I appreciate that Leaky Gut Syndrome cannot be verified fully by medical science, but I came across this theory as a potential for b12 deficiency symptoms.
Does anyone have any knowledge or experience of leaky gut? And how would it connect to PA?
This video is helpful (if you ignore the shameless advertising)
Interestingly enough when i was researching SIBO some years ago, i came across plenty of references to leaky gut in the medical literature. It seems to finally have been accepted as a thing. A quick search found this article from the mayo clinic. mayoclinic.org/medical-prof...
I couldn't tell you whether it's a cause or effect of B12D/PA but regardless, it does seem related.
Edit - to clarify, i don't think it's a cause of PA (but perhaps results from it eg due to low stomach acid), but could of course cause low b12 is someone without PA. And it could cause malabsorption of other nutrients.
That's helpful thank you so much.
It seems all very complicated, but the pathway of my B12 problems starts with stomach pains from food poisoning, then to suspected bowel cancer, followed by pleomorphic adenoma in my parotid (salivary) gland, followed by a thyroid nodule and then b12 deficiency.
Doctors did not investigate the causes, and because I've had a low meat intake for some years (not fully vegetarian but red meat one a week) it was thought to be diet.
I am also able to absorb sublingually.
But when I think back to the food poisoning (or intense reaction to it) I realise it followed a year of stress, house move, job loss and consistent bloating. I also was drinking more with food than I used to, I think.
So I did start to have stomach pains and issues and bad reactions from alcohol. Then the salivary gland and half thyroid were removed. And about 6 months later I became severely b12 deficient.
So perhaps it cannot be linked directly to PA?
But I am going to self-diagnose and suggest I had Leaky Gut since all the components of the journey seem to add up to it.
Phew that's a lot. Know the feeling. I also had a bad bout of food poisoning and my gut didn't really recover until they figured out the sibo. 2 years pre-B12. My theory's still on low stomach acid - when i had it we were with 4 people, all ate exactly the same food, and i was the only one who got sick.
My ND recently recommended some herbal-type things to reduce GI inflammation so I just ordered "Terra Origin Healthy Gut". I'm planning on restarting lime juice as well. Ugh it's all so difficult sometimes isn't it!
Oh, that's a great recommendation - thanks so much. I may just purchase some Terra Origin and see.
It's tough to be ones own sleuth, right? But I think it's fair enough if you want to understand the root or origins of a deficiency. I can see that's crossed your mind aswell? Especially if there's family history. Mine is of bowel big C, so naturally when I first went to the Doc in 2019 saying I seemed to have extraordinary stomach pain and upset from a bit of uncooked pasta (just moved house and put fresh pasta in the cupboard when it should've gone in the fridge. At least everything else with the move went well!)
So when their first question was 'Do you have a history of bowel cancer in the family'? my heart sank. Since it took my dad young and most of his family on his Mum's side.
Thank goodness it was a few polyps they could remove. And a good incentive to get it checked even though I was ten years younger than when my Dad had it.
But everything else - Thyroid, saliva gland, B12 - seems to add up to Leaky Gut. I also was quite a boozer in my twenties and may have pushed the limits a little bit. Don't drink at all now. ...
Good luck in your investigations! I think it's a fair plight to want to know where the hole is in your own bucket. And if the Dr's can't work it out, there's always Google and a period of isolation/working from home to ponder it! (Not too much though 
All the best
Leaky gut .... I followed a diet by Dr Axe, and felt an awful lot better even though I didnt like certain foods. I just added barbecue Sauce so I could eat it. 😜
I believe that the chap who first posited the theory of leaky gut no long believes its a viable theory, but it has become such a marketable buzz phrase.If you have PA it is much more likely that the issue is low stomach acidity and the consequences that has for development of things like SIBO, and issues with digesting food.
Just listening to the film you tube link and have to say that it just sounds like sales hype - born out by the promotion of products etc. Please be very wary of infomercials.
Whilst there is a lot of research going on into how food affects us - I haven't come across anything from sources I'd consider reputable about shoving a load of supplements down the gut - everything I've come across emphasises the importance of getting micronutrients from a variety of foods and balancing the need for fibre in diet etc.
Many people experience gut issues because they consume, for example, too much caffeine.My gut health has improved considerably since I cut down the amount of coffee I was drinking in the last year.
I thought this was interesting, from third year medical students:
There are labs that can evidence leaky gut e.g. high Zonulin levels etc. The idea that it’s just a hypothesis is propagated by allopathic doctors who generally haven’t kept up to date with latest research.
Working on my leaky gut (ie removing damaging foods and supplementing with evidenced based supplement a from Invivo to rebuild the gut wall) has transformed my life.
This is excellent, thank you.
The intestinal permeability is the key here isn't it?
I had a stress trigger, poor convenience food diet, was drinking (and binged in my twenties working in the City of London as a broker so could have weakened the gut then). Then a house move, Cancer worry, job loss. When I went to the GP he offered to sign me off work for stress. But by that point the damage was done and I was on a contract anyway.
Lost half a thyroid, then the stress of Covid pandemic, stress of an operation during Covid, followed by B12 meltdown.
Doctors should be investigating more into the gut if people are stressed.
I have various autoimmune conditions some of which are rare.
As a teenager I suspected I had Lupus but was labeled with M.E and chronic fatigue. After years of suffering I sought natural medicines and booked myself and a friend into a holistic retreat, it was here that I learnt about leaky gut.
The retreat was run by a very knowledgeable German Dr who carried out various tests and showed us films of a leaky gut. This was explained to us as damage caused by Candida ( a yeast infection ).
Many alcoholics suffer with yeast infections due to the yeast and sugar consumed in what they drink. ( Yeast and sugar ferment in the gut )
I hope this has shed some light on leaky gut syndrome - apparently the candida spores attach themselves to the gut linning causing tiny holes which let toxin's escape.
From there I asked the Dr if I could be funded on the NHS to attend the Royal Homeopathic Hospital in Great Ormond Street ( I am going back some years ). I thought if it were good enough for the Royals it was good enough for me.
My father was a baker so as a youngster bread, cakes ect were plentiful - hence my yeast overgrowth and gluten intolerance.
I had to go on a special diet of which they refered to as safe foods, lamb, carrots and potaoes were consumed for breakfast dinner and tea and spring water as a beverage which I kept up for 3 months. The results were outstanding to say the least. For my alergies I were given desensitizing injections but for personal reasons I were no longer able to travel to London and my treatment stopped.
I went on to develope other conditions or did I ? Perhaps they had been present from birth. The other conditions confused the picture somewhat and due to the rarity I was seen, used as a guinea pig at various hospitals. The Folate and B12 deficiency came at a later date albeit I suspected it had been present for a few years.
My antibodies are destroying my already weakend gut and absorbtion. When I were diagnosed with Hypoparathyroidism at St Marys Hospital in London (1967) it was found I were malnourished but in those days they were not very knowledgable about my condition. There wasn't any reason for me to be under nourished as I ate a good balanced diet !
That's a very interesting set of insights, JillyMo, thank you so much for sharing.
I think the yeast infection makes sense. Particularly if someone, me, consumes too many carbohydrates. I do love my baked goods.
I couldn't imagine eating a lamb, carrots and potatoes meal for breakfast. But I think it makes alot of sense what you've said. How lucky and well done you for getting the homoeopathic treatment out of the GP back then. Do they call it integrated medicine now?
I did go to see an acupuncturist before I got the B12 diagnosed. He said as much to me too, that I was malnourished. I couldn't quite understand that, but realised I had simply been so stressed and was always reaching for quick convenient food - pizza, pasta, microwave meals, takeaways. But whatever the reason for the gut malfunction, it's reassuring to hear that food can be a road back to good health (if not a cure for PA) !
Candida is the cause of a lot of gut issues. We consume far to much bread and eat a lot of sugar, stick a few alcoholic drinks on top and there's the problem. Once the gut starts to leak it is hard to repair,even natural sugars in fruit can restart an overgrowth -hence the strict diet I were put on.
If you had felt as ill as I you would have eaten 🐄 💩 if it made you feel normal and able to function.
Do they call it intergrated medicine now days ? 🤔
I dont think its called anything these days your lucky to see a damned consultant let alone get sent to a homeopathic hospital, I am going back a good 35years or more. They cant even fund our B12 injections let alone fund for anything else.
Strange to hear that an acupuncturist would say you were malnourished! I wouldn't have thought it to be their department to do so I had to have all sorts of test before being told I were malnourished.
I have to disagree with food being a cure for PA, there is a reason for the condition which is due to an absorbtion problem ------
Pernicious anemia is one cause of vitamin B12 deficiency anemia.
It's thought to mainly be caused by an autoimmune process that makes a person unable to produce a substance in the stomach called intrinsic factor. This substance is needed to absorb dietary vitamin B12 in the small intestine. Common causes of pernicious anemia include: Weakened stomach lining (atrophic gastritis) An autoimmune condition in which the body's immune system attacks the actual intrinsic factor protein or the cells in the lining of your stomach that make it.
I suffer with atrophic gastritis and I could eat as many foods as I like containing B12 but wouldn't be able to absorb, hence daily injections.
Those that eat a poor diet, such as vegans or those that heavily drink have a different form of the deficiency.
I was brought up on three meals a day with the main meal containing meat and veg, where as many youngsters today live on fast food. Many children are brought up on chicken nuggets which contain little or no nutrition where as PA is a totally different ball game and nothing to do with diet.
Good to know!
The acunpuncturist went by the name of 'Dr ...' and it was during the third lockdown that I went. I'd already been to the GP months before and was told it was stress, but as things worsened I thought I could try acupuncture as it had worked before. And he was the only one available.
He literally looked at my tongue and checked my pulse for 5 minutes before telling me I was malnourished. I guess they have their ways! Maybe doesn't always hit the mark, but neither do Western GP's. I just thought that was interesting and then went to my GP.
I don't think I explained myself properly - I didn't want to suggest that diet could heal PA. I'm certain there isn't a cure. I think I just meant that at least food could be a way out of leaky gut, or healing the gut, or not making it any worse.
I still don't know exactly what caused my B12. I wasn't a strict Veggie - I had a low meat consumption but I did eat it about once a week. Maybe that wasn't enough for what the body needs.
Either way, I suspect it's a combination of lifestyle, work and family stress, bad eating, bad sleeping, the odd drink with a meal and generally rushing around like a headless wotsit before hitting 40 when my body told me - enough!
Pickle500 your story has some similarities with my own.
In brief, my history is that I was diagnosed with Graves’ disease (overactive thyroid) but fortunately after nearly 2 years of medication I went into remission and haven’t needed any other treatment.
10 years later, I started having gut issues, mainly bloating and constipation, also alcohol intolerance. I then, out of the blue, had a severe allergic reaction to eating a peach and had anaphylaxis. The NHS specialist suggested I had low stomach acid and a leaky gut which allowed undigested peach proteins to leak out of my system. My immune system mistakenly thought I was being invaded by birch tree pollen (which I’m actually allergic to) as peach protein is bio identical to birch tree pollen.
The specialist tested me for parietal cell antibodies, presumably looking for a reason for low stomach acid. This test was positive. I was advised to avoid raw peaches and other stone fruits and that was that.
A year later, when I went for my annual thyroid blood tests, my excellent GP added a test for B12. I hadn’t complained of B12d symptoms, he must’ve decided to do this because of the parietal cell antibodies.
The test showed my serum B12 to be below range, active B12 was below range (in fact below the level at which the lab could measure it) and IFAb was positive.
By then I was suffering bloating, constipation, alcohol intolerance, extreme tiredness, tinnitus, tingling fingers and slight burning feet.
I now si twice a week and I feel mostly good. Smaller meals help the bloating/constipation as do probiotics and using betaine hcl. I limit alcohol consumption to a couple of glasses of wine once a week. The tiredness is mostly under control and my fingers are fine. The soles of my feet still have an uncomfortable burning sensation in bed, especially when it’s warm. The tinnitus has never gone away and if anything is worsening.
But on balance I lead an active life and feel good much of the time and I’m very grateful for that!
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