Leaky gut syndrome is a process which is known in severe pathological states like inflammatory bowel disease or celiac disease, when so-called narrow junctures between cells that cover the intestine conduce and it becomes leaky for toxins from the intestine that go into the bloodstream.
The hypothesis is that in people who have leaky gut usually have symptoms like intumescence, gases, being oversensitive to food and pain. It is the case of medical mystery and ‘the grey zone’ of science because there aren’t enough proof that would indicate that there is such a state in healthy individuals.
The biggest immune organ
Still, it is known that in our intestines there are more bacteria than cells in the human body. Also, the bowel is at the same time the biggest immune organ in which is more than 60 percent of cells from the immune system. Because of that, it is important to give attention to the function of bowel barrier, for it is certain that the bowel plays an important part in the defense against disorders and disease. So, we should keep in mind that everything we take into our bodies the bowel has to defeat, so we should secure it with the substances that act beneficially to the bacteria that live in the bowel and the cells that cover the bowel.
The composition of bacteria in intestines affects their permeability?
Disbalance of the system of intestinal bacteria or microbiota, better known as dysbiosis with the subsequent systematic migration of bacteria or endotoxin, is one of the key factors in the background of a chronic inflammation and surgical complications. According to that, we could conclude that the composition of intestinal microbiota (bacteria that live in our intestines) can play an important role in the occurrence of intestinal permeability.
The composition of intestinal bacteria in the people who live in highly developed countries of the so-called Western civilization circle has significantly changed, and the amount of bacteria is more scarce compared to the people who live in the rural areas and have a life like the people from the stone age or free primates like chimpanzees. Some scientists believe thet most of the body barriers become permeable to living microbes and/or microbe products as an effect of dysbiosis. There is a hypothesis that the passage of harmful bacteria and toxins through a permeable intestinal mucosa, respiratory organs, skin, mouth cavity, vagina, placenta, and permeable blood-brain barrier, leads to occurrence of various diseases. Chronic stress can also contribute to all of that as well.
Nutrition role
Intestinal microbiota of the people who don’t consume the Western nutrition is usually more scarce because the lower digestive system is seriously exhausted by the metabolic fuels, and that has an unfavorable microbe profile as an effect. The most obvious and most harmful effects from scarce microbiota are bad function of the digestive system, dysbiosis and high levels of endotoxins in plasma (endotoxemia) which have been related, both in clinical and experimental studies, to inflammation and risk for developing obesity and chronic diseases.
More than half a century ago, a great scientist Denis Burkitt showed how between 1880. and 1970. it came to 90% less intake of indigestible fibers in human nutrition. In that period both the amount and the profile of bacteria which dwell in our intestines have changed. Burkitt described decreased intake of vegetable fibers in Western societies, compared to three to four times larger intake of calories that come from animal fat and refined sugars, which was a dramatic deterioration in nutritional habits, that continued over the years up until today.
Significant share of today’s nutrition is composed of refined carbohydrates, eg. food that is absorbed in the upper part of the digestive system, and for that it is not useful for the microbiota of the lower part of digestive system. Contemporary Westerners eat excessive amounts of meat, ‘bad’ fats and almost no fruit, vegetables and whole grains that rich with fibers. That is why it is advisable to enlarge the intake of that kind of food, and also products that contain ‘good bacteriae’ or probiotics like yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut and other fermented foods.
Is there a connection between acne and digestion?
It is well-known that there is an os intestine-brain, or a feedback between our hypothalamus and digestive system. That is why, when we are stressed, often our digestive system reacts, because it has over 10 million nervous cells in it. However, os intestine-brain-skin is rarely spoken of, and the relationship between those three entities is also well-known. For example, there is a hypothesis that psychological stress, on its own or in combination with nutrition that is full of fats and sugars and poor in fibres, causes changes of the motility of digestive system and bacteria profile in the intestines. It is considered that these changes can cause changes in intestinal permeability and passage of endotoxins through intestinal barrier into the bloodstream. With that inflammation is increased and oxidation stress in the body, but sensitivity to insulin is reduced. This cascade of reactions in some people can incite occurrence of sebum or outbreak of acne , which can potentially be repressed with the help of useful bacteria (probiotics) and antimicrobial medication.