Gut Check: Why Your Bloating Isn’t Just ‘Normal’ — It’s a Clue

Gut Check: Why Your Bloating Isn’t Just ‘Normal’ — It’s a Clue

If you've been living with daily bloating, unpredictable BMs, or constant food sensitivities and brushing it off as “just how your body is” — it’s time for a gut check. Literally.

These symptoms aren’t normal. They’re signals. And in functional nutrition, we don’t ignore the whispers from your gut — we investigate them.

💥 Bloating Is Not a Personality Trait

Let’s be honest: it’s become common to joke about unbuttoning your jeans after a meal or blaming every discomfort on “PMS” or “being over 35.” But if you’re:

• Constantly bloated (even without eating much)

• Reacting to foods you used to tolerate

• Switching between constipation and diarrhea

• Feeling foggy, puffy, or just off...

…it’s not just aging. It’s not in your head. It’s likely your gut microbiome, inflammation, or digestion signaling a deeper imbalance.

🔍 What Could Be Causing It?

Your gut is ground zero for everything from digestion to immune function to hormone balance. When things go off-track, symptoms like bloating are often just the tip of the iceberg.

Here’s what could be going on underneath:

1. Low Stomach Acid or Enzyme Deficiency

You can’t absorb nutrients or break down food if your digestion is weak. This leads to fermentation, bloating, and discomfort.

❗Symptoms: Bloating after meals, belching, feeling like food “just sits there,” undigested food in stool.

Your stomach is supposed to be acidic. That acid (along with enzymes) breaks down protein, absorbs minerals like iron and zinc, and preps food for further digestion. But stress, medications (like PPIs), and aging all lower stomach acid.

🩺 Functional Tip: You might need digestive support—not suppression. Adding enzymes or bitter herbs (with practitioner guidance) can help stimulate digestion.

2. SIBO or Dysbiosis

An overgrowth of bacteria (even the good kind in the wrong place) can cause gas, bloating, and irregular BMs.

❗Symptoms: Upper belly bloating, foul gas, constipation or diarrhea, food intolerances.

SIBO (Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth) happens when bacteria grow in the wrong part of your gut. Dysbiosis means the good and bad bacteria are out of balance.

These imbalances produce excess gas, inflammation, and mess with nutrient absorption and your immune system.

🧬 Hashimoto’s Connection: 70% of your immune system lives in your gut. SIBO and dysbiosis are often linked to autoimmunity—and can even trigger or worsen Hashimoto’s symptoms.

3. Leaky Gut

Tight junctions in your gut lining become loose, letting food particles or toxins slip through — triggering inflammation and food sensitivities.

❗Symptoms: Bloating, joint pain, skin rashes, food sensitivities, brain fog.

Your gut lining is meant to be a tight barrier. But when it gets damaged—through stress, gluten, toxins, or infections—it becomes "leaky," allowing undigested food particles and toxins into the bloodstream.

This triggers immune reactions, inflammation, and more symptoms far beyond the gut.

🦋 Functional Nutrition Note: Leaky gut is a huge driver behind autoimmune flares, including Hashimoto’s and inflammatory skin or joint conditions.

4. Candida Overgrowth

Sugar cravings, bloating, fatigue, and mood swings could point to a yeast imbalance in the gut.

❗Symptoms: Cravings for sugar or carbs, bloating, fatigue, white coating on tongue, recurrent UTIs or yeast infections.

Candida is a yeast that lives in the gut—but too much of it throws everything off. It thrives on sugar and weakens your immune defenses.

It can be a hidden culprit for women dealing with bloating, sugar cravings, and low energy, especially if you've taken antibiotics, birth control, or steroids.

🛑 Reminder: Killing off yeast requires a gentle but targeted protocol—often involving diet changes, antifungals, and liver support. DO THIS WITH GUIDANCE FROM YOUR PRACTITIONER, doing this solo could cause more problems than being helpful.

5. Thyroid or Hormonal Imbalances

Low thyroid slows digestion. Estrogen dominance increases histamine. Cortisol changes your microbiome. It's all connected.

❗Symptoms: Constipation, bloating, weight gain, estrogen dominance symptoms (like PMS, heavy periods, or histamine flares).

Your gut and hormones talk to each other all day long.

• Low thyroid slows motility = constipation and bloat.

• High estrogen (or poor estrogen detox) increases gut histamine, triggering inflammation and gassy discomfort.

• Cortisol from stress changes your microbiome—and not in a good way.

👩‍⚕️ A sluggish thyroid or cortisol imbalance can literally change how your digestion works. It’s not “just your gut” it’s the full-body ripple effect.

🌱 Why It Matters for Hashimoto’s & Autoimmunity

If you’re dealing with an autoimmune disease like Hashimoto’s, gut health is a non-negotiable.

Over 70% of your immune system lives in your gut.

So if your gut is inflamed, leaky, or overwhelmed by the wrong bacteria, your immune system is going to stay activated—and that means more flares, more symptoms, more frustration.

🧪 Common Clues I Look For in Clients

• Bloating within 30–60 minutes after eating

• Chronic constipation or loose stools

• Undigested food in stool

• New food sensitivities

• Brain fog or mood swings after meals

• Skin flares (eczema, rashes)

• PMS that worsens with gut issues

These aren’t just digestive problems they're root cause clues.

🛠️ What You Can Do

Here are three functional steps you can start exploring:

1. Track Your Symptoms

Start a food + symptom journal for 5–7 days. Look for patterns: Which meals cause bloating? What foods trigger fatigue?

2. Reduce Gut Triggers

Common culprits: gluten, dairy, soy, alcohol, artificial sweeteners. You don’t need to eliminate everything forever but try removing key ones for 30 days and observe what shifts.

3. Support Digestion

Try eating slowly, chewing well, and using digestive bitters or enzymes. And yes, poop talk is encouraged around here.

🔬 Consider Functional Testing

If you’re ready to go deeper, I use GI Map stool testing and food sensitivity panels to help uncover the root issues hiding in the gut. It’s one of the most empowering tools I use with my clients.

💬 You’re Not Crazy. You’re Inflammation-Wise.

Your body is wise. Your symptoms are not annoying — they’re messages.

Bloating is a red flag, not a punchline. And when you learn how to decode those messages, healing becomes so much more possible.

Ready to get to the root? Let’s talk about your gut.