How Gut Health Affects Your Skin
Poor gut health is a common root cause of inflammatory skin conditions such as eczema and topical steroid withdrawal. Many people do not realize that a big part of our immune systems are controlled by our guts. Inflammatory skin conditions, such as eczema and TSW, are often described as immune system conditions because immune system dysregulation is what often leads to these skin issues. Fixing any gut issues you may have will often lead to fixing your immune system, which then leads to fixing your skin.
Let’s discuss some gut-related skin conditions that you might have that may be contributing to your skin issues.
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LEAKY GUT SYNDROME
The idea behind leaky gut syndrome is that the junction between the cells lining your digestive tract is not tight. This means that there is some sort of gap between these cells. When this occurs, your digestive system is not able to properly digest the foods that you are eating and so undigested food particles may be able to get through these gaps. This leads to your immune system seeing those undigested food particles as foreign material, causing an immune system reaction. This immune system reaction results in a flare up in the skin. If you are someone who notices that you seem to have a lot of food sensitivities, leaky gut syndrome is definitely something you should look into because it is possible that you do NOT have food sensitivities but rather a leaky gut.
Gut Microbiome Imbalance
You have trillions of bacteria living in your gut. Some of these bacteria strains are good while other strains are bad. Good bacteria are beneficial because they help you digest fibers and also can produce nutrients that your body can utilize. In contrast, bad bacteria may produce inflammatory compounds that can lead to that abnormal immune system reaction. If you have ever taken antibiotics, there is a chance that you killed all of your good bacteria and now bad bacteria have overtaken your gut. If a gut microbiome imbalance is suspected, a healthcare professional will be able to help get you on a gut microbiome balancing protocol that will likely involve probiotics.
Candida overgrowth
Candida is a yeast. It is often suggested that there is an association with candida in the gut and skin issues. The idea behind why candida leads to skin issues is the same as in bacteria, which is mentioned above. The candida is likely producing compounds that are leading to an immune system reaction, which again leads to skin issues. One simple way to determine if you have a candida issue is to ask yourself if you have sugar cravings. Candida feeds off of sugar so it it basically stealing the sugar that your body wants. If you think candida might be contributing to your skin issues, find a healthcare professional who will be able to confirm this and provide proper individualized treatment.
Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO)
SIBO occurs when too much bad bacteria develops in your small intestine. Most of the bacteria in your gut is located in the large intestine. Too much bacteria in your small intestine is not normal. The bad bacteria in the small intestine will be producing inflammatory compounds that will affect your immune system, leading to skin issues. It’s really the same pattern with all of these gut-related issues! If you have SIBO, you may also notice symptoms like bloating, gas, diarrhea, and constipation. A healthcare professional may get you to do specialized SIBO breath tests if they suspect you have SIBO.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
Studies seem to show that people who have IBS are more likely to develop eczema and people who have eczema are more likely to develop IBS. IBS is a chronic condition where you basically have symptoms like abdominal pain, cramping, constipation, and diarrhea. Often times the cause is unknown. If you notice that you have these digestive system symptoms that seem to come from nowhere, you may want to do a deeper dive into your gut health as that might be a root cause of your skin issues.
Need some support to determine what gut conditions may be contributing to your skin issues? Check out our Fighting Eczema Coaching Programs!
