WEBVTT - How gut health affects your period

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Healthy Ish listeners. Hope you are having a

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<v Speaker 1>fantastic day. This is, of course, the daily podcast from

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<v Speaker 1>Body and Soul. I am Felicity Harley, host of this

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<v Speaker 1>podcast and joining me via our online studio today is

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<v Speaker 1>doctor Cecilia Kittik. She's a gut health expert and exercise

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<v Speaker 1>physiologist who has published more than eighty research papers exploring

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<v Speaker 1>things like inflammation, nutrition, the endocrine system and of course

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<v Speaker 1>the gut. She knows this stuff. Basically, she joins us

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<v Speaker 1>to discuss how your gut health impacts your period health.

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<v Speaker 1>Have you ever thought about this? Neither did I? And

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<v Speaker 1>of course how to improve the health of your microbiome. Also,

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<v Speaker 1>if you are taking special care of your fertility, make

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<v Speaker 1>sure you're listening to extra Healthy Ish, where she shares

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<v Speaker 1>her advice on how to create a fertile gut. You

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<v Speaker 1>can grab that wherever you get your podcasts. Ce Celia,

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<v Speaker 1>thank you for joining us on Healthy Today. Finally, we've

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<v Speaker 1>been trying to do this interview for a few months.

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<v Speaker 2>Now, let's make it worth it, Felicity, Yes we will.

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<v Speaker 1>Listeners. We are here to give you all the info

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<v Speaker 1>about gut health and how it affects your period health.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, what does what's the connection between these two

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<v Speaker 1>What does gut health have to do with menstrual cycles?

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<v Speaker 2>So they may seem like they're sitting in quite distinct locations,

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<v Speaker 2>but these two components are very intricately connected. So the

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<v Speaker 2>health of our microbiome does influence us having a healthy,

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<v Speaker 2>reproductive menstrual cycle. Essentially, when we're talking about what a

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<v Speaker 2>healthy cycle is if someone's not on any hormone or contraception,

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<v Speaker 2>it's really looking at the fact that that menstrual cycle

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<v Speaker 2>comes regularly, maybe every twenty six to thirty five days,

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<v Speaker 2>that it's moderate bleeding, so nothing too excessive or heavy flow,

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<v Speaker 2>you're not experiencing any excessive pain or severe mood swings

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<v Speaker 2>or other debilitating symptoms. And importantly, a healthy menstrual cycle

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<v Speaker 2>is one in which you ovulate. Now that may sound

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<v Speaker 2>a bit unusual because while you bleed each month, you

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<v Speaker 2>won't necessarily ovulate, and the research actually supports it in

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<v Speaker 2>about sixteen to thirty seven percent of menstrual cycles. Population

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<v Speaker 2>actually doesn't take place. Yeah, but it makes sense when

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<v Speaker 2>we start to understand mechanistically what's going on and how

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<v Speaker 2>we ovulate, and what supports that process. So importantly part

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<v Speaker 2>of that is the communication that happens between our brain

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<v Speaker 2>and our ovaries and how well they're talking to each other.

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<v Speaker 2>Looking at the hormone levels that we've got circulating around,

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<v Speaker 2>nutritional adequacy, how we're feeding our body and providing nutrients,

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<v Speaker 2>and our immune system as well. Now all of these

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<v Speaker 2>things are influenced by our resident microbiome, so that is

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<v Speaker 2>the populations that we have living in our gart They're

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<v Speaker 2>responsible for regulating sex hormones, how well we extract and

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<v Speaker 2>absorb nutrients from food, our higher brain centers, our immune system,

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<v Speaker 2>and these are all connected. So when there is a

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<v Speaker 2>bit of disruption in that gut microbiome, it can be

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<v Speaker 2>associated with missing or irregular menstrual periods, experiencing greater pre

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<v Speaker 2>menstrual symptoms, the presence of fibroids and polyps, which can

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<v Speaker 2>be contributed to really heavy bleeding during a cycle. And

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<v Speaker 2>we know those disruptions are seen in conditions such as

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<v Speaker 2>polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis.

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<v Speaker 1>It's amazing, you know. I obviously listen to a lot

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<v Speaker 1>of other podcasts and just hearing you speak, there's so

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<v Speaker 1>much we're learning about the gut and how it's just

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<v Speaker 1>so central to everything. I mean, I listened to something

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<v Speaker 1>the other day about it being central to heart health

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<v Speaker 1>and now menstrual cycles, the link between the two, it's

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<v Speaker 1>just it just blows my mind absolutely.

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<v Speaker 2>And a lot of this comes down to looking at

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<v Speaker 2>the processes of inflammation and oxidative stress. Essentially, these are

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<v Speaker 2>processes that we need in our body and they're really important.

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<v Speaker 2>But if they are left unchecked, you know, or they

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<v Speaker 2>get a bit out of control, they can cause a

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<v Speaker 2>bit of damage to our tissues. And so when we're

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<v Speaker 2>looking at a lot of those disease processes diabetes, cuttingo

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<v Speaker 2>vascular disease, autoimmune conditions, there's always an element there where

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<v Speaker 2>inflammation is a bit disrupted. So it's the same when

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<v Speaker 2>we're talking about our gut health and our menstrual cycle.

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<v Speaker 2>We actually need really tightly regulated inflammation as we're growing

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<v Speaker 2>a follicle in our ovary, and in that follicle is

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<v Speaker 2>where we're going to find our egg. Now for that

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<v Speaker 2>egg to be released again, we need really great communication

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<v Speaker 2>coming from our higher brain centers to our ovaries, and

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<v Speaker 2>when there's disruption in that communication, that pathway alone between

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<v Speaker 2>our brain and our ovary. About eighty five of failures

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<v Speaker 2>in when we don't ovulate are contributed to those pathways.

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<v Speaker 2>And those pathways and what's going on in our brain

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<v Speaker 2>is influenced by what's going on in our gut. So,

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<v Speaker 2>particularly when we're thinking about our immune system and the

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<v Speaker 2>process of inflammation, what happens is when there's a few

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<v Speaker 2>when there are a few more populations living in the

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<v Speaker 2>gut that tend to promote disruption or inflammation, that can

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<v Speaker 2>lead to changing the structural integrity of our intestinal wall,

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<v Speaker 2>so that leads to an increase in permeability, and we

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<v Speaker 2>might actually have things coming from our gut into our

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<v Speaker 2>bloodstream that can be really immune stimulating, things like endotoxin

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<v Speaker 2>or these little components of bacterial cell walls that really

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<v Speaker 2>trigger and activate our immune system to cause a lot

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<v Speaker 2>of inflammation. So just even the presence of that bacterial

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<v Speaker 2>components in our blood stream that is associated with reduced

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<v Speaker 2>ovulation and impacting then even levels of pain that we

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<v Speaker 2>might experience in our menstrual cycle. So when you look

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<v Speaker 2>at the gut of women that do experience pre menstrual

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<v Speaker 2>symptoms or having irregular cycles, there seems to be often

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<v Speaker 2>an enrichment of populations like Prevtella that drive a bit

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<v Speaker 2>of inflammation, and we also might have less of the

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<v Speaker 2>good guys in there, so less of the bacteria that

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<v Speaker 2>produce things like butyrate, and butrate is a short chain

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<v Speaker 2>fatty acid, which is really beneficial for our health. And

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<v Speaker 2>when we start to appreciate that's getting produced in our gut,

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<v Speaker 2>you know, in the large intestine, but that is absorbed

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<v Speaker 2>systemically and influencing our cardiovascular health, our brain health, the

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<v Speaker 2>health of our muscles, and how strong we are, how

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<v Speaker 2>well our pancreas is working. All of these are impacted

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<v Speaker 2>by those metabolites that are getting produced within our gut.

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<v Speaker 1>Now talk to us about birth control. Can this impact

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<v Speaker 1>gut health? I mean, what role does this play? And

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<v Speaker 1>also things like medication, I mean, and how does this

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<v Speaker 1>affect our gut?

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<v Speaker 2>So this is definitely an emerging space when we're looking

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<v Speaker 2>at oral contraceptive pills. So our microbiome can influence our

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<v Speaker 2>sex hormones, particularly things like estrogen, but our hormones can

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<v Speaker 2>also influence our microbiomes. So there's definitely this by direction

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<v Speaker 2>and communication that happens. Yes, and so when you're looking

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<v Speaker 2>at putting in exogenous hormones, like with the oral contraceptive pill.

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<v Speaker 2>What the research shows it's quite limited at this space

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<v Speaker 2>in looking at the gut microbiome in particular, But what

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<v Speaker 2>the research shows is that gut community might be pretty stable,

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<v Speaker 2>but their function might change. And a lot of this

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<v Speaker 2>is in very specific populations, like, for example, women that

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<v Speaker 2>have polcistic ovary syndrome, so they might have some changes

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<v Speaker 2>in amino acid metabolism and other functions. But ultimately, when

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<v Speaker 2>we're thinking about what can really disrupt the microbiome, there

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<v Speaker 2>are absolutely other medications that will tend to be more disruptive,

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<v Speaker 2>and one of those is very commonly prescribed, and these

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<v Speaker 2>are proton pump inhibitors. So typically they might be prescribed

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<v Speaker 2>to treat gastrosophagy or reflex disease, or you know, getting

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<v Speaker 2>your doctor you say I've got heartburn and they're like, oh, here,

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<v Speaker 2>take a PPI. Very disruptive because it's changing levels of

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<v Speaker 2>stomach acid and that's potentially enabling the growth of opportunistic

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<v Speaker 2>pathogens or the transit of more pathogens getting from our

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<v Speaker 2>upper gastrointestin trapped and making the way to where they

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<v Speaker 2>probably shouldn't So antibiotics are another component that are often

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<v Speaker 2>essential and life saving, but there is absolutely research showing

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<v Speaker 2>that that can disrupt the gut community, and some work

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<v Speaker 2>even shows it might take six to twelve months to

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<v Speaker 2>restore the gut community.

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<v Speaker 1>Goodness, I've just come off following antibiotics, okay, But on

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<v Speaker 1>the flip side.

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<v Speaker 2>There are definitely supportive mechanisms in place that can help

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<v Speaker 2>you as you're restoring your community. And one of those

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<v Speaker 2>looking at the incorporation of particular probiotics into your diet

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<v Speaker 2>that has been shown to reduce antibiotic associated dysbiosis or

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<v Speaker 2>that disruption and the gut microbiome, and the same with

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<v Speaker 2>proton pump inhibitors. We know that dietary and lifestyle changes

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<v Speaker 2>can be effective in managing reflux disease.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, just quickly before we go, you have to give

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<v Speaker 1>me this answer in a couple of sentences. But if

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<v Speaker 1>we are trying to you know, get pregnant, that's your expertise.

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<v Speaker 1>Or just improve our reproductive health our you know, help

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<v Speaker 1>our cycles become healthier or healthy is so to speak.

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<v Speaker 1>How can can we improve the health of our microbiome today.

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<v Speaker 2>Have a consistent supply of probiotic fiber in your diet.

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<v Speaker 2>And if you want to make that really easy and

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<v Speaker 2>accessible to you, there are ways you can do it

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<v Speaker 2>despite even having a coco late for example, at the

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<v Speaker 2>end of your day. So even in healthy individuals, selected

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<v Speaker 2>probiotics are going to really further enhance your gut community

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<v Speaker 2>and promote the growth of those beneficial species. And if

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<v Speaker 2>that is the foundation for our brain health, metabolism, immune function,

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<v Speaker 2>endocrine function, reproductive health, we want for all the benefits. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 2>we want all the benefits that come to us.

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<v Speaker 1>A few more foods that have these probotics in it.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah. Probartics are found in things like lots of different

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<v Speaker 2>fruits and vegetables, things like onion, chickpeas, b troot, whole week.

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<v Speaker 2>You know, our grains are really important as well, bali rye.

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<v Speaker 2>So again looking at a really great plant based focused

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<v Speaker 2>you know, lots of diversity in what you're reading, and

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<v Speaker 2>abundance in those whole foods and plant based foods will

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<v Speaker 2>be nurturing your microbiome.

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<v Speaker 1>Fora Celia, thank you for joining us on healthy Ish.

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<v Speaker 2>Thank you Felicity.

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<v Speaker 1>Well, time and time again, we are reminded that good

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<v Speaker 1>health starts in the gut. Hey, Cecilia does have a

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<v Speaker 1>book out. She has an online course as well. Her

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<v Speaker 1>book is called Create a Fertile Gut. I will leave

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<v Speaker 1>a link to both of them in the show notes.

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<v Speaker 1>If you did enjoy this chat, if you've got something

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<v Speaker 1>out of it, tell us rate and review this episode,

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<v Speaker 1>or of course, you can subscribe to this podcast. Anything else,

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<v Speaker 1>head to body insoul dot com dot you followus on socials,

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<v Speaker 1>Grab our print edition which is out in your local

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<v Speaker 1>Sunday paper, and until tomorrow, stay healthy ish