Message From The Doctor
Dear Readers,
Greetings all!
If you have a stomach for truth, watch this…
THE BEST VIDEO GOING AROUND! THEY’RE ALL GOING TO JAIL!! (rumble.com)
It will make you sick and hopefully act to spread this.
Have a good week.
David I Minkoff, MD
Are Your Weight Issues Caused by Your Gut Health?
Understanding Gut Problems: Exploring Gut Dysbiosis
“Dysbiosis are abnormal living things in places where they shouldn’t be.”
Patient Testimonial
“Nearly a decade ago Dr Minkoff gave some spot-on advice which was a game-changer in my life. I have now come to Dr Minkoff again due to current life scene and I am again getting exact, correct guidance’s to hit the right targets precisely and get myself operational again. This is THE clinic to turn to for my search for wellness in this modern world of immune challenges, auto immune issues, damages, threats and toxicity. It is THE clinic for anyone who means business in getting back on top of their own health crisis.” – Julia
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The Relationship Between Gut Issues & Weight
Those who suffer with weight issues may be wondering why their diets are not working as well as they would like.
The truth is, weight is an extremely complex issue because the cause of it differs for every individual.
Sometimes people inherit low metabolisms from their family, some people are blessed with high metabolisms, underweight individuals struggle with gaining weight, some develop weight issues over time and others may have deeper underlying root causes such as digestive diseases that cause their weight to fluctuate.
No matter the reasoning behind it, there is always a root cause to weight gain or weight loss, and a lot of it starts with the gut.
During weight gain, our bodies produce good bacteria that are meant to provide us with vitamins, break down food particles, affect how food is digested, and produce chemicals to help you feel full.
The food that is consumed can influence the bacteria within the gut, and if the microbiome is balanced, it can ensure that we maintain a healthy body weight.
However, if it is imbalanced, more energy may be extracted and stored, soon turning into fat and adding extra pounds.
For weight loss, people suffering with chronic diseases may have a hard time with food absorption thus not providing the body with enough nutrients or calories.
While this is an explanation on how the gut can control our metabolisms, there are other underlying causes to weight changes that connect back to different gut issues.
Listed below are the various gut issues that can affect our body weight.
Leaky Gut (Weight Gain)
Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is an endotoxin that comes out of the outer cell wall of bacteria and is prevented from entering into the blood plasma into the intestinal lining.
Sometimes when there is an imbalanced microbiome, this increases permeability within the intestine.
In turn, this allows LPS into the bloodstream and thus triggers an inflammation.
If this happens within the gut, not only will a leaky gut develop, but weight gain will follow suit.
High levels of LPS that comes from gut microbiota triggers metabolic responses associated with obesity and Type 2 Diabetes.
In the long-term, people who suffer from leaky gut will have trouble trying to lose weight because of their destroyed metabolism.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) (Weight Gain or Weight Loss)
IBS is a gut disease that can cause people to both rapidly gain or lose weight.
While it is very common for IBS patients to experience weight loss due to lack of appetite and absorption of nutrients, sometimes the opposite can occur.
In some instances, patients who have IBS will gain weight rather than lose it due to their high intake of carbohydrates.
This chronic disease can make it difficult for people to eat healthy and sometimes soft foods such as macaroni, mashed potatoes, wheat and processed foods are easier for them to ingest and may temporarily lessen the painÂą.
Unfortunately, this leads them to gain weight.
Depending on the health and genetics of each individual patient, the body reactions and weight changes may vary.
Ulcerative Colitis or Crohn’s Disease (Weight Loss)
Both of these autoimmune diseases have weight loss as a huge symptom.
Crohn’s Disease is a specific type of Irritable Bowel Disease that causes inflammation within the digestive tract which can lead to malnourishment, diarrhea, and abdominal pain.
Similarly, Ulcerative Colitis will provide many of the same symptoms, however the inflammation is located more within the colon rather than the intestine.
Both of these autoimmune diseases can connect to an individual’s chronic weight loss.
Due to the severe symptoms of diarrhea, people who suffer from these diseases maintain a lower food intake due to the body’s malabsorption.
Sometimes prescribed medications can worsen the symptoms of Crohn’s or Colitis, which in turn will cause the patient to lose weight at a much faster rate.
Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO) (Weight Loss or Weight Gain)
SIBO is an excessive growth in bacteria located within the small intestine.
Common symptoms include bloating, gas, and nutritional deficiencies.
SIBO can often be caused by other digestive issues such as Crohn’s Disease, and similar to other digestive diseases, it can cause malnutrition which leads to weight loss.
On the other hand, sometimes SIBO can also contribute to weight gain due to a production of methane gasses, which can slow down motility and cause an absorption of more calories.
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) (Weight Gain)
People with GERD may experience frequent heartburn and chronic acid reflux.
The disease is caused by stomach acid or bile traveling through the esophagus and irritating the gut lining. Studies show that those who are overweight are more likely to have GERD.
Others with ideal weights have shown to develop small weight gains due to GERD symptoms.
An article published by Everyday Health explained that the reason that body weight has an influence on GERD is because “extra weight puts pressure on the abdomen, which increases the risk of the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) relaxing when it shouldn’t².”
Researchers have actually found that those who have attempted to lose weight had experienced a decrease in their GERD symptoms.
Different gut issues share a few common denominators when it comes to how they’re caused.
Digestive issues almost always seem to connect to both dietary factors and environmental factors that can eventually lead to any type of gut issue listed above.
At LifeWorks, we aim to treat the root cause of all types of gut problems, and depending on the patient’s condition, we will provide the right supplements and diet plan to help them receive the nutrients that their body craves and eventually return to a normal quality of life and have their normal weight restored.
If you are having chronic gut issues with fluctuating weight changes, call to schedule an appointment today at 727-466-6789.