Rhonda Patrick: This is the Best Powder for Gut Health and Inflammation

[00:00:00]You and I are both hot on glutamine.

[00:00:01]That's um I think for anyone that trains with relative intensity, like speaking of permeable gut, right? Like that is that has been one of the biggest game-changing supplements for me. And let's actually talk about that for a second because I think people get confused on the glutamine and cancer risk thing and glutamine for you know gut cell fuel and like repairing the gut. Like can you touch on that for a minute?

[00:00:24]>> Yeah. I mean, so glutamine is interesting because it's an amino acid.

[00:00:32]It can it's converted into energy, alpha ketoglutarate for the mitochondria. And it's converted into a neurotransmitter, glutamate. So, glutamine is got all these pathways that it could go to. It's a very interesting thing, you know, to consume. So, I am super interested in glutamine because of the energy part of it because I know from all my research in graduate school, I did a lot of work with immune cells, that immune cells love glutamine.

[00:01:04]They love it. They use it, they take it up, they convert it into alpha ketoglutarate and they use it for energy. Activated immune cells love glutamine. So, um that is something that kind of stuck with me in the back of my mind for a long time.

[00:01:20]With respect to the gut, same thing.

[00:01:22]It's it's energy, immediate energy right there. Like anything that can go and improve mitochondrial function in the gut is beneficial for the gut, whether it's glutamine, malate is another one that goes right in. So, we're talking about things that feed into like the what's called the citric acid cycle, right? So, that would be glutamine, alpha ketoglutarate gets converted alpha ketoglutarate, malate, citrate, you know, so these are things that um are short chain could be short chain fatty acids, malic acid. So, if you're eating fruits, like um cherries or or green apples that are sour, malic acid, that sour taste. That stuff is good for the gut because and my my former colleague and friend Mark Shigenaga did a lot of this research at Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute where he was looking at all these glutamine, looking at malate, citrate, all these effects of these these short-chain fatty acids on gut health and they do prevent they do they help to heal the gut and they prevent lipopolysaccharide release as well.

[00:02:19]So, um the way it's doing it is by providing again a very quick source of energy that's used by the the gut epithelial cells um to to heal.

[00:02:30]The um the the cancer thing where people get worried is because I mentioned that immune cells love cancer I mean sorry immune cells love love glutamine because it's an energy source. Well, cancer cells have found a way to use glutamine as well as an energy source. So, you can you can take a cancer cell and I've I've done many of these experiments in in the lab before in graduate school and you can remove glucose from from their from their, you know, milieu and some of them will die cuz it is a stress to remove glucose.

[00:03:02]But if there's glutamine in there the lot of a lot of them will will keep going and they will keep proliferating because glutamine gives them that energy that energetic source.

[00:03:13]When it comes to taking glutamine and cancer, I would say if you have colon cancer like like at the level of the gut probably don't want to be taking glutamine, right? Um if you have liver cancer cuz it it can go straight to the liver, right? The liver's like the first one of the first yeah organs that sees all the stuff after the gut. So, you know, those are the two types of cancer that I would I would be concerned with, but you'd have to be taking a lot of glutamine and you probably you have to already have existing cancer to really be worried about that.

[00:03:45]>> This helped get rid of my bloating in literally a couple of days. It's the Seed DS-01 and it's specifically formulated for gut health. So, for people that are dealing with things like bloating or with constipation or indigestion, a lot of times it can help them. And the interesting thing with this is that it can happen really dang fast because the gut microbiome can radically remodel and shift in literally just a couple of days with the right kind of diet, the right kind of support.

[00:04:11]So, this is a synbiotic, which means it's not just a probiotic. Most probiotics just get destroyed by the very hostile hydrochloric acid within your stomach. It just gets broken down.

[00:04:20]It's designed to break things down. But, what happens is the prebiotic breaks down first, which is just like a form of very powerful fiber. That breaks down and then later on down the line, the probiotics break down with the capsule that's inside of this capsule. Okay, so then what happens is the prebiotic feeds those probiotics and you get better proliferation, you get better growth, and you get better diversification of the gut bacteria. That is one of the main things we see in the scientific literature that helps with bloating.

[00:04:46]It's usually a or can be a potential dysbiosis issue. So, that link down below gets you 20% off Seed's DS-01.

[00:04:55]So, check them out after this video.

[00:04:57]Again, that's 20% off. And I think it's something that you would notice pretty darn quick. And it's something that most people see some benefit from, whether it's bloating, whether it's constipation, or just downright feeling better and maybe even having more energy. So, check them out down below.

[00:05:11]>> You know, I personally take on a daily basis. I take 5 g a day.

[00:05:17]And then when I'm like exposed or if I'm like working out hard, I'll up that to 10.

[00:05:21]>> Okay, so you take it and take more when you're exposed to something. Okay, I've only been taking it >> Actually, I I've up it more to 10. I more like 30.

[00:05:29]>> Okay.

[00:05:30]>> Honestly, the only the only side effect for me is like gas. Like it'll give you gas.

[00:05:35]>> It's negligible. It's not like yeah, it's it's interesting cuz like I mean there's lots of evidence in the endurance sports world with glutamine that because that's like one of the first things that we get gut mucosal breakdown like with it doesn't even have to be that much endurance work. I know they've like looked at the, you know, the marathon training things like that, but it's measurable even in in CrossFit level, like, you know, where you're doing any significant volume above just like, you know, what we would consider like the the recommended amount of exercise. So, any significant amount, like if you're someone that's like, "Hey, I do a CrossFit workout three or four times a week and then I run a couple miles." But, you are probably going to benefit from taking glutamine in.

[00:06:13]>> Yes, absolutely. I think anyone that's doing CrossFit or any kind of hit or any kind of large volume endurance training will benefit from glutamine. And you're talking about you're talking about the studies in endurance athletes, you know, endurance athletes a lot of the studies that they're doing large volumes, these are the marathon runners and stuff. You know, they are very prone to respiratory illness as well. And so, the glutamine, I think in that in that literature has been shown when these when these endurance athletes take the glutamine, they're they get fewer respiratory tract infections.

[00:06:40]With respect to the gut, again, it comes down to like it is so easy for the gut to like take up the glutamine and use it for energy and heal. So, it's really like it's really like a fast-acting, you know, and and the same goes for like if you were to take malic acid or or citric acid as well. It does the same thing.

[00:06:59]So, there's all the reason for like anyone who's doing, again, like any type of like high volume or high intensity type of training to to take glutamine. I also give it to my son.

[00:07:10]>> Yeah.

[00:07:11]>> And just for be prevention, you know, for for for illness cuz again, it comes to the immune cells taking it as well.

[00:07:18]Um so, yeah, the gut's taking some of it, but immune cells are also getting some of it, and it has worked for me. Um I I I've really like it's been a big difference in my susceptibility to illness as well. So.

[00:07:28]>> Is is there a downside to taking a higher amount every day, or does it does it make a difference to like titrate based on exposure, or is it really just a waste otherwise, just a waste of money?

[00:07:37]>> I mean, I think I think it it depends again on it like your level of gut illness, too. Like people that have leaky gut or Crohn's or you know, ulcerative colitis, this IBD, right?

[00:07:48]Those individuals would benefit from taking like a higher dose daily dose of of glutamine. But like for like us everyday people that don't have IBD, not you you you you know, taking enough to like help with the workouts and stuff, you know, I think even 5 g probably good. Um but but I think there's an argument to titrate when you are exposed or you have a really like heavy workout that you did, right? Where it's like really like you just you went harder than usual or something like that.

[00:08:16]>> Yeah. No, it's definitely noticeable. Uh I want to talk plastics for just a moment though because we mentioned earlier about uh BPA and excreting it through the urine.

[00:08:27]First off, what is the difference between like a microplastic and like, you know, plastic toxins? Like cuz we there's there's a difference. And do we have any ways to potentially expedite the clearance of either one of those?

[00:08:42]>> So, microplastics are the break They're the the product of the breakdown of larger plastic. And so this happens with two factors. One, over time, oxidation, heat, anything that increases oxidation breaks down the the plastic. And these microplastics range in size, you know, from 5 micrometers down to like the nanometer size, right? So there's the microplastics and the nanoplastics. And the smaller they get, the more dangerous they get because they can go across membranes easier.

[00:09:14]But you know, you can have something that's a microplastic that's the size of, you know, a piece of rice. That's a microplastic. Or down to like the size smaller than the size of a grain of sand, smaller to things that you can't even see, right? So microplastic That would be a microplastic.

[00:09:30]The The plastic-associated chemicals are the chemicals that are put into the plastic to make them more durable, to make them more flexible, to give them all the properties that they need. And those include a lot of the the common ones that we've heard of like bisphenol A, BPA, or the replacement when you see something that's BPA free, it usually has something in it called BPS.

[00:09:50]>> Mhm.

[00:09:50]>> We now know BPS is just as bad as BPA, perhaps even worse. So, when you hear the word BPA free, it's 100% marketing, brilliant marketing. People think it's like safe, it's not. It has other chemicals, phthalates being another one.

[00:10:04]Phthalates are a a big problem on particularly during development. They play a role in in in um eurogenital disorders. So, like it it's terrible. Women that are exposed to a lot of phthalates during pregnancy have boys that have hypospadias. So, their urethra slit is like further back.

[00:10:23]So, a lot of times they'll have to sit on the toilet to pee because they don't have the right stream. Um Undescended testicles is another big one for phthalate exposure during pregnancy.

[00:10:32]And these things are very common. I mean, like like 20% of boys nowadays have undescended testicles. And this is affecting fertility, it affects testicular cancer risk, it affects cancer risk in general, phthalates affect cancer risk in general. So, the point is is that these plastic associated chemicals are problematic. So are the microplastics. These things are accumulating in our heart, in our brain, they're associated with Alzheimer's disease, cardiovascular disease. They cause inflammation much like that visceral fat, and it's a chronic inflammatory signal that's happening, right? So, our body our body process processes these these types of toxins differently.

[00:11:07]So, people want to know, "Well, how do I detox a microplastic, right?"

[00:11:10]First of all, we're being exposed exposed to these plastic chemicals like constantly, like everywhere, like like even if you're doing everything that you can, you're getting them in your body.

[00:11:19]Like it's just it's impossible to avoid. It's impossible. Now, you can reduce your exposure, that's the best thing to do.

[00:11:26]But if you have been exposed, people want to know, "Well, can I detox of microplastics?"

[00:11:32]And I would tell you that right now there's no really good safe way that's known to do that.

[00:11:38]The best the your best bet is because microplastics and nanoplastics when you when you consume them through water or food uh if you have if you're consuming if you're consuming them through water, you're going to want to eat it with food after you hear what I hear what I'm about to say because microplastics are excreted through feces. That's the way you get rid of microplastics. They don't come out your urine, you're not sweating out microplastics. They come out feces. And so the way to get rid of microplastics is to not absorb them essentially. So if you're consuming them, you want them to go straight out your feces, right? And and that that does happen except for the fact that it depends on the size of the microplastic. So the smaller the size of the microplastic, it really can cross the membranes of your epithelial cells lining your gut very easy. And that's where fiber comes into play.

[00:12:32]Fiber is your best bet against microplastics right now because of two reasons. First and foremost, if you have insoluble fiber, right? That's the stuff that is moving food through you quicker.

[00:12:45]Vegetables are a great source of in- insoluble fiber.

[00:12:49]That is going to move the microplastics.

[00:12:52]It's going to not allow them to have the time to be absorbed. So moves it through faster. You will poop out more my- microplastics with more more insoluble fiber.

[00:13:02]The soluble fiber are the fermentable fiber as it's now called. This is the kind of fiber that is found in a lot of fruits or it's found in like artichokes or onions, inulin. It's found in beta-glucans and mushrooms and oats, right? Like this type of fiber that's fermented, it's that beneficial prebiotic that we hear about. It's the stuff that our good bacteria like to consume and and ferment and it makes more of the good bacteria. Well, the other thing that it does is it causes This is why it used to be called soluble fiber. It's kind of now called fermentable fiber. The reason it's called soluble fiber is because it makes a viscous coating in the gut.

[00:13:38]And that becomes very important in understanding nanoplastics because it coats the microplastics and nanoplastics and kind of prevents them from being able to get across the gut membrane. So, you will move it through your feces rather than absorb it through your gut epithelial cells. So, you want to get a combination of both soluble and insoluble fiber to basically poop out the plastic. Essentially, that's that's what you want to do. And right now, that's your best bet, better than any other stuff you're going to hear online.

[00:14:11]That's that is the best way that you're going to quote-unquote excrete microplastics. You're going to excrete them through your poop.

[00:14:17]>> That's exactly exactly what I've said, too. Yeah, I know there's a little bit of a what There's a bile acid segregation, right? So, it's like a little bit soluble fiber with possible or some fat.

[00:14:25]>> Right.

[00:14:26]>> Yes.

[00:14:27]That's That's basically eat some I mean, I would say like chia flax seed, right?

[00:14:32]Something like that. I mean, again, you could go down the phytosterol rabbit hole with flax, but the point is like you get a little bit of fat, little bit of soluble fiber, you know, you've got a perfect little match right there.

[00:14:41]>> Right. Um and that and that kind of dovetails into the chemicals because, you know, some of these plastic-associated chemicals are also excreted differently. So, the BPA, the BPS, the phthalates, those are those are being excreted through urine. And the way to increase that excretion is you want to activate the enzymes that cause BPA to become soluble. BPA is not soluble. It's not water-soluble. It has to get converted in the body to a water-soluble metabolite, and that's how it's excreted.

[00:15:17]And the enzymes that do that are activated by my favorite compound found in broccoli and broccoli sprouts, sulforaphane. So, the enzymes that activate um you know, that basically make BPA water soluble are the same ones that make, for example, benzene water soluble. Benzene is something that we breathe in through air pollution, through wildfires, smoking cigarettes, right? And there's now at least three different human studies showing that people that consume sulforaphane in the form of its precursor, glucoraphanin, and then, you know, are exposed to benzene, they excrete 60% more benzene after 24 hours.

[00:15:58]And that's because you're basically activating that pathway, NRF2 pathway, through the sulforaphane. Sulforaphane's the the biggest natural product activator, the biggest dietary activator of that system, that detox system, is sulforaphane. So, I take sulforaphane every day. I take a product called um Avmacol, which is the reason I do Avmacol is because it's been shown in 12 different clinical studies to be effective. And um they have a really a really good product, and I'm not associated with them or affiliated with them. I just happen to like stuff that's evidence-based. So, um I do that every day, and that is essentially to get rid of these plastic associated chemicals like BPA and the phthalates.

[00:16:42]Now, you mentioned bile acids. That's interesting because that would that would kind of bring us into the forever chemical category. So, forever chemicals, those are you know, these are the These are the chemicals they're called forever chemicals because, unlike BPA, which has a half-life in our body of a couple of hours, we're just constantly exposed to it, constantly.

[00:17:03]So, so the half-life is like 2 and 1/2 hours or something like that. And then if you take the sulforaphane, you're going to you're going to basically cut that in half. So, you're going to basically get rid of it faster.

[00:17:15]The forever chemicals stay in our body for years.

[00:17:18]Up to like five years. And it's really they they stick around and they're also very damaging, right? So, that the way that those chemicals are excreted are through bile acids.

[00:17:31]And in actually there's some some animal evidence out there showing that the beta glucans in like oats or mushrooms >> Mhm.

[00:17:39]>> can excrete the forever chemical clearance through bile acids. So that's kind of interesting that you were kind of mentioning that pathway as well.