The average human has enough endotoxin in their gut at one time to kill 1-5 million people was it to be dumped into their blood all at once. But you get to choose how it affects you. You get to choose whether you poop it out or soak it in.
Why Do Some People Feel Endotoxin and Others Don't?
You can have the exact same amount of endotoxin as the person sitting right next to you, yet they don't feel it. You do. Why? It all comes down to how much can leave your gut and get into your bloodstream, which is determined by:
- Mucus lining thickness
- Gut lining integrity
- Bile flow and composition
- Microbiome
I'm going to show you how to build a body that is barely scratched by endotoxin.
What Role Does the Mucus Lining Play Against Endotoxin?
Let's dig into the mucus lining, the first layer of defense against endotoxin. It acts as a physical and chemical buffer. It keeps bacteria and endotoxin physically far enough away from your gut lining that they can't leak through. But when it's thinned or permeable, it leads to up to 2-3x more endotoxin getting into your blood.
Why does it fail?
- Low butyrate (stimulates mucin production)
- Low phosphatidylcholine (makes it repellent)
- High inflammation (lowers amount produced)
For these three my favourite tools are:
- Phosphatidylcholine (replaces what's missing)
- Boswellia (lowers inflammation, increases production)
- Butyrate rich foods and supplements (stimulated production)
On top of this overall gut lining integrity controls the mucus layer to some extent, so I love things like:
- Zinc L-Carnosine
- Saccharomyces Boulardii (will touch on later)
- N acetyl glucosamine
- Quercetin
These are all integral parts of stacks to keep both the mucus lining and gut lining thick and healthy.
How Can Your Microbiome Break Down Endotoxin Before It Causes Harm?
Now let's get to the juicy part, how bacteria actually can be utilised to break down endotoxin before it's even an issue, and why most people's microbiome aren't doing this and how to restore them.
You see LPS is only toxic when it's in it's raw form, but bacteria like lactobaccilus, bifidobacterium and certain yeasts can snip the phosphate molecule that makes it so toxic right off the LPS. The same LPS? 100x less inflammatory.
On top of this a healthy microbiome naturally regulates the amount of gram negatives reproducing and dying, meaning less actual endotoxin to deactivate.
My favourite tool to rebalance the microbiome and produce large amounts of the enzyme that denatures LPS: Saccharomyces Boulardii. It shifts the microbiome to make it healthier. It improves gut lining health and mucus lining thickness. It produces the very enzyme to break down LPS.
My favourite method of consumption is the SIBO Soda recipe you'll find in my highlights.
Why Is Bile Flow and Composition a Near-Universal Problem in Gut Issues?
One thing I see that's almost universal in people with gut issues is poor bile flow and composition. This is important because bile doesn't just digest fat and keep the small intestine clean. It literally binds and carries out LPS.
You see this in people with about 85% of people who have obstructive jaundice, most of them die from the LPS. Obviously gut issues are almost always less severe, but optimising the flow and the make-up of the bile is extremely important to both control bacterial populations and endotoxin.
The first step to healthy bile is healthy stomach acid, work on the lining of the stomach whilst adding in betaine and enzymes. Support bile flow with bitters, TUDCA, ox bile (short term), as well as the effectiveness of the bile with phosphatidylcholine, taurine and glycine.
What Steps Can You Take to Reduce How Badly Endotoxin Affects You?
Here is how to build a body that shields itself from endotoxin and actively breaks it down:
- Build and maintain a thick mucus lining using phosphatidylcholine, boswellia, and butyrate rich foods and supplements.
- Support gut lining integrity with Zinc L-Carnosine, Saccharomyces Boulardii, N acetyl glucosamine, and quercetin.
- Restore the microbiome so bacteria like lactobaccilus and bifidobacterium can snip the phosphate molecule that makes LPS so toxic right off the LPS.
- Work on healthy stomach acid, the lining of the stomach, and add betaine and enzymes.
- Support bile flow with bitters, TUDCA, ox bile (short term), as well as the effectiveness of the bile with phosphatidylcholine, taurine and glycine.
So by now I've demonstrated that LPS and endotoxin will always be present. But being badly effected by them is optional. If you follow the steps above for optimisation you'll likely feel way less inflamed from what you eat, but also just from existing itself.
