All 885 tips from all chapters, sorted by topic and confidence score. See what is well supported and what is still experimental.
| Topic | Established | Well supported | Promising | Plausible | Experimental |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gut barrier | 3 | 14 | 13 | 2 | |
| Opportunistic pathogens | 1 | 11 | 10 | 17 | 1 |
| Bacteriophages | 1 | 1 | 3 | ||
| Microbial diversity | 1 | 8 | 29 | 41 | 2 |
| Gut-brain axis | 1 | 19 | 24 | ||
| Digestive function | 3 | 9 | 25 | 46 | |
| Small intestine colonisation | 3 | 8 | 11 | ||
| Immune system and inflammation | 2 | 5 | 21 | 23 | |
| Total | 7 | 41 | 127 | 175 | 8 |
Tap a number to see the tips below. Darker cells contain more tips.
Gut barrier · Clear selection
Trust score 4 of 5:Well supported Lifestyle
For sessions over two to three hours, a mix of glucose and fructose delivers more energy than one type alone, and less stays in the gut. Pure fructose or sugar alcohols like sorbitol, on the other hand, are poorly tolerated by many. Newer products such as hydrogels have so far shown no advantage over regular gels.
Gut and endurance sport: runner’s gut, cramps and what helps 2 sources
Trust score 4 of 5:Well supported Lifestyle
Find the cause (leak, cold wall, too little airing), dry out and remove affected material. Air regularly with short bursts of open windows and dry water damage promptly. For larger areas, call in professionals. According to the evidence this reduces respiratory symptoms, even without measuring spores.
Trust score 4 of 5:Well supported Lifestyle
Throw away discoloured, shrivelled or mouldy nuts, figs and grains. Store dry, not too warm and not for too long, and buy fresh. Eating a varied diet spreads the risk.
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Legumes, whole grains, vegetables, nuts and seeds. Different fibres feed different bacteria and together produce more short-chain fatty acids.
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
It forms when cooked potatoes, rice or pasta cool down, and is found in green bananas, oats and legumes. Potato starch raised butyrate the most in one study.
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Raise the amount over several weeks and drink enough. This gives the microbiota time to adapt, and bloating usually stays bearable. With a sensitive gut, well-cooked foods and small portions suit a start.
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
The gut gets used to absorbing sugar during exercise. In one study, runners took 90 grams of carbohydrate per hour during daily sessions for two weeks. Afterwards they had clearly fewer symptoms during exercise, less undigested sugar in the gut, and ran further. So don’t try gels for the first time in a race; build up slowly in long training sessions.
Gut and endurance sport: runner’s gut, cramps and what helps 2 sources
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Eating less fibre, fat and fermentable sugars (FODMAPs) in the one to three days before a long race reduced symptoms in two small studies. Ideally have the last larger meal two to four hours before. This is not meant for everyday life, because in the long run the gut microbiota needs fibre. Gluten-free did not help in studies when there was no coeliac disease.
Gut and endurance sport: runner’s gut, cramps and what helps 3 sources
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
The hotter the body gets, the more the gut suffers. In the heat, lower the pace, start well hydrated and drink regularly along the way. If you regularly get cramps or diarrhoea on hot days, move your hard sessions to the cool morning hours.
Gut and endurance sport: runner’s gut, cramps and what helps 3 sources
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
The benefit for blood pressure appeared with a healthy diet afterwards. Use fasting as a starting point for more plants and less ultra-processed food, not as compensation for the rest of the year.
Longer fasting: water fasting, therapeutic fasting and fasting-mimicking 1 sources
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Going without water has no proven benefit but real risks for the kidneys and circulation.
Longer fasting: water fasting, therapeutic fasting and fasting-mimicking no source of its own, score based on judgement
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Throw away soft and moist foods entirely: bread, yoghurt, jam, cooked dishes, soft fruit, nuts. For hard cheese and firm vegetables, cut off generously, about 2.5 cm around the spot.
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Patulin forms mainly in apples with rotten spots. For juice, purée or compote take only sound fruit and cut rotten spots away generously. That keeps exposure low.
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Visible mould, damp damage and a musty smell are enough to act. Measured spore counts or toxins in the air have proved to say little. The money is better spent on remediation.
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Fewer NSAID painkillers and less alcohol, more fibre from whole foods, enough sleep. The colostrum and zinc carnosine studies mainly show how hard painkillers and overheating hit the gut wall. Avoiding these triggers works without a capsule.
The “leaky gut stack”: colostrum, zinc carnosine, aloe and co. 2 sources
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
Alcohol increases the permeability of the gut lining, especially in larger amounts. A few days without alcohol are often enough for the lining to recover.
The gut barrier no source of its own, score based on judgement
Trust score 3 of 5:Promising Lifestyle
For long endurance sessions in the heat: drink enough, adapt your pace, do not push to the limit on an empty stomach. If you regularly get diarrhoea or cramps after runs, breaks and a slower build-up do your gut good.
The gut barrier no source of its own, score based on judgement
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
A lot of meat or protein powder with little fibre shifts fermentation in the large intestine towards unfavourable breakdown products.
Butyrate and other short-chain fatty acids no source of its own, score based on judgement
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
Watch your Bristol stool form: types 3 and 4 count as ideal. Very hard, infrequent stool points to long transit with more protein fermentation. Enough fluid, exercise and fibre often help.
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
If you get heartburn when running, it often helps not to eat anything substantial two to three hours before training. Cycling or swimming shake the belly less. If you still have regular symptoms, have them checked by a doctor.
Gut and endurance sport: runner’s gut, cramps and what helps 1 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
Only if you are healthy, so not with underweight, an eating disorder, pregnancy, breastfeeding or type 1 diabetes: one to three days with vegetable broth and diluted juice are a cautious start. Drink plenty, get salt from the broth, stay physically calm, and stop if you feel dizzy or have palpitations. With illnesses or medication, check with a doctor first, because blood pressure medicines and some diabetes medicines can become dangerous during fasting.
Longer fasting: water fasting, therapeutic fasting and fasting-mimicking 1 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
Plan about half a day to a day of refeeding for each day of fasting: first steamed vegetables, soup, porridge, then gradually more fibre and legumes, so the gut microbiota gets food again.
Longer fasting: water fasting, therapeutic fasting and fasting-mimicking 1 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
If you want to try something: one product at a time, decide beforehand which symptom should improve, four to six weeks with a diary, then stop and compare. The trial phases on this site help with that.
The “leaky gut stack”: colostrum, zinc carnosine, aloe and co. no source of its own, score based on judgement
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
Soup made from bones is a good food. As a remedy for the gut wall it has not been studied, and large amounts over a long time make little sense because of possible traces of lead.
The “leaky gut stack”: colostrum, zinc carnosine, aloe and co. 2 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
Bacteria turn it into butyrate, which feeds the gut cells. In a mouse study, fibre even prevented germs from passing through a damaged barrier into the blood. Increase slowly if your gut is sensitive.
The gut barrier 1 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
In a small study, the emulsifier carboxymethylcellulose (E466) let bacteria penetrate the protective mucus layer in some individuals. More in the chapter on the mucus layer.
The gut barrier 1 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
Enough fibre from vegetables, legumes and whole grains ensures that bacteria do not switch to the mucus. Variety matters: different fibres feed different species. Increase slowly if your gut is sensitive.
The mucus layer and additives 1 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
Carboxymethylcellulose (E466) and polysorbate 80 (E433) are found mainly in ready-made desserts, ice cream and sauces. If you want, you can eat them less often.
The mucus layer and additives 1 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
A dish with a few recognisable ingredients usually contains fewer additives and more fibre. That is easier to keep up than checking every E number. Perfection is not needed: if ready-made food is on the table now and then, that is no reason for concern according to current knowledge.
The mucus layer and additives 1 sources
Trust score 2 of 5:Plausible Lifestyle
Nerves and mast cells help control how much mucus the gut makes. Chronic stress and lack of sleep change this in animal models; in humans the data are thin. Recovery is still a cheap, if unspecific, approach.
The mucus layer and additives no source of its own, score based on judgement
Trust score 1 of 5:Experimental Lifestyle
Fasting clinics have people eat lighter for one or two days beforehand, without coffee, alcohol and lots of sugar, so the transition is gentler and there is less headache. This is practical experience, not a tested method.
Longer fasting: water fasting, therapeutic fasting and fasting-mimicking no source of its own, score based on judgement
Trust score 1 of 5:Experimental Lifestyle
During fasting little comes out; that is normal. Plenty of fluid and light movement are usually enough. Laxative salts or enemas are part of some fasting programmes, but should only be used with guidance, because they shift salts in the body.
Longer fasting: water fasting, therapeutic fasting and fasting-mimicking no source of its own, score based on judgement