What is Leaky Gut?

You may have heard of leaky gut before.  The medical community refers to it as intestinal permeability. To understand leaky gut, you first need to know a bit about a healthy gut.  Your small intestine is lined with a single layer of cells that form a protective barrier.  This barrier is a bit like a castle wall.  Just like a castle wall is built to keep invaders from entering the castle, the cells in your small intestine keep viruses, bacteria, other pathogens, undigested food and toxins from entering your body.

Now imagine that the mortar in that castle wall has crumbled.  Suddenly it becomes much easier for invaders to get in.  Tight junctions are like that mortar.  Tight junctions are protein structures that hold the cells together to form that strong barrier.  When tight junctions are lacking, the barrier has gaps between the cells, which allow viruses, bacteria, pathogens, undigested food and toxins to leak out of the small intestine into the body.  So, in the same way that crumbling mortar means a weak castle wall, a lack of tight junctions means a weak intestinal barrier or leaky gut.

On the unhealthy side, you can see the gaps that occur between cells (leaky gut) and altered organisms (dysbiosis). Other possible changes include loss of the mucosal barrier (green layer), and changes in the immune cells (T cells).

 Why do I have leaky gut?

Leaky gut can occur as a result of viral or bacterial infections, pharmaceutical use, chemotherapy, or dysbiosis.

How does leaky gut affect me?

When substances leak from the gut into the body they can wreak havoc, affecting any body tissue, organ or system.  Leaky gut can contribute to any chronic health condition you may have, from chronic headaches to complicated conditions like autoimmune or neurological disorders.