As I talked about already, people with a leaky gut will eventually develop food sensitivities (which you might or might not have identified already). It often starts with one (say gluten), and eventually more and more food will be added to the list, until you are left with very little to eat, which can make eating out a pain!

How does it happen?

When a food particle gets into your body, instead of staying in your gut (because the gut is 'leaky'), it is perceived as a threat, similar to a virus. Your body responds by activating the immune system...it swoops in and fights… sometimes very violently.

This immune system response can cause all kinds of symptoms like brain fog, migraines, skin problems, joint pain, fatigue and more.

Now, the tricky part is to figure out what exactly you are sensitive to.

You can do food sensitivity testing, and this can be helpful for some people who can't pin point what foods are causing an issue for them.

However, I have found that the first step should always be a food elimination diet. This will actually allow you to determine which food is causing your symptoms and will also allow you to become much more in tune with your body. My clients are always amazed at what their body tells them when they start listening, and it's an amazing skill to develop as you will have it for a life time.

Here is an example of what an elimination diet can do:

I had a client who was experiencing joint pain, as well as many other unpleasant symptoms. She had tried everything to try and eliminate this pain, to no avail. She was even diagnosed with an auto-immune condition and put on Methotrexate (a very strong drug). She joined my Happy Gut Program in the hope that it might help her get off the drug. After our 1st session, I thought she might have a leaky gut and I proposed an elimination diet for her. She came back for her 2nd session and she couldn't believe that her joint pain was gone, and she was able to stop the medication. It turned out that gluten was the main offender for her.

ACTION STEP: Look at the list of the most common reactive food below (you can also download the PDF), and see if you can identify any food sensitivities causing your symptoms.

Here are some good news:

1- Most people who remove food sensitivities for 2-4 weeks feel significantly better!

2- Very few people are sensitive to all of those foods, so once you figure out the ones which are an issue for you, it becomes much easier. You do NOT have to remove those foods from your diet if they don't cause symptoms for you.

3- Most food sensitivities will resolve if you heal the gut and remove the food for 3 to 6 months, which is the time it takes for your body's immune system to 'forget' about that food.

4- The Happy Gut Kitchen 4-Week Meal Plan , which I talked about in the low FODMAPs section of the course, takes you through the elimination and re-introduction process, making it sooo much easier!