Why Food Allergies and a Leaky Gut Can Make You Fat

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Article Title:

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Why Food Allergies and a Leaky Gut Can Make You Fat

Article Description:

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Want to get rid of your gut? Then you need to fix your gut. You

see, your gut has an immune system. And when bugs in your

digestive tract upset that immune system, you gain weight.

Additional Article Information:

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780 Words; formatted to 65 Characters per Line

Distribution Date and Time: 2008-02-22 11:24:00

Written By: Mark Hyman, MD

Copyright: 2008

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Why Food Allergies and a Leaky Gut Can Make You Fat

Copyright © 2008 Mark Hyman, MD

The UltraWellness Blog

http://www.ultrawellness.com/blog/insulin-resistance

Want to get rid of your gut? Then you need to fix your gut.

You see, your gut has an immune system. And when bugs in your

digestive tract upset that immune system, you gain weight.

This phenomenon is triggered by the two main causes of obesity

and illness – toxicity and inflammation.

But today I'm going to tell how you can use the 7 keys to

UltraWellness (further detailed in my book The UltraSimple Diet)

to address these causes.

And it really works.

In my own practice, I've seen patients lose up to 30 pounds,

just by eliminating food allergens and balancing their digestive

system.

For example, a 38-year-old woman suffered chronic inflammation,

fluid retention, acne, fatigue, and joint pain, as well as

irritable bowel syndrome with bloating and gas. Nothing helped.

Then she stopped eating the foods that bothered her and took

healthy bacteria to heal her gut.

Before she knew it, she'd lost 35 pounds – and all of her

symptoms.

Powerful Evidence

But don't take my word for it. Now there's powerful evidence

that links inflammation to weight gain.

One recent study looked at children, half of whom were normal

weight and half of whom were overweight.

The researchers measured their levels of high-sensitivity

C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker for inflammation in the body.

Then they looked for plaque or thickening in the carotid arteries

(the main arteries that supply the brain) with an ultrasound.

Finally, they looked at blood tests for IgG, or delayed food

allergies.

The results were stunning.

The overweight kids had a 3-fold higher level of CRP and a

2.5-fold higher level of IgG antibodies to foods.

These rates were almost 10 times higher than what most studies

have found!

The overweight kids also had much thicker carotid arteries – an

early sign of heart disease.

When your gut is damaged, it becomes leaky and food particles

become exposed to its immune system.

The result? A full-body immune response that triggers

inflammation, which in turn leads to insulin resistance. And

insulin resistance leads to belly fat.

According to the study's researchers, eliminating IgG food

allergens could help treat obesity and prevent heart disease.

(1)

So you don't have to limit calories – just foods that cause

allergies and inflammation.

Another study looked at what causes a leaky gut.

The researchers of that study fed thin mice a very high-fat

diet.

High-fat diets promote toxin-producing bugs and cause the " good "

bugs to die. In fact, processed, sugary, fatty foods totally

change the gut's ecosystem.

And that's just what the researchers discovered. The toxins

produced in the mice triggered inflammation and obesity.

The researchers say that eliminating the bad bugs and giving the

rats antibiotics can prevent diabetes. Adding soluble fiber to

their diet can increase the good bugs and decrease the bad bugs –

leading to weight loss. (2)

It happens in humans, too.

My patients have had similar results when they take soluble fiber

called konjac root or glucomannan. The good bacteria feed on the

fiber and reduce inflammation.

Simply put, people with healthy bugs in their gut lose weight,

and those with bad bugs gain weight. (3)

What Can You Do?

Let me review.

The typical American diet promotes the growth of bad bugs in the

gut. These bugs damage the gut lining and produce toxins that

your system absorbs.

When your gut is leaky, partially digested food particles can

enter your bloodstream, where your immune system reacts, creating

inflammation.

Inflammation triggers insulin resistance – which makes you gain

weight.

Having an unhealthy gut causes inflammation and toxicity, and you

get fat and sick.

If you want to lose weight and feel healthy, try these tips:

1. For 3 weeks, eliminate the most common food allergens,

including gluten, dairy, eggs, corn, yeast, peanuts, and soy.

2. Eat a whole-foods, plant-based, high-fiber diet.

3. Take probiotics daily to boost the healthy bacteria in your

gut. Look for those that contain 10 billion CFU of bifidobacteria

species and lactobacillus species.

Give yourself just a few weeks, and you'll be astounded by the

dramatic results. You can feel better and shed pounds – simply by

healing your gut.

==> References:

(1) Wilders-Truschnig M, Mangge H, Lieners C, et al. IgG

Antibodies Against Food Antigens are Correlated with Inflammation

and Intima Media Thickness in Obese Juveniles. Exp Clin

Endocrinol Diabetes. 2007 Dec 10

(2) Cani PD, Amar J, Iglesias MA, et al. Metabolic endotoxemia

initiates obesity and insulin resistance. Diabetes. 2007

Jul;56(7):1761-72.

(3) Bäckhed F, Ding H, Wang T, et al. The gut microbiota as an

environmental factor that regulates fat storage.Proc Natl Acad

Sci U S A. 2004 Nov 2;101(44):15718-23. Epub 2004 Oct 25.

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Mark Hyman, MD is a pioneer in functional medicine, practicing

physician and best-selling author. A sneak preview of his book

" The UltraSimple Diet " is available. See The UltraWellness Blog

for more on Food Allergies:

http://ultrawellness.com/blog/food-allergy