How to Heal Your Gut After Antibiotics: 4 Proven Steps to Improve Gut Health
Learn how to restore your gut microbiome after taking antibiotics.
You finished a round of antibiotics, and your infection is gone – great! But now you’re experiencing all these other gut issues that disrupt your life, like your upset stomach. What do you do now?
Antibiotics are effective at killing infection-causing bacteria. But the issue is: they also wind up killing the healthy bacteria in your gut that are essential for optimal digestive health as well as many other essential physiological functions.
So, here’s how to restore your healthy bacteria and heal your gut after antibiotics.
How Antibiotics Affect Your Gut Microbiome
There’s a reason that gut health is such a popular topic. Your gut is responsible for regulating many bodily functions that keep you healthy. When you’re experiencing a health problem, there’s a good chance you can trace it back to your gut.
Trillions of bacteria microorganisms make up your gut microbiome. These bacteria live in your gut and the tracts of your intestines. Your gut microbiome is responsible for many functions that are vital to your health and well-being.
“Bacteria” is a word with a negative connotation – but most bacteria are actually not harmful.
Your body relies on “good” bacteria in your microbiome to regulate your digestive system, support immunity, produce serotonin, and much more. (1).
Proper gut health is dependent on the diversity of microbes and bacteria in your gut. When there isn’t enough diversity, it causes an imbalance where some bacteria can grow out of control, and some aren’t produced enough.
When an imbalance of gut bacteria occurs, the microbiome becomes unhealthy. This imbalance has negative consequences for your digestion, gut lining, immune system, and brain health. Yep, even your mood can come down to your gut health – which is what they refer to as the gut-brain connection.
Antibiotics can’t decipher between good and bad bacteria. They eradicate the bad bacteria causing your infection, but they also kill the healthy bacteria in your gut. This leads to an imbalance in your gut microbiome and leads to those issues you’re experiencing.
A few symptoms of the unhealthy gut after a course of antibiotics include:
Gas
Bloating
Constipation
Diarrhea
Heartburn
Yeast infections
While these gut issues may not seem life-threatening, they affect your daily life and comfort level. And antibiotic use can lead to the long-term damage that goes far beyond the gut. A few long-term negative effects of antibiotics include:
Allergies
Asthma
Joint pain
Sleep disturbances
Anxiety
Depression
Disease often begins in the gut. Antibiotics that disrupt your gut health can ultimately lead to chronic conditions like autoimmune disease and inflammatory bowel disease.
Taking action to restore balance and heal your gut is essential for symptom relief and repairing your long-term health. Luckily, there are a few actions you can take in your daily life and routines that make a huge difference.
4 Steps to Heal Your Gut After Antibiotics
Of course, you want to take antibiotics to help your body fight a life-threatening infection or disease. But keep in mind that you should only use these medications in a serious life-threatening infection.
We encourage you to explore other options before taking antibiotics for a simple cold or bladder infection. There are much safer and more effective ways to treat your non-life-threatening issues more naturally.
Antibiotics can be very effective at helping your body fight bacterial infections. But even just one course of antibiotics can lead to long-term consequences. The risks increase when they're used repetitively. Repetitive use can lead to treatment-resistant bacterial infections and long-term damage.
If you take antibiotics, it's important to immediately take action to support your gut microbiome.
Re-inoculating your healthy bacteria is important. This process prevents small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). SIBO is a condition in which undesirable bacteria thrive and destroy your gut lining. It leads to uncomfortable symptoms like bloating, gas, diarrhea, and constipation.
Luckily, your gut microbiome is very diverse and adaptable. The gut can be restored with high-quality supplements. Once restored, you can maintain your gut health with a few positive diet, exercise, and lifestyle changes.
These are the 4 steps to heal your gut after antibiotics – also known as the 4 Rs of gut-healing:
1.Remove. Remove pathogens and inflammatory triggers that are associated with increased intestinal permeability. Many of us consume way too many highly processed foods that lead to inflammation. Try avoiding gluten and eating processed packaged foods. Avoid these foods at all costs:
Sugar
Refined carbohydrates
Pro-inflammatory seed oils
Glyphosates (Roundup)
If you have a gluten or dairy sensitivity you should avoid these foods entirely. Grains can be irritants if you're gluten intolerant.
Other common irritants include conventional soy and corn. Read your food labels as these are part of most processed foods in some form. Prepare your meals at home from whole organic ingredients – your gut will thank you.
2. Replace. Replace the foods you removed with ones that reduce inflammation and optimize digestive health. Add the following foods to your diet:
High fiber foods – legumes, nuts, seeds, fruits, vegetables
High quality, well-sourced omega-3 fatty acids – salmon, mackerel, herring, trout, sardines
Organic extra virgin cold-pressed olive oil – do not use for cooking
Mushrooms
Anti-inflammatory fresh, organic herbs and spices – garlic, ginger, rosemary, turmeric, black pepper
3. Reinoculate and Reinforce. Antibiotics strip your gut of the healthy bacteria and yeast known as probiotics. So, it's important to replenish your supply after a round of antibiotics. The below foods naturally contain gut-healing probiotics:
Yogurt
Kefir
Miso
Kimchi
Pickles
Raw sauerkraut
Kombucha
After your gut has been inoculated with probiotics, it’s time to reinforce with prebiotics. The healthy bacteria in your gut thrive on fibers and nutrients in plant foods called prebiotics. Prebiotics balances your gut biome. Prebiotics are fiber-rich foods, including:
Legumes
Cold potatoes
Garlic
Onions
Leeks
Prebiotics should only be added after re-inoculating for over a solid month with a high-quality spore-based probiotic.
4. Repair. Finally, it’s time to repair your intestinal lining. Without a healthy gut lining, nutrient absorption is poor which leads to many health issues, including allergies, asthma, even chronic joint pain, and ultimately autoimmune diseases.
Your gut lining can be repaired with specific nutrients and medicinal herbs known to decrease intestinal permeability and inflammation. This involves supplementation with a combination of various herbs and supplements such as:
Aloe vera
Marshmallow root
Zinc carnosine
Deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL)
Slippery Elm
L-glutamine
Polyphenols (e.g., quercetin, myricetin, curcumin)
Vitamin D
In most cases, gut lining repair should be done at the final stage of a gut restoration program.
Other lifestyle factors to improve gut health include:
Exercise. Getting regular exercise is associated with higher bacteria diversity in your gut. Not only does this improve digestive issues, but leads to many other health benefits. The types of activities that are particularly impactful for your gut health include…
Cardio. Cardio exercises increase your blood circulation and microbiome diversity. A jog or bike ride isn’t just good for your heart, but your gut health too.
Yoga. Stretching and relaxing your abdominal muscles can prevent bloating and tightness. Plus, yoga reduces stress. Stress can wreak havoc on your gut causing digestive issues.
Stress. You may think that working too much only affects your mental well-being. But the truth is, stress takes a biological toll on your body through inflammation. Try reducing your stress levels to make a positive impact on your gut.
Sleep. Your body can only heal and repair if you are getting proper quality sleep. To get a good night’s rest go to bed early, keep your room cool, and avoid bright lights. It’s especially important to avoid blue light from computers and screens several hours before sleep.
Water. Hydrate with filtered water to avoid introducing heavy metals and chemicals from unfiltered tap water. These can wreak havoc not only on your gut but the rest of your systems. Avoid buying water in plastic and use glass or stainless steel bottles for your water.
Treatments. Some natural, holistic treatments support your body’s innate systems and restore balance.
Acupuncture. Balances the gut-brain axis and the nervous system, which improves digestive function. Acupuncture is relaxing and can reduce the stress that can lead to digestive issues. (2).
Chiropractic. Nerve compression can sometimes lead to constipation and other digestive issues. In some cases, you may benefit from chiropractic treatments as a supplemental treatment.
The most effective way to heal your gut long-term and feel your best is to get to the root cause of your issue and treat it holistically. The sooner you do, the sooner you can avoid long-term issues.
Supplements are helpful and even necessary nowadays. But lifestyle changes are just as important in supporting your gut health long term.
Get Guidance on Restoring Your Gut Health
Your gut health is one of the most critical aspects of your health and well-being. It’s responsible for regulating countless body functions – from your digestion to your brain and mood levels. So, healing your gut after antibiotics should be a top priority.
For guidance on how to improve your gut health, schedule a consultation with Denver Sports and Holistic Medicine. We can provide you with a nutrition and exercise plan to support your gut balance naturally. Plus, we’re experts at providing acupuncture for instances like these.
We’re here to help you restore your gut health and get you back to feeling like yourself.
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