Glutamine is synonymous with bodybuilding but did you know it’s useful for so much more than just muscle recovery? L-Glutamine helped me to heal my leaky gut, strengthen my digestive system and recover faster. I also like to think it helps my tired old lady muscles because I’m definitely no bodybuilder.
What is Glutamine?
Glutamine is a non-essential amino acid. It’s available in abundance from the foods we eat, but often most people still don’t get enough to really stimulate deep repair. The more energy you put out, the more wrecked your digestive system is and the more time you’ve allowed to pass eating processed foods, the more likely you’re deficient in glutamine.
My journey with this supplement has been surprising. I never really expected it to work, but it did. The science behind why glutamine works to help repair the digestive tract is very interesting.
How Glutamine Repaired my Gut
Basically glutamine works in the gut by protecting against mucosal breakdown. Now imagine this environment. You’ve got stomach acid that’s so strong it could burn through carpet (no joke, and this is healthy and natural) then a little ways down the road in your intestines, a more alkaline, lubricated environment is necessary because otherwise evacuating our bowels would be quite painful and horrible. When things get really out of whack in the gut, the important mucosal lining can start to lose its tenure. Glutamine helps it stay strong and protect us against the potential for a leak to spring.
The second way glutamine helped me is its amazing ability to diminish cravings for sugar and carbohydrates. Glutamine becomes a quick energy boost for our brains (which is where those cravings are coming from). It signals to the body that the need has been met and the craving dissipates. Because let’s face it, it’s not our bodies that want that Oh Henry bar, it’s our addicted brains.
Paired with a change in diet, probiotics and plenty of stress reduction, l-glutamine has really helped me repair my gut and experience genuine, lasting health.
My favourite way to use it is to simply add a scoop to my smoothie each morning. I also add some bee pollen, Vitamine D and some chia seeds, but we will get into that more another day.
L- Glutamine is readily available in health food stores, grocery stores, drug stores and supplement stores. It will often be in the “Body Building” area near the protein powders and protein bars.
- Yvonne