My weird digestive symptoms over the last 2 months…

Ever since I had all my digestive woes back in 2006-2007, I’ve looked after my digestive health with a great deal of care.

I’ve had the odd food-poisoning issue when I’ve eaten at a restaurant (each time in Africa), but in general I’ve had no complaints at all – no heartburn, no bloating, great bowel movements, etc.

So imagine my surprise when, out of the blue, I ended up with constipation and bad diarrhea in the final 6 weeks of 2019.

Here’s what happened…

Constipation in November

It actually started back in November.

For some reason I became quite constipated.

If you look at the Bristol Stool Chart, below, I was pooping Type II, and some days Type I.

I wasn’t sure why this was because my diet and exercise levels hadn’t changed, and I hadn’t experienced any stress.

Then, my left eyelid started to twitch a couple of times a day.

I’ve realised from listening to my body that this is my body’s way of telling me I’m low on magnesium.

There’s a specific reason why I am prone to magnesium deficiency, as well as potassium deficiency.

I have some specific genetic patterns that predispose me to high blood pressure. The genes are called AGT and ACE16.

As part of that pattern, I have a tendency to lose magnesium and potassium from my body ay a higher rate than most people.

I’ll write an article about this soon for you as it shows the power of genetic testing to solve certain day-to-day health challenges.

As soon as I made the connection, I bought some magnesium and started taking it with each meal (total of around 600-800 milligrams per day, which is quite a large dose).

After a few days, my bowel movements returned to normal.

So the first lesson is that constipation, in some people, can result from magnesium depletion, and genetics can play a role in this.

I spent Christmas in Cape Town, South Africa, with my partner, Dominika and her family.

We had a great time – lots of sun, spending time in nature, and dipping into the cold waters of reservoirs and the ocean.

We were lucky to spend five nights out in the wilderness where there was very little manmade light. The view of the Milky Way was mind-blowingly stunning!

Diarrhea in December!

Unfortunately, all this wandering in nature was soon replaced by a very unpleasant case of stomach cramping and diarrhea.

I went from a Type I on the Bristol Stool Chart in November to Types 6 and 7 on January 30^th!

It was upon landing in London on Monday 30^th that I didn’t feel right.

I stood up to grab my hand luggage once we’d arrived at the terminal building and immediately felt pain and discomfort deep in my lower abdomen.

I thought it would just be trapped wind from sitting on the plane for 11 hours, but it didn’t go away.

I managed to “hold it in” until I got home, but I ran to the toilet as soon as I got in, and it was like World War III in the toilet bowl!

New Year’s Eve was a write off – I was in bed by 15:30 feeling totally exhausted, but things improved from there.

To combat the diarrhea, I made sure I drunk plenty of water and took some additional electrolytes (sodium and potassium) to offset the dehydrating effects of the diarrhea.

I also took some activated charcoal and clay, which can absorb toxins in the gut that are produced by pathogenic microbes.

How did my digestive system, which has been in tip top condition for a long time, become such a battleground?

I have two theories:

First, it could have been really poor-quality food on the plane.

Second, I might have picked up a parasite while swimming in freshwater reservoirs while we were hiking round the back of Table Mountain.

Nobody else on the plane seemed to be complaining, so I’m leaning toward the second explanation.

You see, some water-borne parasites have what’s called an incubation period.

They have what’s called an active form, and a cyst form:

The cyst form hangs around in water, which animals and people can swallow.

One tiny parasite – Giardia – hangs around in the intestine for about a week before it “hatches” and becomes the active form.

When it hatches, it can cause foul-smelling diarrhea, sickness, cramping, etc., which were the same symptoms I was experiencing.

It just so happens that we’d been swimming in the reservoirs about a week before my symptoms came on.

So, what to do about it?

Stool Testing

I’m about 90% recovered now, but my stools aren’t quite right. They’re a little light in colour, and I have more gas than usual.

In these situations, I would advise any our clients to order a home stool test immediately!

Unfortunately the labs we use for digestive screening were all closed over Christmas and New Year.

As soon as they opened again after the festive season, I ordered a stool test and I’ve already submitted the sample for analysis.

Doing a stool test reminded me of how unpleasant the process is, especially when the poop isn’t smelling too hot!

But figuring out what’s going on in my body, and making a full recovery, is more important than fussing over collecting a bit of poop in a test tube!

The results should be back in about 2 weeks, and I’ll share them with you to explain what I discover.

If you’re struggling with digestive symptoms, I thought it would be a really good opportunity for you to take the plunge and get a stool test, too.

Me and Jack would love to help you start 2020 with a digestive tune-up.

If you’re struggling with annoying or painful digestive problems, I’m pretty sure we can help you feel a lot better in a short space of time.

Click here if you’d like to learn more, or if fancy joining me in doing a stool test.

All my best,

Dave.

PS, look out for the next couple of articles where I explain the role of genetics in digestive health, and how you can test your genetics like I did.