Lactose intolerance, food reactions, and having a “sensitive stomach” are some of the most common things I see in my 1:1 practice, and I get great results with these clients because of what I’m sharing in this post. Read on!
Many people with sensitive stomachs can't quite pinpoint what it is that sets their tummy off. Sometimes it's greasy food, but it's not always greasy food. Sometimes it's dairy, but it's not always dairy. Sometimes it's pasta, but it's not always pasta…
You know the drill.
When symptoms seem random it's hard to actually know what's causing issues and how to make them stop.
Here's a few things I think about when my clients are dealing with food reactions and stressful, unpredictable digestion.
1. Full spectrum digestive support.
When anything (and everything!) seems to set off your digestion, it might not be the food's fault. There might be an issue with digestion in general. Diarrhea shortly after meals, feeling full really easily, bloating and burping within an hour after a meal can all be signs of low stomach acid production. Feeling sick, loose stools, or bathroom urgency after greasy meals can be a sign of not enough bile flowing from the gallbladder, which is particularly common for women (I touch on the estrogen-gallbladder connection in last week's newsletter-turned-blog). The right digestive supports can go a LONG way in feeling good after meals, without the stress about how your stomach might feel or where the nearest bathroom is. Here's what you can try: a dropperful digestive bitters before meals to prep your digestive tract before you eat.
2. Testing food sensitivities and gut imbalances
Is it hard to pinpoint whether it's greasy foods or dairy causing problems, because it's actually something sneaky like BLACK PEPPER causing big reactions? I would never ask a client to eliminate black pepper, lemon, or almonds as a first step, but when we run food sensitivity testing we can find all sorts of surprise reactivities in your every day diet. There isn't a good “try at home” option for this, since by it's very nature you're not getting results with DIY things and are ready to get better results using functional labs.
Testing for gut imbalances is even MORE important than food sensitivities. Yes. It’s so much more valuable! Food reactions are a symptom of gut inflammation. We’ve got to find the source of the inflammation. This is something I wish was more widely accessible and used by PCPs and GI doctors alike. A comprehensive gut panel, like a GI MAP, will tell you if there are bacterial overgrowths, yeast, or gut infections like H. Pylori. These are all things that can lead to digestive reactions like lactose intolerance, GERD, SIBO (small intestine bacterial overgrowth), and more.
3. Eliminating common “intolerance” foods.
Since food sensitivity testing can only measure IMMUNE reactions, it can be helpful to test common intolerances with a 4-6 week trial elimination. This is where I see clients get enormous results, especially with eliminating gluten. A client I started working with in September had been dealing with years of 5-6 loose bowel movements per day, and lots of stress and anxiety around travel, road trips and the workplace because of bathroom proximity. We decided to try going gluten free, which was HARD given they were already vegetarian and had severe lactose intolerance. Within a week their digestion had made dramatic improvements to 1-2 formed healthy bowel movements per day. Then we're well on the way to healing the digestive tract enough to bring dairy back in. We don't always catch gluten reactivity in testing, which is why this kind of trial can be so valuable!
There is SO much I want to share about digestion and food reactions. I'll leave you with this - I wish everyone who had a “sensitive” stomach knew there were other options out there. It doesn't have to be Imodium, Miralax, and omeprezole/Tums for life. If you’re interested in learning more about working with me, you can get on my calendar here!