Oral Immunoglobulins Are the Missing Component to Healing Your Gut and Immune System
You may already know a little about immunoglobulins or this might be the first time you’ve heard of them. In either case, my goal with this article is to provide you with the info to make a wise decision for your needs.
If you are dealing with any kind of gut dysfunction, immunoglobulins may be a key component to your healing. I have seen amazing results for myself and for my clients, so I want to share with you what I’ve learned.
To give you an overview, this article will give you a brief explanation about immunoglobulins, how toxins affect your gut & immune system, metabolic endotoxemia, testing, and therapies to address these concerns.
So What Are Immunoglobulins?
Immunoglobulins are one of the major immune-fighting molecules found everywhere in the body. Most people refer to them as antibodies.
There are five distinct types of immunoglobulins; IgA, IgD, IgE, IgG, and IgM. (1)(2) Each type of immunoglobulin is designed to target different potential threats.
IgM is produced at the first sight of a threat. Think of IgM as the first wave of soldiers sent in to battle to assess the situation and do recon. If IgM can’t take care of the foreign invaders, IgG comes to the rescue and helps bring more immune cells to the party.
IgG primarily helps to protect against bacterial and viral infections and is the most abundant of all five. (1)(2)
IgA works as surveillance at surface barriers. (1)(2) For example, the lining of the gut and respiratory system are surface barriers. Clinicians will often order an immunoglobulin test and look at these three (IgM, IgG, IgA) together if they suspect an infection or autoimmune condition.
IgE is typically used to determine if you have an allergy. You can find out more about immunoglobulin tests and our GI-MAP Test here.
Immunoglobulins work to protect us from infections in two distinct ways:
1. Since immunoglobulins are floating around, they can come into contact with something out of the ordinary and bind to its surface to act like a flag. (1) Once an immunoglobulin flags a potential toxin, it allows immune cells, like T-cells, to easily recognize it and take a closer look. This will trigger a cascade of inflammation and activates a full immune response to seek and destroy everything that has the same profile as the toxin. (3)
2. Another way immunoglobulins work is through a process called opsonization (others may refer to it as steric hindrance). This is when several immunoglobulins bind to the same foreign substance. (1) Think of this as a group of cops surrounding the getaway car. With all these immunoglobulins sticking to it, the substance can’t start causing problems elsewhere. (This is the mechanism oral immunoglobulin treatment relies on.)
You’re Always Under Attack
Your lungs, your ear canals, your stomach, your gut – these are always under attack. The immune system is constantly working in these areas. (1) Your gut interfaces with the outside environment as external food, chemicals, viruses, bacteria, mold, etc. enter through your system.
The mucosal system contains more surface area than skin, which makes it one of the most important immune barriers. Everything you eat or breath contacts the inside surface of these mucosal barriers. As a result we must have an extremely vigilant immune system, which includes immunoglobulins, to prevent a health crisis.
If, and when, immunoglobulins bind to a toxin that sets off inflammation and an immune response to clean up the damage. A little inflammation is not bad. However, if the immunoglobulins are constantly finding harmful items then we are in a state of chronic inflammation.
Leaky Gut: the Beginning of the End
Leaky gut occurs when the mucus barrier protecting the intestines erodes and epithelial cells lining the intestines start to spread apart. Things like medications, toxins, food allergies/sensitivities, stress, and gut infections may cause gut inflammation and ultimately leaky gut.
When this happens, your gut becomes more permeable to bacteria, viruses, protein, food, etc. that it normally would not allow into the bloodstream. (4) As a result, your immune system gets inundated with countless threats it must sift through. Unfortunately, if leaky gut continues unchecked we end up with a serious problem.
Metabolic Endotoxemia
Research shows that when patients have an irritated gut lining, this results in leaky gut and increases intestinal permeability. This allows extremely hazardous substances called lipopolysaccharides (LPS) to enter your body. (4)
LPS have been shown to produce the strongest immune response out of any substance known to researchers. (5) When LPS levels are high in the blood and aren’t taken care of properly, something called metabolic endotoxemia occurs. This condition is linked to things like: (4)
Weight gain
Constipation
Depression/anxiety
Memory issues
Chronic pain
Hormone imbalance
Autoimmune disease
Blood sugar imbalance
You can throw all the medication or supplements you want at each of these conditions, but if you’re not treating the root cause then you won’t see any difference. You must reduce the amount of LPS and toxins absorbed through the gut and work to rebuild your gut lining.
Attack and Rebuild
The best gut repair protocol will be one that supports the immune system by attacking invading toxins and rebuilding the gut barrier.
Using an oral IgG-based supplement will help with something called passive immunity. IgG supplements help to deliver IgG directly to your gut. This works like we previously discussed to opsonize toxins and making them too big to be absorbed through the gut.
These immunoglobulins will bind to things like LPS, E. coli, C. diff., and many other detrimental toxins. Exogenous oral immunoglobulins will not bind with your unique immune cells to initiate an inflammatory/immune response response. As a result, your body will be able to expend more energy rebuilding your gut lining and rebuilding the mucosal barrier.
Oral immunoglobulins have shown tremendous effects in patients with IBS/IBD. For example, 8 weeks of taking a serum-derived bovine immunoglobulin supplement made a dramatic impact for patients suffering from severe IBS and chronic diarrhea. Researchers noted these oral immunoglobulins reduced bowel movements by over half. (6)
In another study involving refractory IBD patients results were even more impressive. Refractory IBD essentially refers to patients that have received several different pharmacological interventions and experienced little to no relief. These are the most difficult patients to treat.
After supplementing with serum-derived bovine immunoglobulins patients with 10+ loose bowel movements per day were having normal bowel function within 6 weeks of treatment (7). Patients with GI infections, like C. diff., an incredibly difficult bacterial infection to treat, respond to oral immunoglobulin therapy. (8)
Oral immunoglobulin therapy has shown tremendous benefits for a variety non-gut specific issues. Early evidence shows these supplements can help to attenuate allergies along with autoimmune conditions. (9)(10) Another study even suggests oral immunoglobulin therapy can benefit those suffering from HIV. (11)
At the end of the day, researchers kept coming to the same conclusion oral immunoglobulin therapy works to reduce inflammation, support the immune system, and heal the gut. It is overwhelming how much oral immunoglobulins can reduce patient suffering. This is all because the immunoglobulins get rid of the toxins causing the damage in the first place!
Clinical Notes
When working with our private clients, I use Mega IgG 2000 for three things:
To address infections directly
To mop up waste products as we introduce other agents to change the gut environment
To soothe gut irritation
Mega IgG 2000 can be potentially a little constipating, so I tend to take it early in the day (with breakfast). You can also reduce dosage to just two a day if that works better for you.
Test! Don’t Guess!
In order to know the right supplements to take, it is important to understand what is going on in your gut. To get the best idea possible, I like to use the GI-MAP Test. This test will allow us to see how your body is responding to the current threats. Two of the things I often look at in this test are:
Zonulin
Secretory IgA (SIgA)
Zonulin will help to tell us how bad your leaky gut, aka intestinal permeability, really is. Zonulin is a protein that works as a “gate-keeper” at the gut barrier. It helps to maintain tight junctions which are the small spaces between each intestinal cell. When zonulin is high, it means inflammatory toxins are able to easily enter your bloodstream. (12)
SIgA is a type of IgA found in the gut lining. Tests showing an immunoglobulin deficiency or elevated immunoglobulins help to understand the battle going on within. High levels tend to indicate you are fighting off some type of infection or other potentially dangerous invaders. Low levels of SIgA are typically related allergies or food sensitivities. (13) Essentially, your SIgA level will let us know how well armed your immune army is and how capable they are to respond appropriately.
Best Supplements for Leaky Gut
Mega IgG 2000 by Microbiome Labs
Mega IgG 2000 by Microbiome Labs is a unique product that is highly concentrated, containing not only immunoglobulin IgG but also IgM and IgA. This gives you the three most important immunoglobulins to fight off any potential infections or isolate toxins trying to get into your blood-stream.
I like to use Mega IgG 2000 because, unlike other products on the market, it is a serum-derived bovine immunoglobulin supplement. You should be aware of copy-cat products that use colostrum (dairy milk) as a source for immunoglobulins. Mega IgG 2000 contains the only immunoglobulin-based ingredient that is completely free of dairy. This is thanks to the patented Immunolin ingredient. In fact, this is the same ingredient used in all of the studies referenced above.
Studies have shown this product is capable of binding numerous toxins like LPS and bacteria like E. coli. Thanks to the high immunoglobulin concentration found in this product, it can help reduce the effects of bacterial die-off in the gut. This product is designed to eliminate any potential threat and support your immune system.
MegaMucosa by Microbiome Labs
MegaMucosa by Microbiome Labs is the only product that both supports the immune system with immunoglobulins and repairs the gut.
Mega Mucosa is a staple product in my gut-healing protocols because it combines the benefits of amino acids like L-cysteine, L-proline, L-threonine, and L-serine with powerful ingredients like bovine immunoglobulins and citrus bioflavonoids. These ingredients work in concert to block the absorption of harmful toxins and rebuild the gut barrier. This unique combination has also been shown to support healthy microbial diversity.
Bridgit Danner, LAc, FDNP, is trained in functional health coaching and has worked with thousands of women over her career since 2004. She is the founder of Women’s Wellness Collaborative llc and FunctionalDetoxProducts.com.
Check out her easy 5-Day DIY Detox Guide here!