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Rebuilding Gut Health: 5 Supplements and How They Work

Do you often feel bloated, react to certain foods, or feel inflamed all the time?

If so, your gut might need a reset and some restorative care.

Restoring gut health starts with understanding and supporting the following key areas: your gut bacteria, your gut lining, and your intestinal immune system. In this article, you’ll discover how to support these areas with natural ingredients. Click here to jump straight to these solutions, or keep reading to learn more about gut health.

What Is Good Gut Health?

According to experts, true gut health is the combination of the following five factors¹:

  1. Good digestion and nutrient absorption
  2. No ongoing digestive issues or disease
  3. A wide mix of healthy gut bacteria
  4. A balanced immune system
  5. Feeling well, both in your body and your mind

When these factors are out of balance, it can affect your whole body. If you’re not feeling your best, let’s explore the core areas that help rebuild a strong, healthy gut from the inside out

What Does It Mean to Restore Gut Health?

Restoring gut health means rebuilding three essential parts that keep your digestive system working as it should. These include¹:

  • The good bacteria in your gut
  • The gut lining (which acts like a barrier)
  • The immune system, which lives within and beneath your gut lining

These parts work together like the frame, walls, and foundation of a building. If one is weak or damaged, the whole structure can become unstable. The same goes for your gut—when one part is out of balance, the other parts can start to lose their balance too.¹,²

Let’s take a closer look at what each part does and why it matters.

1. Your Gut Bacteria

Your gut microbiome is a huge community of about 38 trillion microbes, made up of over 1,000 types of bacteria. When your gut is healthy, these microbes live throughout the 32 square metres of your intestines.²,³

This ecosystem is essential for gut health. But when the balance is thrown off by too many harmful organisms, too few good bacteria, or not enough variety, it can cause problems.⁴ 

Instead of supporting your health, your gut bacteria can start driving inflammation, producing excess gas, or making your gut nerves more sensitive. Over time, these bacteria-driven effects can trigger a chain reaction that disrupts your gut barrier and activates your immune system.¹,⁴

2. The Barrier (Gut Lining)

Your gut lining acts like a security gate. It allows nutrients to pass through while blocking harmful substances. These functions depend on two main types of cells that make up the gut barrier:

  • Intestinal epithelial cells: Making up about 70% of your gut lining, these cells absorb nutrients efficiently. Each is covered in roughly 3,000 microvilli, tiny, finger-like projections that increase the surface area of your small intestine to 200–400 square metres.⁵,⁶
  • Intraepithelial lymphocytes: These cells make up the remaining 30%. They produce mucus and protective proteins that form a barrier, shielding the gut lining from infection and inflammation.⁶,⁷

When the gut lining is damaged by infection, poor diet, or chronic inflammation, the number and function of these essential cells are reduced.

This damage shrinks the absorptive surface of the gut, making it less effective at taking in nutrients. At the same time, it compromises the protective barrier, allowing harmful compounds to slip through and activate the immune system.⁶⁻⁸

In short, structural damage to the gut barrier is closely linked to poor gut health. Without effective nutrient absorption and protective mucus and proteins, the gut struggles to regain balance. Over time, this ongoing cycle of inflammation and dysfunction impacts the entire digestive tract.⁶⁻⁸

3. The Immune System

Around 70% of your immune system sits just beneath your gut lining, constantly monitoring what enters.⁹ If bacteria are imbalanced or the lining is damaged, the immune system may overreact, causing inflammation in the gut and beyond.¹⁰

So, How Do You Repair Gut Health?

Healing your gut starts with restoring balance in three key areas: your gut bacteria, the gut lining, and the immune system. Understanding how these systems work together gives you a valuable head start. Now, let’s explore five science-backed supplements commonly used in gut repair protocols, starting with those that support your gut’s foundational layers: the immune system and barrier.

Glutamine for Gut Repair

Protein is made up of amino acids, and one of the most important for gut health is glutamine, the most abundant amino acid in the body. Your gut cells rely on glutamine as a key fuel source for growth and repair.¹¹,¹²

Glutamine supports the regeneration of nutrient-absorbing gut cells and immune cells that produce the protective mucus lining in the intestines. After stress from illness, antibiotics, or a poor diet, it plays a vital role in rebuilding the gut lining and supporting a balanced microbiome.¹³⁻¹⁵

What Are the Benefits: In one study, 80% of people with gut issues improved their digestive symptoms after taking 15 grams of glutamine daily, compared to just 5% who took a placebo.¹⁶

How to Get It: Glutamine is found in protein-rich foods. Animal protein contains 11%-22% per gram, and some plant proteins have up to 40%.¹⁵ Supplements, such as Glutagenics can also help boost your intake, which provides nearly 5 grams of glutamine in combination with vitamins, minerals, and anti-inflammatory herbs to repair and soothe the gastrointestinal lining.

Nutrients for a Healthy Gut Barrier

Research shows that low levels of certain nutrients can weaken the gut barrier. For example, not getting enough vitamin A, vitamin D, or zinc can reduce the barrier’s strength and make it harder for gut cells to repair, absorb nutrients, and maintain a healthy immune response.¹⁷

What are the benefits?: These micronutrients act like a renovation crew for your gut barrier. Zinc helps cells regenerate and heal quickly, vitamin A supports immune balance, and vitamin D improves barrier strength and reduces inflammation.¹⁸⁻²¹

Tip: Glutagenics combines glutamine with key nutrients and gut-healing herbs, as mentioned earlier in this article. This powerful blend helps soothe mild inflammation in the digestive tract.

Next, we’ll explore ingredients that support both your gut bacteria and barrier at the same time.

Probiotics To Restore Balance

Probiotics are live bacteria that, when taken in the right dose and form, help rebalance your gut microbiome. Read more about how probiotics work in this article.

They don’t just add more bacteria—they help your existing good bugs thrive. Think of it like giving a struggling team some encouragement so they can rebuild their environment and attract more helpful microbes.²²

Probiotic strains like Saccharomyces boulardii, Lactobacillus rhamnosus LGG®, and Bifidobacterium animalis ssp. lactis BB-12 found in Ultra Flora Intensive Care has been shown to reduce gut inflammation, restore balance after antibiotics, and support immune health.²³⁻²⁵

Tip: Look for a probiotic with clinically tested strains and clear CFU (colony-forming unit) counts, either refrigerated or shelf-stable.

Prebiotics to Grow the Good Guys

Prebiotics are the “food” that good gut bacteria need to grow and thrive. These are found in high-fibre foods, such as starchy and colorful vegetables. Certain prebiotic supplements, like larch arabinogalactans in Glutagenics, also help to feed good bacteria.²⁶,²⁷

Prebiotics help grow healthy gut bacteria, which in turn boost the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs). These compounds are essential for strengthening the gut lining and supporting a balanced immune response.²⁸

Tip: If you're sensitive to bloating with fibre-rich foods or supplements, start with small amounts and increase gradually.

Postbiotics for Next Generation Gut Support

Postbiotics are the result of beneficial bacteria that have already been activated, often by heat, yet retain powerful health effects. Unlike probiotics, they don’t need to be alive to work. These postbiotic bacteria can still improve barrier strength, lower inflammation, and support the growth of beneficial bacteria without the risk of overgrowth or bloating.²⁹,³⁰

How to Build Stronger Gut Health

Whether you're just starting or have been dealing with digestive issues for years, understanding how these ingredients work can help you feel more in control of your health. If you're ready to take the next step towards better gut health, explore our full Digestive & Gut Health Range, or work with a Healthcare Practitioner for personalised support.

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