Let’s get better together: Gut health protocol
Hi! I’m Caroline, a certified Health Coach and Yoga Instructor, living with Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency and hEDS. Welcome to the space where I share what has helped me feel better. I’m glad you’re here and hope this helps you feel better too. In today’s post I’ll go through the supplements I have used to feel better and why they worked or continue working. Remember, any supplement info or experience I share is purely anecdotal and personal. Please talk to your doctor or healthcare professional before starting any new supplements.
I’ll start with the supplements that helped my gut the most and then talk about my daily maintenance supplements. I used GI Revive, Candibactin AR/BR/Candidase, Berberine, Ginger, Probiotics and 5HTP to rebuild, restore and strengthen my gut health. 12 weeks is the recommended time frame for GI Revive, 8 weeks for Candibactin AR/BR/Candidase and Berberine, Probiotics/Ginger are daily use and 5HTP a maximum of 2 weeks is recommended. Alright, this is what I took and for how long I took it. Now let’s jump into why I took each supplement.
GI Revive: Repairs and strengthens the lining of the gut, fights inflammation, boosts your gut immunity and and promotes intestinal regularity. I struggled with Leaky Gut and Intestinal Inflammation which caused bloating, gas, diarrhea, food sensitivities and pain. This supplement helped repair the damage causing Leaky Gut.
Candibactin AR/BR or Candidase: I love both of these supplements. I list both together because they do similar things but Candidase is a little cheaper. I used these for yeast and bacterial overgrowth in my intestines. Candibactin AR is for yeast and BR is for bacteria. Doing 8 weeks with these cleared out the bacteria and yeast causing bloating, foul smelling gas and poor absorption. I did feel a little nausea while taking it so be prepared to feel a little blah here and there.
Berberine: I used this to eliminate any fungi/parasites/bacteria in my gut and help restore helpful bacteria populations.
Probiotics: These help restore healthy bacteria to your intestines. I like Jarrow synbiotic and Seed synbiotic. They both have prebiotic fiber around the probiotic to help it get into your intestines so more bacteria make it through the stomach.
Ginger: ginger helps stimulate your small intestine so it’s great for low motility. It also helps with nausea. I take it before bed to help my digestion through the night. I also love ginger tea throughout the day.
5HTP: this is a serotonin supplement. Because 80% of our serotonin is produced in the gut, I wanted to support production as much as possible. I struggled with depression/anxiety/panic attacks for years. Using this supplement a couple weeks throughout the year helps me stay more balanced mentally and emotionally.
Finally, let’s talk about how I took these supplements to feel better. I started my day with GI Revive. I did GI Revive for 12 weeks straight. It was hard and I hated it so I created a smoothie that made it easier to drink. It works best with low acid in the stomach so do this before eating or drinking coffee/tea in the morning.
Here’s my recipe:
1/4c. Wild blueberries
1tbsp. Cilantro
1/2 tbsp. Lime juice
1c. Water
1/2tbsp. Wild honey
1 serving GI Revive
I would take Candibactin AR and Berberine with breakfast, Ginger and Probiotic with lunch, Candibactin AR and Berberine with dinner and 5HTP and Ginger before bed. It took about 3 weeks before I noticed any changes and by the end of the 12 weeks I felt so much better. Note that throughout this 12 weeks I was also taking my digestive enzymes prescribed for EPI. I have another post dedicated to these special supplements you can read it here.
My daily supplements include electrolytes, ginger, probiotics, digestive enzymes and a multivitamin. I do a little gut health reset at the start of the year with a version of this regimen that lasts 8 weeks. My digestion isn’t perfect and I don’t always feel 100% but I am healthy and happy 90% of the time. That’s so much better than I was a few years ago.
I hope this was helpful and would love to hear from you: connect with me through email at cohelocoaching@gmail.com or on TikTok at @cohelocoaching