Gut Health: Unravel the Mysteries of Your Digestive System

Gut health. Everyone talks about it nowadays – you’ll hear discussions online, during social gatherings, in doctors’ offices, pharmacies, health food stores, at school pick-up, and especially in functional medicine practices.

“My gut isn’t good” is a phrase we frequently hear from patients who seek our help. But what exactly hides behind this common yet vague complaint?

When patients come to us with gut problems, we first need to carefully explore what symptoms they experience, where they feel discomfort, which foods trigger issues, how symptoms manifest, and most importantly, why these problems occur. In this article, I’ll guide you through the digestive system so you can better understand where things commonly go wrong.

Your digestive system travels about 30 feet through your body, starting at your mouth and ending at, well, the other end. Think of it as a busy train line with many important stations along the way. When problems occur, such as twists in the track or stations that aren’t working properly, they create delays that affect the entire journey. These blockages or malfunctions can overburden the next station, causing the whole digestive process to suffer.

There are 8 important sections in the digestive tract:

When discussing a patient’s digestive system, the functional medicine practitioner will most always begin with the mouth, which serves as the first stop on our digestive journey. First, she asks about what they’re eating and drinking daily. Then, she explores their eating habits—whether they chew thoroughly, sit down for meals or eat on the go, and if they drink lots of fluids while eating. Additionally, she makes sure to explain how these everyday behaviors directly affect how well their body transports and digests food throughout the rest of their digestive tract. After all, good digestion starts right at the very first bite!

After you swallow, food and liquids actively travel down your esophagus. This journey begins when you swallow, and then the food must first pass through the esophageal sphincter. Think of this sphincter as a gateway that actively controls what goes in and out. Usually, it directs everything downward into your stomach, although sometimes things unfortunately make their way back up and out.

The stomach serves as a major processing center, actively performing numerous functions when digesting your food, though various factors can affect how well it works. Take stress, for instance. When you’re feeling anxious or threatened, your stomach essentially “closes for business.” Your body actively prioritizes other needs instead, specifically directing blood to your muscles so you can escape perceived dangers, while simultaneously shutting down digestive processes.

Fortunately, when everything functions properly, your stomach begins to “open for business” as soon as you smell something delicious. Then, once food enters your mouth, a cascade of messages and enzymes actively triggers your stomach to start working. Additionally, your stomach sends signals to the next “processing stations” down the line, essentially telling them, “Hey, get ready! Food is on its way to you soon!”

When we eat food and drink liquids, our liver, gallbladder, pancreas, and small intestine immediately spring into action. First, they receive the nutrients from our meal. Then, they process and break down these nutrients. Finally, they absorb and distribute these essential elements throughout our body. All these organs work together as a team to make sure we get the most from everything we consume.

The small intestine stretches out as the longest part of your digestive highway, extending about 22 feet in length and measuring about 2 inches across. Your body actually absorbs most of what you eat and drink through this important digestive stage, and interestingly, the transit speed affects how well this works. However, when things move too slowly (causing constipation), it’s not ideal for your body, and similarly, when everything rushes through too quickly (resulting in diarrhea and poor absorption), you won’t feel your best either. In fact, many common complaints like bloating and gas typically originate from this particular area of your digestive system.

Despite its name, the large intestine actually measures shorter than the small intestine, stretching only about 5 feet in length. However, it does appear wider and follows a more direct route through your belly or abdomen.

Your large intestine contains six important sections that work together: first the cecum, then the ascending colon, followed by the transverse colon, next the descending colon, then the sigmoid colon, and finally the rectum which leads to the anus. Throughout this remarkable area of your digestive system, many vital processes happen simultaneously. For instance, your body completes its final nutrient absorption here, creates new nutrients, feeds your helpful gut bacteria, forms stool, manages water balance, and even produces hormones, among many other important functions.

When you tell us “my gut isn’t feeling good,” our gut health expert will actively investigate which parts of your digestive system need attention. First, she’ll identify the specific areas along your digestive tract that aren’t functioning properly. Then, she’ll determine what’s causing these issues. Finally, she’ll create targeted treatments to improve both the function and structure of your gut.

This approach reflects our functional medicine philosophy. We firmly believe that your body can heal itself when given the right support, ingredients, and environment.

Want to learn more? We help with many gut health conditions including IBS, bloating, SIBO, acid reflux, heartburn, celiac disease, constipation, diarrhea, food sensitivities, allergies, intolerances, functional dyspepsia, gastritis, IBD, and parasites.

So if you suspect you have any of these conditions, please don’t guess – instead, let us test. Our friendly gut health expert will provide the support you need to get your gut health back on track.