ładniak U, Krogulska A. The microbiome and its impact on food allergy and atopic dermatitis in children. Advances in Dermatology and Allergology/Postępy Dermatologii i Alergologii. 2020;37(5):641-650. doi:10.5114/ada.2019.90120.

11. DaFonte TM, Valitutti F, Kenyon V, Locascio JJ, Montuori M, Francavilla R, Passaro T, Crocco M, Norsa L, Piemontese P, Baldassarre M, Fasano A, Leonard MM; CD-GEMM Study Group. Zonulin as a Biomarker for the Development of Celiac Disease. Pediatrics. 2024 Jan 1;153(1):e2023063050. doi: 10.1542/peds.2023-063050. PMID: 38062791; PMCID: PMC10754681.

12. Pessoa J, Belew GD, Barroso C, Egas C, Jones JG. The Gut Microbiome Responds Progressively to Fat and/or Sugar-Rich Diets and Is Differentially Modified by Dietary Fat and Sugar. Nutrients. 2023 Apr 27;15(9):2097. doi:10.3390/nu15092097. PMID: 37432234; PMCID: PMC10180990.

13. Singh RK, Chang HW, Yan D, Lee KM, Ucmak D, Wong K, Abrouk M, Farahnik B, Nakamura M, Zhu TH, Bhutani T, Liao W. Influence of diet on the gut microbiome and implications for human health. J Transl Med. 2017 Apr 8;15(1):73. doi:10.1186/s12967-017-1175-y. PMID: 28388917; PMCID: PMC5385025.

14. Khoshbin K, Camilleri M. Effects of dietary components on intestinal permeability in health and disease. Am J Physiol Gastrointest Liver Physiol. 2020 Nov 1;319(5): G589-G608. doi:10.1152/ajpgi.00245.2020. Epub 2020 Sep 9. PMID: 32902315; PMCID: PMC8087346.

^{15. Guglielmetti, S., Bernardi, S., Del Bo', C. et al. Effect of a polyphenol-rich dietary pattern on intestinal permeability and gut and blood microbiomics in older subjects: study protocol of the MaPLE randomized controlled trial. BMC Geriatr 20, 77 (2020).}

^{16. Kumar Singh A, Cabral C, Kumar R, Ganguly R, Kumar Rana H, Gupta A, Rosaria Lauro M, Carbone C, Reis F, Pandey AK. Beneficial Effects of Dietary Polyphenols on Gut Microbiota and Strategies to Improve Delivery Efficiency. Nutrients. 2019 Sep 13;11(9):2216. doi:10.3390/nu11092216. PMID: 31540270; PMCID: PMC6770155.}

^{17. Aleman RS, Moncada M, Aryana KJ. Leaky Gut and the Ingredients That Help Treat It: A Review. Molecules. 2023 Jan 7;28(2):619. doi:10.3390/molecules28020619. PMID: 36677677; PMCID: PMC9862683.}

^{18. Perna S, Alalwan TA, Alaali Z, Alnashaba T, Gasparri C, Infantino V, Hammad L, Riva A, Petrangolini G, Allegrini P, Rondanelli M. The Role of Glutamine in the Complex Interaction between Gut Microbiota and Health: A Narrative Review. Int J Mol Sci. 2019 Oct 22;20(20):5232. doi:10.3390/ijms20205232. PMID: 31652531; PMCID: PMC6834172.}

^{19. Sturniolo GC, Di Leo V, Ferronato A, D'Odorico A, D'Incà R. Zinc supplementation tightens "leaky gut" in Crohn's disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2001 May;7(2):94-8. doi:10.1097/00054725-200105000-00003. PMID: 11383597.}

20. Abrahams M, O'Grady R, Prawitt J. Effect of a Daily Collagen Peptide Supplement on Digestive Symptoms in Healthy Women: 2-Phase Mixed Methods Study. JMIR Form Res. 2022 May 31;6(5):e36339. doi:10.2196/36339. PMID: 35639457; PMCID: PMC9198822.

21. Zhang H, Hu CA, Kovacs-Nolan J, Mine Y. Bioactive dietary peptides and amino acids in inflammatory bowel disease. Amino Acids. 2015 Oct;47(10):2127-41. doi:10.1007/s00726-014-1886-9. Epub 2014 Dec 14. PMID: 25501277.

22. Chen Q, Chen O, Martins IM, Hou H, Zhao X, Blumberg JB, Li B. Collagen peptides ameliorate intestinal epithelial barrier dysfunction in immunostimulatory Caco-2 cell monolayers via enhancing tight junctions. Food Function. 2017 Mar 22;8(3):1144-1151. doi:10.1039/c6fo01347c. PMID: 28174772.

23. Bai AP, Ouyang Q. Probiotics and inflammatory bowel diseases. Postgrad Med J. 2006 Jun;82(968):376-82. doi: 10.1136/pgmj.2005.040899. PMID: 16754706; PMCID: PMC2563748.

24. Requena T, Martínez-Cuesta MC, Peláez C. Diet and microbiota linked in health and disease. Food Function. 2018 Feb 21;9(2):688-704. doi:10.1039/c7fo01820g. PMID: 29410981.

25. Graham DY, Ketwaroo GA, Money ME, Opekun AR. Enzyme therapy for functional bowel disease-like post-prandial distress. J Dig Say. 2018 Nov;19(11):650-656. doi:10.1111/1751-2980.12655. Epub 2018 Sep 21. PMID: 30101562; PMCID: PMC6910206.

26. Bakke D, Sun J. Ancient Nuclear Receptor VDR With New Functions: Microbiome and Inflammation. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2018 May 18;24(6):1149-1154. doi:10.1093/ibd/izy092. PMID: 29718408; PMCID: PMC6148749.

27. Costantini L, Molinari R, Farinon B, Merendino N. Impact of Omega-3 Fatty Acids on the Gut Microbiota. Int J Mol Sci. 2017 Dec 7;18(12):2645. doi:10.3390/ijms18122645. PMID: 29215589; PMCID: PMC5751248.

Maison Jacynthe disclaims all liability. All information contained on this page is not intended to replace justified allopathic treatment or to disregard the expertise of the medical profession. It is up to each individual to take charge of their own health, to inform themselves, and to make the necessary changes to improve their condition. Therapeutic supervision by a qualified health professional is obviously recommended.