The first thing I hear from many parents is something like: “Does little Johnny have a leaky gut? Can I test for it, and if he does have a leaky gut what can I do about it?” Here’s how to test and fix this very common problem that is the root cause of many other conditions.
Leaky gut may be a new concept to many other people but it is super important to learn about gut permeability, as it could easily be the root cause of unexplained or apparently unrelated health issues. Sadly, there is no quick fix and the process to sort it out is strict. Those that do stick to this process will not only help their child with current symptoms but will probably help avoid developing something even more problematic in the future.
It's not easy to tell, but here are some key pointers:
- Look for red ears or red rashes anywhere around the body, but particularly around the mouth and cheeks.
- Bloated windy tummy with disrupted gut, which can be either diarrhoea or constipation.
- Allergy-type symptoms like itchy eyes, runny nose, swelling or wheeziness.
- Any auto-immune diagnosis.
- Skinny kids who have trouble growing and absorbing nutrients.
- A child who is unpredictable, with anger or anxiety issues. Learning difficulties may also be present.
- Fixated on certain foods containing wheat or milk, like pasta, crackers or cereal.
As you can see, these indicators could also be many other things, so it is important to carry out testing if leaky gut is suspected.
What is Leaky-Gut?
Leaky gut, also known as “gut permeability”, is on the rise in children. Naturopaths see this as a core reason why children develop allergies, food intolerances, skin rashes (including eczema, acne and rosacea), a poor immune system, early onset autoimmune conditions, migraine, asthma, adrenal issues (tired and wired), depression, anxiety, neuro-developmental issues (Autism and ADHD) as well as behavioural challenges such as naughty or anxious kids, and learning difficulties such as dyslexia and dyspraxia.
Your small intestine is a very long pipe that filters digested food matter with tiny finger-like projections called “villi”. These absorb nutrients and pass them out into blood vessels surrounding the pipe, while keeping toxins, pathogens and food bulk from getting through to those blood vessels, which in turn can transport those nasties round the body. In that sense, small intestine is supposed to leak the good stuff into the bloodstream, and it all goes wrong when the filter isn’t fine enough.
The villi are normally very closely packed together, but leaky gut occurs when junctions between them are no longer tight and allow particles to escape into the blood vessels.
Partially-digested proteins, known as “peptides” are especially at risk of not being properly identified. When these proteins, such as gluten, casein (milk) and soya, escape into the blood stream before being broken down properly, the immune system has a hard time recognising them. This is partly because they aren’t where they are supposed to be. It often sends signals to the immune system to flag the partially-digested foods as allergens or food intolerances. Once the immune system has flagged a substance, it remembers it as an enemy and will react the same way each time there is an exposure.
In other circumstances these partially-digested proteins can reach the brain causing an opioid effect – typically a child with this issue is one who eats almost exclusively just wheat and milk products, and has focus/attention problems (zoned out), speech and communication delay and/or poor social skills.
How does leaky gut occur?
This is commonly caused by an overgrowth of unwanted pathogens living in the gut, which may include parasites (worms and/or amoeba), bacteria, fungi (yeasts) and viruses. In my clinical experience it is rarely just one pathogen, but more often a build-up of several unwanted gut bugs. When the bad bugs are able to proliferate and colonise, they overpower the good bugs and the balance swings from mainly good bugs to mainly bad bugs.
Sometimes this is purely due to exposure to an infection that is not adequately addressed or may be due to a build-up of exposure to milder infections such as in day nursery settings. This is why it is so important to do stool testing to get a grip on what is causing havoc to your child. Antibiotic use either by the mother during pregnancy or breastfeeding or given directly to the baby or young child is often associated with development of a leaky gut.
Repeated courses of antibiotics may make leaky gut more likely. This is because antibiotics are usually non-selective and can wipe out the beneficial bacteria at the same time as the infection. When the balance of bacteria is wrong, it may also trigger systemic yeast infections which another cause villi junctions to become leaky. Baby vaccinations may also play a role (particularly any given in the first few weeks) as this challenges an immature gut with viruses. Heavy metal and pesticide exposure can make these holes in the gut stay open for longer.
Another trigger may be long-term ingestion of excess gluten. Alessio Fasano at University of Maryland discovered a substance called Zonulin that controls the permeability of tight junctions in the gut. Gliadin (present in wheat) activates Zonulin signalling, and can lead to increased intestinal permeability and this is why chronic gluten exposure may lead to leaky gut even in the absence of a coeliac disease diagnosis.
Why is leaky gut so detrimental to your child’s health?
The majority of our neurotransmitters (serotonin in particular) and 70-80% of our immune system are made or located in the gut. Once the gut has been damaged there is a greater chance of fewer neurotransmitters being produced and the immune system running low or misfiring. As a consequence, our brain, nervous and immune systems cannot function properly, which can cause this huge array of health conditions.
Most of our food these days is very complex. It contains all sorts of colours, preservatives, additives, and may even be “enriched” with synthetic vitamins. Even our “fresh foods” could be contaminated with pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, or contaminated ground water. This tends to further confuse the system and these specific toxins and additives may also be tagged as enemies. If the body detects anything that it thinks is an enemy, it will try to reject or dump everything you have eaten recently, including all the good stuff.
This “dumping” may explain why so many kids need high doses of nutrients despite eating a “healthy diet”. And since the bad bugs tend to steal the nutrients anyway, there is often not much left to feed the child’s body and brain.
If the gut has been severely damaged, it will struggle even to absorb the basics, so to heal it, we generally use liquid or powdered supplements, which work better than tablets, as they are easier to absorb.
To improve your child’s development and help toleration of a wider range of foods, then it is important to follow this sequence. References: Alterations in intestinal permeability Intestinal permeability – a new target for disease prevention and therapy Claudins in intestines – Distribution and functional significance in health and diseases Bifidobacteria Stabilize Claudins at Tight Junctions and Prevent Intestinal Barrier Dysfunction in Mouse Necrotizing Enterocolitis Intestinal permeability defects: Is it time to treat? Zonulin and Its Regulation of Intestinal Barrier Function: The Biological Door to Inflammation, Autoimmunity, and Cancer
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Great blog piece, Lucinda – vigorous exercise can also temporarily increase gut permeability in adults so some opt to refrain from eating, specifically foods containing gluten, afterwards. Would this be the same for children?
Hi Rayne. Yes vigorous exercise can trigger temporary gut permeability in both adults and children. If your child is competing in a triathlon or all-day rugby tournament then it would be prudent to give them a gluten-free post exercise lunch. I suspect however this would not apply after a big run around in the garden!
This story reminded me of how I finally healed my leaky gut after years of agony. My life used to be miserable. I had chronic constipation, painful headaches, and acne that was out of control. The bloating and inflammation almost ruined my career, since I am a dancer and personal trainer. Needless to say, it doesn’t help to look less than fabulous in my line of work! I tried everything – including expensive supplements and so-called “healthy foods” that actually ended up causing more inflammation. I wondered if I would have to spend the rest of my life suffering and totally miserable. I knew that there had to be another way. I searched long and hard and finally came across some simple natural remedies that finally got rid of my leaky gut for good…to the amazement of my doctors. Hope it helps anyone reading this!
I am thrilled you are feeling so much better and all the hard work paid off.
Can you tell me what you did to heal your gut? My 10 year old son has it and it is really getting bothersome.
Any kind of gut-based programme does take time and you do need to follow the 5 R’s to achieve this. You may well need to do a stool test to establish the most optimal support to help him get back on track. Many thanks Lucinda
Hi Anne, what did you actually do to heal your leaky gut?
Elly
Hi anne, could you please share with me what were the simple natural remedies u did to heal your leaky gut. I have boys with behavioural issues and am looking at leaky gut as a big culprit. Thanks Marnie.
I am working on healing my gut at the moment. I am basically not eating raw vegetables. It’s easier to consume them boiled. I am not consuming wheat or dairy for a while. I am taking probiotics, colostrum, and a supplement called intestinew. I am going to add some other stuff soon like food grade diatamaceous earth (it is supposed to help with [removed by moderator]) and MSM (people often take it for joints, but it helps with the gut), and some also swear by various meat broths. I haven’t had too much of those except for my knee, and they helped a lot with knee. I suspect the broths help regenerate the lining of the intestines. I have also been compelled to do intermittent fasting to calm my system down, but I don’t think that would work for kids (I mean the fasting). I am not taking everything I mentioned here, but several of them, and I am hoping they will help. I am just sharing what I’ve read in my research. It’s also good to add magnesium and omega 3 to the child as ADHD/dyslexic children tend to be deficient in them both. Do your own research of the stuff I mentioned and see where it leads you.
Avoid dairy, sugars, juices. It’s better to consume some fruit by eating them. Blueberries, pineapple, kiwi are some of the best. I consume pineapple some time before eating because they contain enzymes. I don’t have an enzymes supplement. Some people suggest it to take pressure off the gut. I am sticking with pineapple for now.
I am an ADHD/dyspraxic adult.
What did you do?need help with my kids thanks
Hi Anne. It is best to seek advice from a practitioner as every child is different. Follow the 5R’s as much as you can in the meantime.
Can you advise how you go about getting a stool test? My almost 7 year old daughter has been having gut issues now for around a year. I am not really getting much help from my GP. Is there a reputable firm I could use. I am based in Glasgow in Scotland.
Hi Matilda. Thanks for your message, and I am so sorry your daughter has been having ongoing gut issues. Most people arrange an appointment through a Naturopath or Nutritional Therapist to discuss their child’s issues first. During the consultation the practitioner will advise on diet and supplements and also arrange the appropriate stool test to be sent. Results turnaround in about three weeks, so the practitioner will arrange a follow up for this time frame to discuss the results. All our NatureDoc practitioners offer Skype consultations if travel is an issue and I am sure would be able to help find the root cause of your daughter’s issues. Many thanks Lucinda
Hi Lucinda; My 2.5year old has had chronic diarrhea now for a year after a bad GI infection our family got. I’ve had stool tests done and nothing shows up, she doesn’t complain of pain and she’s growing fine. What can I do for her? Her stool ranges from soft to watery and very rarely gets firm.
Hi Pari. It sounds like she may need some gut healing support and many of the strategies such as probiotics and bone broths may be helpful here. She may have developed an a food intolerance after this infection so it would be worth looking into this. You may want to book in to see one of our NatureDoc practitioners if this continues.
Hi Shacobi. Please contact us by email. Many thanks Lucinda
I am in desperate need of something like Tummy Bliss but am located in the US. Do you know of a comparable product that is available to me?
Why don’t you get in touch with Science Kitchen as they may well ship to the US http://sciencekitchen.co.uk/
Hi – my 17 year old daughter went travelling last year and came back with bloating and constipation – after extensive tests and just recently 3 weeks in hospital she is now on a feeding tube and diagnosised with gastroparesis and unable to tolerate any food- is this something you could help with?
Hi Sally. We do have experience with gastroparesis and one of my team would be very happy to help. Please call NatureDoc reception on 020 3397 1824 to book in. Best wishes Lucinda
Hi
I have a baby of two years old she is been suffering from eczema since seven months. I should say from her birth but it was coming very little and going by itself cuz I use coconut oil since she bron but from last seven months it’s not going it is becoming more worse day by day have checked with many doctors they say she has a very dry skin conditions and given us creams to apply they also gave us steroids too I used them but made her skin conditions more bad now I have stop using any steroids and using seba meds creams in her skin eczema goes but again Comes don’t know the reason why but I m totally worried and fed up too seeing her scratching all the time and yes she is super active kid moody too
Plz help me plz
I have a question, my kids and I had exposure to black mold in the hone for years. All of us have leaky gut including my 1 year old baby. What can we do about this?
Hi Elizabeth. Thanks very much for your message. You would need to book in with one of my practitioners for a family appointment as gut healing is complex, especially when different ages are involved. I hope this helps. Best wishes Lucinda
Can a pediatrion diagnose and test for leaky gut in a 4 mo old? Is it common at this age with supplementing cow/goat milk based formula and or giving solids before they are ready? I’m guessing it rarely happen with exclusive BF. Is it the same as I b s?
Sadly not – the concept of leaky gut/gut permeability has not got much beyond the research stage in medical testing, so you will need to seek help from a naturopath or nutritional therapist. We can run stool tests under one year old but usually recommended for the over one’s but we can help with probiotics etc from weaning.
i would to know how can to help for my grandson with leaky gut . I appriciate i f give me help what nutrition best for him.
Hi Parivash, would love to help your grandson. Please book him in for a consultation with our clinical team. Best wishes Lucinda