Service
Gut Hub
If you are one of the thousands of people who experience chronic abdominal issues like constipation or diarrhoea, excessive wind, acid reflux, abdominal pain & bloating we have a service tailored to your needs.
The Gut Hub is a functional gut disorders clinic designed to address these symptoms by investigating and managing these conditions to help restore gut function.
Who Would Benefit from this Clinic?
This Gut Hub is suitable for patients presenting primarily with ongoing and/or poorly managed gut symptoms. Typically, patients would already have undergone investigation by their primary care physician or gastroenterologist to rule out more serious causes of their gut symptoms (e.g. cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, etc), and would have been offered standard advice and management, which is however not solving their problem.
Sometimes chronic gut symptoms appear in the context of a wider set of chronic conditions which require a more holistic and comprehensive approach. These patients may be best managed in our general functional medicine clinic.
We work collaboratively with gastroenterologists and are happy to refer as per clinical need.
Gut Hub Treatment Plans
We offer two basic plans, plus optional add-ons:
Dietitian consultation & guidance package (no tests). Total cost £865
This is our basic plan which doesn’t include any specific functional tests. It is most suitable for those patients who need tailored guidance from a qualified dietitian about what to eat and when, to better manage their symptoms. In most cases, the dietitians will recommend a low FODMAP diet
The plan includes:
- 4 consultations with the dietitian ( 1st appointment 75 minutes and subsequent 3 appointments of 45 minutes each)
- Low FODMAP diet sheets and materials, where relevant
- Supporting materials
Dietitian consultations & guidance plus comprehensive functional tests. Total cost £1750
This plan is suitable for patients who wish to dig a little deeper to understand the underlying causes of their symptoms. Perhaps they have already tried a low FODMAP diet or other exclusion diets in the past, with less than satisfactory results. This is where the functional approach works at its best. With the results of the specialised tests before them, the dietitians will guide patients through a 3-4 month functional gut restoration programme. The aim is to strengthen the gut barrier, reduce any inflammation, replenish and rebalance the gut microbiome. Furthermore, the programme aims to restore the body’s capacity to extract and absorb the nutrients it needs from food, to reduce inflammation and to remove toxins from the body.
The majority of our patients who follow the gut healing programme gain a better understanding of their triggers and are able to return to symptom-free living.
The central dietetic intervention is a time-limited food elimination plan or a low FODMAP diet, supported by the temporary use of specific supplements. As a rule, we don’t advocate long term use of supplements. Our aim is get the body to a level where is draws what it needs from food. In the interim phase, whilst patients are journeying through the healing process, we recommend tailored supplements in varying degrees, according to specific needs or suspected deficiencies.
The plan includes:
- 4 consultations with the dietitian (1st appointment 90 minutes, 2nd appointment 60 min, 3rd-4th appointments 45 minutes). Additional appointments available according to need, at an extra cost.
- Package of three tests, to be run before the first appointment with the dietitian:
- Comprehensive stool analysis: This test provides markers of inflammation as well as useful information relating to digestive function, and the composition of the gut microbiome, including the presence of Helicobacter Pylori and other pathogenic bacteria and parasites.
- SIBO breath test: This test can help identify an overgrowth of bacteria in the small intestine, which can lead to excessive bloating and disruption of the normal functioning of the gut. It is estimated that around a third of IBS cases may be caused by Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO).
- An Organic Acid Test: This urine test provides markers of yeast overgrowth, and nutritional status.
- All tests results will be discussed during the first consultation.
If the SIBO breath test is positive
If the SIBO breath test is positive, it may require antibiotic treatment. In this case, we shall offer you a 20 minute telephone appointment with the doctor at an additional cost for the discussion of the result and the prescription of medication. We also recommend a repeat SIBO breath test after treatment is completed. Please note that the cost of prescribed medication is not included in the cost of the appointment.
As functional practitioners, we don’t tend to use much medication, but this is one of the few cases where we do prescribe antibiotics, as it is the quickest and most effective way of treating SIBO. However, this is only a small part of the overall management. The primary focus of SIBO treatment is the targeted management of its causes, be they the presence of H.Pylori, low stomach acid, insufficient digestive enzymes, slow transit in the gut, or disorders of the gallbladder. Our dietitians will carefully guide you through the process and advise you on the best dietary strategies to suit your needs.
Not Included in the Plan:
- Prescription and cost of medication where indicated – this requires a separate appointment with the doctor ( see below)
- Cost of supplements.
Additional Tests
Additional tests and clinician time are available. Prices on request. Blood work options (not an exhaustive list)
- FBC and haematology panel
- Biochemistry panel ( kidney & liver function, cholesterol panel, bone markers)
- Active Vitamin B12 & Folate
- Vitamin D
- Iron Binding Studies (Serum iron, transferrin, transferrin saturation, TIBC ) and Ferritin
- hsCRP
- Coeliac screen (basic panel +/- genetic test DQ2/DQ8)
- Thyroid Panel (TSH, freeT4, freeT3, +/- thyroid antibodies, +/- Reverse T3)
- Hba1c and insulin
- IgG food panel -food intolerance (blood)
What is the Gut Hub?
The Gut Hub is designed to assist people with ongoing gut symptoms such as bloating, abdominal pain and cramping, changes in bowel habit, commonly diagnosed or referred to as Irritable Bowel Syndrome, or IBS.
We also help people with symptoms relating to acid reflux, gallbladder disorders such as gallstones, and food intolerances.
It is estimated that up to a fifth of the population may be living with IBS. Of these, a significant proportion of people are thought to have Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth (SIBO), a condition, often overlooked, which can be the main driver of IBS and is in many cases treatable.
There is also growing awareness of the potential for yeast overgrowth as an underlying contributor to gut symptoms.
Standard management of IBS and related disorders is often limited to a handful of medications and perhaps some general dietetic and lifestyle advice. Whilst this may be suitable for some people, for others it does not go far enough.
Drawing from our experience over many years, we set out to meet the needs of this very specific group of patients. Our bespoke Gut Health Clinic is dedicated to the comprehensive evaluation, investigation, and management of a wide array of gut symptoms, with the ultimate goal to help patients return to symptom-free living.
Central to this approach is the understanding that many gut symptoms stem from a varying combination of altered gut bacteria (dysbiosis), digestive enzyme insufficiency, inflammation at the gut barrier level, increased gut permeability (‘leaky gut’), gallbladder and bile disorders, all of which need to be considered in their own right and corrected where necessary.