A major gastroenterology study found that people who think they're gluten intolerant actually react to fructans — a carbohydrate in wheat that has nothing to do with gluten.
The Diary Of A CEO with Steven Bartlett
A major gastroenterology study found that people who think they're gluten intolerant actually react to fructans — a carbohydrate in wheat that has nothing to do with gluten.
TL;DR
Dr. Will Bulsiewicz, a leading gastroenterologist, reveals that most people blaming gluten for bloating and digestive discomfort are likely reacting to fructans instead [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "A study in Gastroenterology — the top journal in the field — sent self-reported gluten-sensitive people home with three breakfast bars. The…" 12:36 . A landmark study in the journal Gastroenterology found that self-reported gluten-sensitive people had fewer symptoms eating a gluten bar than a placebo, but were triggered by fructans [2] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "US wheat is routinely sprayed with glyphosate (Roundup) as a drying agent — a practice banned in organic farming and uncommon in Europe. Gl…" 10:05 . He also explains why constipation is the number one cause of gas, why glyphosate in US wheat may explain the "Italy effect," and how antibiotics double your risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease within a year [3] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Glyphosate depletes beneficial gut bacteria: Glyphosate (Roundup), used to dry wheat crops in the US, disrupts the gut microbiome by deplet…" 11:11 . The single most actionable takeaway: try sourdough or organic pasta before cutting gluten entirely.
Dr. Will Bulsiewicz reveals why bloating, gas and constipation are often misunderstood, and why the real trigger behind your symptoms might not be gluten. He explains the microbiome's role in digestion, inflammation and long-term gut health.
The episode opens with a sponsor read from Steven Bartlett for Helix Sleep. Bartlett invokes Matthew Walker and other leading experts who've appeared on the show, all of whom describe sleep as the biggest positive investment you can make in your own performance. The Helix mattress is positioned as tailored to your specific sleep needs — whether you run hot, sleep on your side, or need a firm surface. Bartlett mentions that a team member named Juan received a Helix mattress and reported the best sleep of his life. The pitch is backed by a Helix-commissioned statistic: 82% of study participants saw an increase in deep sleep. The segment closes with a 27% off offer at helixsleep.com/diary, valid with a 120-night trial.
Steven Bartlett kicks off the gut health segment by asking the fundamental question: if you experience bloating, discomfort, or irregular digestion, does that mean something is wrong? Dr. Bulsiewicz is careful not to pathologise normal human experience — everyone gets bloated once in a while, he says, and occasional symptoms are not a red flag. The real concern is chronicity: if you wake up every morning hoping today won't be a bad gut day, you have a problem worth addressing. He emphasises that solutions need to be personalised, but the range of tools available to everyone is the same — it's just a matter of identifying where the opportunities lie for each individual.
When asked what causes excessive gas and flatulence, Dr. Bulsiewicz goes straight to his number one suspect: constipation. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Millions of people are constipated without realising it because they equate frequency with health. Constipation is about incomplete emptyin…" 03:31 But his definition will surprise most listeners. Constipation is not simply failing to go — it is the failure to adequately empty your bowels. This means a person who visits the bathroom three or four times a day could still be chronically constipated if each visit only produces a partial movement. Bulsiewicz describes the scenario graphically but accessibly: the struggle, the unsatisfying nugget, the lingering sensation that you still need to go. He also explains the gas connection — gas travels with poop. When stool stagnates, the microbes within it have unlimited time to ferment whatever they encounter, producing gas continuously until the bowel is properly emptied. The morning farting pattern many people recognise — gas until the first proper bowel movement — is a direct consequence of this mechanism.
To explain why gas and constipation are so tightly linked, Dr. Bulsiewicz reframes what poop actually is. Most people assume stool is primarily the waste from food — but 60% of its weight is microbial. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Your stool is not primarily food waste. 60% of its weight is microbial — living bacteria from your gut. Feed those microbes with prebiotic …" 07:13 This single fact changes everything about how we think about digestion. Bulsiewicz makes the concept tangible with a thought experiment: if he added invisible soluble prebiotic fiber to your drink right now, you'd have a noticeably larger, healthier bowel movement tomorrow, simply because you fed your gut microbes and they multiplied. When stool is stuck in gridlock — as in constipation — those same microbes sit idle with unlimited time to ferment anything they touch, whether it's fiber or protein. The result is the excess gas and bloating that millions of people incorrectly attribute to specific foods. He also introduces the gut microbiome's remarkable enzymatic toolkit: roughly 60,000 enzymes that humans don't possess, which microbes use as teams to break fiber into short-chain fatty acids — the healthy metabolites that feed the colon lining.
Prompted by Steven Bartlett's question about dairy and gluten, Dr. Bulsiewicz builds a complete framework for understanding gas and bloating. The first cause is motility — the rhythm of intestinal movement. Too fast means diarrhoea; too slow means constipation. A regular, predictable rhythm, he notes, is even part of your circadian biology. The second cause is a damaged microbiome that lacks the enzymatic power to properly process fiber. The third cause is dietary: specific components in food that are easily fermented. Gluten itself, being a protein, can technically be fermented, but Bulsiewicz argues that's not what's actually happening. The real culprits in wheat-containing foods are fructans — long-chain carbohydrates that are excellent for a healthy microbiome but troublesome for people whose gut bacteria are compromised. This sets up the central argument of the episode.
When Steven Bartlett mentions that he struggles with pasta in the UK but hasn't really tested it in Italy, Dr. Bulsiewicz sees an opening to introduce one of the episode's most provocative claims. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "US wheat is routinely sprayed with glyphosate (Roundup) as a drying agent — a practice banned in organic farming and uncommon in Europe. Gl…" 10:05 US law permits farmers to spray wheat crops with glyphosate — the active ingredient in Roundup herbicide — as a quick-drying agent before harvest. The economic logic is simple: wait two weeks for natural drying, or spray and ship tomorrow. The problem is that glyphosate doesn't appear on any food label and is invisible to consumers unless they buy certified organic. The chemical works by blocking the Shikimate pathway, which kills plants and harms gut microbes (but not humans, who have a metabolic workaround). The result, Bulsiewicz argues, is that trace amounts of glyphosate in food shift the balance of the microbiome — depleting beneficial bacteria while the most inflammatory strains remain. For people who eat American wheat but are fine in Italy (where this practice is uncommon), this may explain the discrepancy entirely.
The clinical proof for the fructan hypothesis arrives via a study published in Gastroenterology — the leading journal in Dr. Bulsiewicz's field. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "A study in Gastroenterology — the top journal in the field — sent self-reported gluten-sensitive people home with three breakfast bars. The…" 12:36 Researchers sent participants home with three types of breakfast bars: a placebo, a bar with high gluten concentration, and a bar loaded with fructans. The subjects were people who did not have celiac disease but believed they had a gluten problem — essentially the cohort of self-diagnosed gluten-sensitive individuals that has exploded in recent years. The result was striking: the gluten bar actually caused fewer symptoms than the placebo. But the fructan bar triggered them clearly. Bulsiewicz's conclusion is unambiguous: gluten intolerance has been misnamed on a massive scale. What people are really experiencing is a fructan intolerance. Fructans are found in wheat, barley, rye, garlic, and onions. The fermentation process in sourdough bread reduces fructan content substantially — which is why sourdough is often tolerated by people who react to regular bread. Crucially, this also means that cutting gluten doesn't solve the problem unless you address fructans too.
After establishing that fructan intolerance, not gluten intolerance, is the real condition, Dr. Bulsiewicz broadens the lens. Garlic and onions — classic triggers for people who complain of severe bloating — are also rich in fructans, making this a dietary pattern issue, not a wheat-specific one. He notes that there are many different types of fructans, and a person may only react to a subset of them, making individual variation important. For those needing alternatives, he names teff, amaranth, sorghum, and quinoa as whole grains that contain neither gluten nor fructans — a practically useful list for listeners managing these symptoms.
Bartlett asks the natural follow-up: if the gut has been damaged, how long does it take to recover? Bulsiewicz responds that the answer is entirely dependent on the severity of the starting point. He introduces the term 'dysbiosis' — the clinical word for a damaged gut microbiome — and places it on a spectrum. At the severe end sit ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, which he describes as the deepest forms of dysbiosis. For these patients, full reversal may not be possible, but he notes that remission — a state so deep that a person experiences no flares — absolutely is. Using a physical model of the large intestine visible on the YouTube version of the show, he illustrates what IBD inflammation looks like: a raw, ulcerated, bleeding patch that is acutely sensitive to contact.
One of the episode's most conceptually important moments is Bulsiewicz's reframing of inflammatory bowel disease. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Inflammatory bowel disease is widely described as autoimmune, but Dr. Bulsiewicz disagrees. The immune system isn't attacking the intestine…" 16:45 Conventionally described as autoimmune — the body attacking itself — he argues this label is technically wrong. The immune system is not targeting intestinal tissue; it is targeting the gut microbiome and rejecting it. The intestines suffer because they sit between the immune system and the microbiome it's trying to destroy. The root cause, he explains, lies in early development. Humans are born with almost no microbiome and spend the first three years of life building one through experience. During that window, the immune system learns to recognise the microbiome as friendly. In IBD patients, this learning failed — the immune system was either not exposed to a sufficiently healthy microbiome in childhood, or something disrupted that process. The result is a lifelong immune war against the very organisms the gut depends on.
Bartlett presses on causality: is IBD a lifestyle disease? Bulsiewicz is honest about the genetic component — these are not conditions entirely within a person's control. But genetics alone can't explain the trajectory. IBD was rare decades ago and remains almost nonexistent in Africa and other non-industrialized regions. The moment a country industrialises, cases begin rising. Within the United States, this trend is quantifiable: from 1970 to 2010, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease cases rose by up to 55%. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "From 1970 to 2010, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease cases in the US rose by up to 55%. Inflammatory bowel disease is almost absent in…" 18:50 Bulsiewicz rejects any evolutionary explanation for this — there is no survival advantage to severe gut dysfunction. The pattern points overwhelmingly to environmental causes introduced by modern industrialized life: processed foods, chemical additives, antibiotic use, and changes to the microbiome that accumulate across generations.
The episode's most alarming statistic arrives near the end: taking antibiotics doubles your risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease within the following year. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Taking a single course of antibiotics doubles your risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease within the next year. Antibiotics are the …" 20:05 Bulsiewicz frames this as the natural extension of the earlier antibiotic conversation. Antibiotics don't discriminate — they wipe out beneficial and harmful bacteria alike, reduce overall gut diversity, and disrupt the gut barrier by approximately 50% during a single course. Simultaneously, they activate the immune system. This combination — depleted microbiome, compromised barrier, activated immunity — is precisely the environment in which chronic inflammatory conditions take root. The risk applies to both adults and children, making it especially relevant for parents making decisions about antibiotic use for their kids. Bulsiewicz is not saying never take antibiotics; but the message is clear: every course carries a cost.
Bartlett closes out the 'most replayed moment' format by signalling that what listeners just heard was an excerpt from a longer episode, with the full version linked in the description. He then transitions to the second sponsor read of the episode: NetSuite by Oracle. The pitch is framed around the risks of deploying AI in a disorganised business — AI can only use the information it can see, so fragmented data is a liability. NetSuite is presented as a single connected source of truth that links financials, inventory, commerce, HR, and CRM. NetSuite Next, the newest version, has AI built directly into this connected system, enabling plain-English queries about your business. The offer is unusual: a free trial is available for the first time ever, but only for businesses generating at least seven figures. Listeners are directed to netsuite.ai/bartlett.
Chapter 3 · 02:10
When asked what causes excessive gas and flatulence, Dr. Bulsiewicz goes straight to his number one suspect: constipation. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Millions of people are constipated without realising it because they equate frequency with health. Constipation is about incomplete emptyin…" 03:31 But his definition will surprise most listeners. Constipation is not simply failing to go — it is the failure to adequately empty your bowels. This means a person who visits the bathroom three or four times a day could still be chronically constipated if each visit only produces a partial movement. Bulsiewicz describes the scenario graphically but accessibly: the struggle, the unsatisfying nugget, the lingering sensation that you still need to go. He also explains the gas connection — gas travels with poop. When stool stagnates, the microbes within it have unlimited time to ferment whatever they encounter, producing gas continuously until the bowel is properly emptied. The morning farting pattern many people recognise — gas until the first proper bowel movement — is a direct consequence of this mechanism.
Millions of people are constipated without realising it because they equate frequency with health. Constipation is about incomplete emptying — you can poop three times a day and still only be doing 20–25% poops.
Dr. Bulsiewicz identifies constipation as the single most common cause of gas and bloating, even in people who poop daily.
The majority of your stool by weight is not leftover food but living microbes from your gut microbiome.
Gas and bloating have three main drivers: poor intestinal motility (constipation or diarrhea), a damaged microbiome that can't break down fiber, and specific dietary triggers like lactose and fructans. Most people only focus on the third.
Chapter 4 · 06:30
To explain why gas and constipation are so tightly linked, Dr. Bulsiewicz reframes what poop actually is. Most people assume stool is primarily the waste from food — but 60% of its weight is microbial. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Your stool is not primarily food waste. 60% of its weight is microbial — living bacteria from your gut. Feed those microbes with prebiotic …" 07:13 This single fact changes everything about how we think about digestion. Bulsiewicz makes the concept tangible with a thought experiment: if he added invisible soluble prebiotic fiber to your drink right now, you'd have a noticeably larger, healthier bowel movement tomorrow, simply because you fed your gut microbes and they multiplied. When stool is stuck in gridlock — as in constipation — those same microbes sit idle with unlimited time to ferment anything they touch, whether it's fiber or protein. The result is the excess gas and bloating that millions of people incorrectly attribute to specific foods. He also introduces the gut microbiome's remarkable enzymatic toolkit: roughly 60,000 enzymes that humans don't possess, which microbes use as teams to break fiber into short-chain fatty acids — the healthy metabolites that feed the colon lining.
Claims made here
60% of the weight of human stool is microbial, not food residue.
Gut microbes possess approximately 60,000 enzymes that humans do not have, enabling them to digest dietary fiber.
Morning gas isn't random — it's trapped with stagnant stool. Once your bowel movement happens, the gas clears. This is because 60% of your stool is living microbes, which ferment anything they contact when stool stops moving.
Your stool is not primarily food waste. 60% of its weight is microbial — living bacteria from your gut. Feed those microbes with prebiotic fiber and they multiply, producing a bigger, healthier bowel movement.
Gut microbes possess around 60,000 enzymes that humans don't have, enabling them to break down dietary fiber into short-chain fatty acids.
Chapter 5 · 09:20
Prompted by Steven Bartlett's question about dairy and gluten, Dr. Bulsiewicz builds a complete framework for understanding gas and bloating. The first cause is motility — the rhythm of intestinal movement. Too fast means diarrhoea; too slow means constipation. A regular, predictable rhythm, he notes, is even part of your circadian biology. The second cause is a damaged microbiome that lacks the enzymatic power to properly process fiber. The third cause is dietary: specific components in food that are easily fermented. Gluten itself, being a protein, can technically be fermented, but Bulsiewicz argues that's not what's actually happening. The real culprits in wheat-containing foods are fructans — long-chain carbohydrates that are excellent for a healthy microbiome but troublesome for people whose gut bacteria are compromised. This sets up the central argument of the episode.
Claims made here
US wheat is legally sprayed with glyphosate (Roundup) as a drying agent before harvest; this practice is not permitted in organic farming.
Around 80% of Angelenos avoid gluten, but most don't need to — and going unnecessarily gluten-free can cause its own problems if you don't know the right dietary adaptations to make.
US wheat is routinely sprayed with glyphosate (Roundup) as a drying agent — a practice banned in organic farming and uncommon in Europe. Glyphosate decimates beneficial gut bacteria while leaving inflammatory strains intact, which may explain why some people who react to American wheat are fine with Italian pasta.
Chapter 6 · 10:40
When Steven Bartlett mentions that he struggles with pasta in the UK but hasn't really tested it in Italy, Dr. Bulsiewicz sees an opening to introduce one of the episode's most provocative claims. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "US wheat is routinely sprayed with glyphosate (Roundup) as a drying agent — a practice banned in organic farming and uncommon in Europe. Gl…" 10:05 US law permits farmers to spray wheat crops with glyphosate — the active ingredient in Roundup herbicide — as a quick-drying agent before harvest. The economic logic is simple: wait two weeks for natural drying, or spray and ship tomorrow. The problem is that glyphosate doesn't appear on any food label and is invisible to consumers unless they buy certified organic. The chemical works by blocking the Shikimate pathway, which kills plants and harms gut microbes (but not humans, who have a metabolic workaround). The result, Bulsiewicz argues, is that trace amounts of glyphosate in food shift the balance of the microbiome — depleting beneficial bacteria while the most inflammatory strains remain. For people who eat American wheat but are fine in Italy (where this practice is uncommon), this may explain the discrepancy entirely.
Claims made here
Glyphosate blocks the Shikimate pathway, which kills plants and harms gut microbes because — unlike humans — they cannot produce the necessary amino acids through an alternative route.
Glyphosate disrupts the gut microbiome by depleting beneficial bacteria while the inflammatory strains that remain are more tolerant of it.
A study published in Gastroenterology found that self-reported gluten-sensitive people had fewer symptoms eating a high-gluten bar than a placebo bar, but were triggered by a fructan-containing bar.
Fermenting wheat dough (as in sourdough) reduces its fructan content, which is why people with fructan sensitivity can often tolerate sourdough but not regular bread.
Glyphosate (Roundup), used to dry wheat crops in the US, disrupts the gut microbiome by depleting beneficial bacteria while leaving inflammatory strains intact.
Fermenting wheat dough reduces its fructan content. That's why people who struggle with bread often tolerate sourdough fine — the fermentation process digests the fructans before you eat them. It's not magic; it's chemistry.
A study in Gastroenterology — the top journal in the field — sent self-reported gluten-sensitive people home with three breakfast bars. The gluten bar caused fewer symptoms than the placebo. The fructan bar triggered them. What millions call gluten intolerance is actually a fructan intolerance.
Fermenting wheat dough to make sourdough significantly reduces its fructan content, which explains why some people tolerate sourdough but not regular bread.
Chapter 7 · 12:55
The clinical proof for the fructan hypothesis arrives via a study published in Gastroenterology — the leading journal in Dr. Bulsiewicz's field. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "A study in Gastroenterology — the top journal in the field — sent self-reported gluten-sensitive people home with three breakfast bars. The…" 12:36 Researchers sent participants home with three types of breakfast bars: a placebo, a bar with high gluten concentration, and a bar loaded with fructans. The subjects were people who did not have celiac disease but believed they had a gluten problem — essentially the cohort of self-diagnosed gluten-sensitive individuals that has exploded in recent years. The result was striking: the gluten bar actually caused fewer symptoms than the placebo. But the fructan bar triggered them clearly. Bulsiewicz's conclusion is unambiguous: gluten intolerance has been misnamed on a massive scale. What people are really experiencing is a fructan intolerance. Fructans are found in wheat, barley, rye, garlic, and onions. The fermentation process in sourdough bread reduces fructan content substantially — which is why sourdough is often tolerated by people who react to regular bread. Crucially, this also means that cutting gluten doesn't solve the problem unless you address fructans too.
Claims made here
Gluten-containing foods such as wheat, barley, and rye also contain fructans, and it is the fructans — not gluten — that cause digestive symptoms in most self-reported gluten-sensitive people.
In a Gastroenterology journal study, self-reported gluten-sensitive people had fewer symptoms from a high-gluten bar than from a placebo bar.
People who believe they are gluten intolerant are likely reacting to fructans, a carbohydrate in wheat, barley, and rye — not gluten itself.
Chapter 9 · 16:45
Bartlett asks the natural follow-up: if the gut has been damaged, how long does it take to recover? Bulsiewicz responds that the answer is entirely dependent on the severity of the starting point. He introduces the term 'dysbiosis' — the clinical word for a damaged gut microbiome — and places it on a spectrum. At the severe end sit ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease, which he describes as the deepest forms of dysbiosis. For these patients, full reversal may not be possible, but he notes that remission — a state so deep that a person experiences no flares — absolutely is. Using a physical model of the large intestine visible on the YouTube version of the show, he illustrates what IBD inflammation looks like: a raw, ulcerated, bleeding patch that is acutely sensitive to contact.
Inflammatory bowel disease is widely described as autoimmune, but Dr. Bulsiewicz disagrees. The immune system isn't attacking the intestines — it's attacking the microbiome inside them. The intestines are just caught in the crossfire.
Chapter 10 · 17:55
One of the episode's most conceptually important moments is Bulsiewicz's reframing of inflammatory bowel disease. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Inflammatory bowel disease is widely described as autoimmune, but Dr. Bulsiewicz disagrees. The immune system isn't attacking the intestine…" 16:45 Conventionally described as autoimmune — the body attacking itself — he argues this label is technically wrong. The immune system is not targeting intestinal tissue; it is targeting the gut microbiome and rejecting it. The intestines suffer because they sit between the immune system and the microbiome it's trying to destroy. The root cause, he explains, lies in early development. Humans are born with almost no microbiome and spend the first three years of life building one through experience. During that window, the immune system learns to recognise the microbiome as friendly. In IBD patients, this learning failed — the immune system was either not exposed to a sufficiently healthy microbiome in childhood, or something disrupted that process. The result is a lifelong immune war against the very organisms the gut depends on.
Claims made here
By three years of age, a child's microbiome reaches full adult size, and the immune system learns to recognise the microbiome as friendly during this window.
By age three, the human microbiome reaches adult size, and the immune system learns from it during this critical window — shaping lifelong immune health.
Chapter 11 · 18:50
Bartlett presses on causality: is IBD a lifestyle disease? Bulsiewicz is honest about the genetic component — these are not conditions entirely within a person's control. But genetics alone can't explain the trajectory. IBD was rare decades ago and remains almost nonexistent in Africa and other non-industrialized regions. The moment a country industrialises, cases begin rising. Within the United States, this trend is quantifiable: from 1970 to 2010, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease cases rose by up to 55%. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "From 1970 to 2010, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease cases in the US rose by up to 55%. Inflammatory bowel disease is almost absent in…" 18:50 Bulsiewicz rejects any evolutionary explanation for this — there is no survival advantage to severe gut dysfunction. The pattern points overwhelmingly to environmental causes introduced by modern industrialized life: processed foods, chemical additives, antibiotic use, and changes to the microbiome that accumulate across generations.
Claims made here
Inflammatory bowel disease is rare in Africa and developing countries but rises sharply as countries industrialize.
From 1970 to 2010 in the United States, cases of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease increased by up to 55%.
From 1970 to 2010, ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease cases in the US rose by up to 55%. Inflammatory bowel disease is almost absent in Africa and developing nations but spikes as countries industrialize — pointing to environmental, not purely genetic, causes.
Inflammatory bowel disease is rare in Africa and other developing regions but rises sharply as countries industrialize, pointing to environmental and dietary causes.
Between 1970 and 2010 in the United States, cases of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease increased by up to 55%.
Chapter 12 · 20:05
The episode's most alarming statistic arrives near the end: taking antibiotics doubles your risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease within the following year. [1] — Dr. Will Bulsiewicz "Taking a single course of antibiotics doubles your risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease within the next year. Antibiotics are the …" 20:05 Bulsiewicz frames this as the natural extension of the earlier antibiotic conversation. Antibiotics don't discriminate — they wipe out beneficial and harmful bacteria alike, reduce overall gut diversity, and disrupt the gut barrier by approximately 50% during a single course. Simultaneously, they activate the immune system. This combination — depleted microbiome, compromised barrier, activated immunity — is precisely the environment in which chronic inflammatory conditions take root. The risk applies to both adults and children, making it especially relevant for parents making decisions about antibiotic use for their kids. Bulsiewicz is not saying never take antibiotics; but the message is clear: every course carries a cost.
Claims made here
Taking antibiotics doubles the risk of developing an inflammatory bowel disease in the following year.
Antibiotics disrupt the gut barrier by approximately 50% during a course of treatment and reduce gut bacterial diversity.
Taking a single course of antibiotics doubles your risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease within the next year. Antibiotics are the fastest thing that can decimate gut diversity and disrupt the gut barrier — by 50% — while simultaneously activating the immune system.
Taking antibiotics doubles your risk of developing an inflammatory bowel disease in the following year by decimating gut diversity.
A course of antibiotics disrupts the gut barrier by approximately 50%, wiping out beneficial bacteria and activating the immune system.
No indexed bits in this chapter.
A study in Gastroenterology — the top journal in the field — sent self-reported gluten-sensitive people home with three breakfast bars. The gluten bar caused fewer symptoms than the placebo. The fructan bar triggered them. What millions call gluten intolerance is actually a fructan intolerance.
US wheat is routinely sprayed with glyphosate (Roundup) as a drying agent — a practice banned in organic farming and uncommon in Europe. Glyphosate decimates beneficial gut bacteria while leaving inflammatory strains intact, which may explain why some people who react to American wheat are fine with Italian pasta.
Taking a single course of antibiotics doubles your risk of developing inflammatory bowel disease within the next year. Antibiotics are the fastest thing that can decimate gut diversity and disrupt the gut barrier — by 50% — while simultaneously activating the immune system.
This episode
A form of inflammatory bowel disease discussed as an extreme example of gut dysbiosis; rare in developing nations but rising with industrialization.
A form of inflammatory bowel disease; cases in the US rose by up to 55% from 1970 to 2010.
Sleep expert referenced by host Steven Bartlett in the sponsor segment as an authority who endorses sleep as the biggest positive investment in performance.
Episode sponsor offering personalised mattresses; a Helix study cited claims 82% of users saw increased deep sleep.
Herbicide (Roundup) sprayed on US wheat crops as a drying agent; argued to disrupt the gut microbiome by depleting beneficial bacteria.
AI-powered business management suite by Oracle; end-of-episode sponsor offering a free trial for businesses generating 7 figures or more.
Described as the top journal in the gastroenterology field; cited as the publication of the key fructan vs. gluten study.
Discussed as a country where wheat is sprayed with glyphosate and where IBD rates rose sharply between 1970 and 2010.
Used as a contrasting example where people who react to US wheat often find they can eat pasta without symptoms, due to different wheat processing practices.
Cited as a region where inflammatory bowel disease is very rare, contrasting with rapidly industrialising nations where rates climb.
Used as an anecdotal example where Dr. Bulsiewicz estimates roughly 80% of the population follows a gluten-free diet, most unnecessarily.
Stats
This episode
Factual claims made this episode, and whether a source was named.
60% of the weight of human stool is microbial, not food residue.
Gut microbes possess approximately 60,000 enzymes that humans do not have, enabling them to digest dietary fiber.
A study published in Gastroenterology found that self-reported gluten-sensitive people had fewer symptoms eating a high-gluten bar than a placebo bar, but were triggered by a fructan-containing bar.
Gluten-containing foods such as wheat, barley, and rye also contain fructans, and it is the fructans — not gluten — that cause digestive symptoms in most self-reported gluten-sensitive people.
US wheat is legally sprayed with glyphosate (Roundup) as a drying agent before harvest; this practice is not permitted in organic farming.
Glyphosate disrupts the gut microbiome by depleting beneficial bacteria while the inflammatory strains that remain are more tolerant of it.
Glyphosate blocks the Shikimate pathway, which kills plants and harms gut microbes because — unlike humans — they cannot produce the necessary amino acids through an alternative route.
Fermenting wheat dough (as in sourdough) reduces its fructan content, which is why people with fructan sensitivity can often tolerate sourdough but not regular bread.
From 1970 to 2010 in the United States, cases of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease increased by up to 55%.
Taking antibiotics doubles the risk of developing an inflammatory bowel disease in the following year.
Antibiotics disrupt the gut barrier by approximately 50% during a course of treatment and reduce gut bacterial diversity.
By three years of age, a child's microbiome reaches full adult size, and the immune system learns to recognise the microbiome as friendly during this window.
Inflammatory bowel disease is rare in Africa and developing countries but rises sharply as countries industrialize.
82% of participants in a Helix study reported an increase in deep sleep after using a Helix mattress.
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