The digestive tract is lined with very specialized cells that control the absorption of nutrients. Under ideal circumstances these cells should let in the all the good nutrients and keep out all unwanted substances. For the digestive system to work properly is it critical that there is a “tight junction” between the cells of the intestinal wall to prevent unwanted particles from sneaking in between the specialized barrier cells. Some researchers have described the tight junctions to be like the concrete mortar that holds the bricks of a wall together. If these tight junctions become damaged then large particles of food are able to pass from the digestive tract and enter the blood stream. This is known as the “leaky gut” syndrome.
When large particles sneak through the junctions between the specialized intestinal cells and enter the blood stream they are immediately identified as foreign intruders. Fortunately, your body is equipped with an elaborate defense mechanism known as the immune system to guard against these invaders. There are chemical messengers residing in the blood and in the surrounding tissues that act as sentries patrolling for foreign invaders. When an invader is detected these specialized sentry cells send out signals to call in the cavalry. The cavalry consists of cells that kill and/or engulf the intruder.
The immune system is essential to keep the body healthy and to fight off infection. In general, the immune system works for the benefit of the body as a whole. However, the immune system is very aggressive in its effort to destroy intruders. When the immune system is continually set into action by large particles sneaking thought the junctions between the intestinal cells the immune system is continually in a state of high-alert. As an example, suppose there was a small rural town that had six fires a day. I’m not talking about false alarms I am talking about six real fires each day. The local fire department would be on high alert at all times. After awhile they would get so jumpy that they would hose down a house even if it was a false alarm.
When someone has a leaky gut there immune system is constantly being set off. The immune system is always on high-alert. The immune system may start to set up an immune response against its own, normal tissues. When the body starts to believe that its own, normal tissues are foreign invaders this is know as an auto-immune disease.
The leaky gut syndrome has been blamed for causing or worsening of some autoimmune diseases including fibromyalgia, lupus and arthritis.
The best way to prevent leaky gut syndrome is to ensure that specialized intestinal cells of the digestive tract are healthy, the tight-junctions are maintained, the intestinal bacteria (flora) are alive and well and all the food is properly digested.
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