The Connection Between Leaky Gut Syndrome & Sleep

The Connection Between Leaky Gut Syndrome & Sleep

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Hello, everyone. Welcome back, and thank you for joining us and listening in today. For those of you who have experienced chronic pain—headache pain, jaw pain, facial pain, or chronic pain anywhere in the body—whether it was induced by significant trauma like a car accident, a punch to the face, a sports injury, or if it seemed to “just come on” and we’ve attributed it to old age, I hope this episode adds insight into what can cause delayed healing from those injuries. My goal is to help you discover internal mechanisms that might be contributing to chronic pain and keeping you from getting fully better.

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Case Study: Chronic Pain and Sleep Apnea

Recently, I was reminded of a patient who had persistent headache pain, jaw and facial pain, and a general ill feeling in her daily life. She reminded me of several patients in the past whose symptoms were difficult to resolve. This patient was being treated for an airway disorder—obstructive sleep apnea—and was using an oral device intended to remodel the mouth, nose, and throat structures to open up the breathing passages and reduce the apnea. Helping someone breathe and sleep better is always a good thing. However, in her case, she struggled with the oral device from day one. It was difficult to adapt to, she clenched on it a lot, it felt like a foreign object—which of course it is—and over time it became a noxious irritant.

At a follow-up visit, she reported an increase in migraines, headaches, facial pain, and jaw pain. During her evaluation, she also reported long-standing digestive problems such as diarrhea, constipation, and bloating. This wasn’t new—it had been going on for years. She also continued to experience fatigue. Even though she was breathing better with the oral device, she felt more inflamed and reactive to her environment. Allergens seemed to bother her more, her nose felt stuffier, and breathing remained a challenge.

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Exploring Leaky Gut Syndrome

As I considered her case, I kept thinking about leaky gut syndrome. Leaky gut is a relatively common pattern I see in chronic pain patients, and in her situation it seemed highly likely. In addition to this suspicion, she also shared that she was in her tenth year of completing EMDR (Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing) therapy, which was going extremely well and helping her process past adverse life events. Those events can include childhood trauma like witnessing a parental divorce, sexual abuse by a family member, bullying at school, or being terrorized during a home invasion. While not necessarily directly connected to her current pain, these life events create a sympathetic (fight-or-flight) load on the body that must be addressed if we hope to truly resolve craniofacial pain.

When I treat craniofacial pain, I often refer to the acronym B-I-B-D-M-D—“BIB DMD.” The first “B” is breathing. In her case, we were doing everything possible to improve nasal and throat breathing using devices and supportive measures like xylitol-based and saline nasal sprays to moisturize and open the nose. She had also been referred to an ear, nose, and throat specialist for further improvement. The “I” is inflammation. She presented with a clear inflammatory flare: increased headaches and facial pain, a generalized sense of malaise, difficulty falling asleep, and difficulty staying asleep. Widespread systemic inflammation and chronic pain often drive elevated cortisol release. Inflammation in the digestive system can be a massive trigger for reflex bruxism—the involuntary movement patterns of the mandible, neck, and head that occur as a reflex to stressors.

When digestive inflammation is active, that reflex activity often shows up at night, causing excessive use of the muscles around the head, neck, and jaw. The joints become inflamed from overuse. In her scenario, this could significantly contribute to flares of facial and jaw pain, as well as headaches. Given her chronic digestive issues and symptom pattern, pursuing the leaky gut path made sense.

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Treatment Approaches for Leaky Gut

If you suspect leaky gut syndrome and you’re not a gastroenterologist, you can certainly refer to one for evaluation. That’s a good and often necessary step. But there are also things patients can begin right away. First, upgrade nutrition with whole foods. Second, remove as many sympathetic (fight-or-flight) triggers as possible. EMDR is an excellent example of resolving adverse life events that keep the nervous system in “red alert.” Reducing those triggers matters because when the sympathetic system is chronically activated—due to pain, unresolved trauma, disordered breathing during sleep, or inflammatory foods—the brain reallocates blood flow away from less immediately necessary organ systems.

Ask yourself: is the digestive system an essential organ system when a grizzly bear is chasing us? Of course not. In a survival state, the body doesn’t prioritize digesting that delicious pizza we just ate. Energetically and neurologically, we divert resources to fighting or fleeing. In chronic fight-or-flight, blood is shunted away from the gut, and energy is redirected. Nutrient absorption drops. Peristalsis slows. Food lingers in the digestive tract and can ferment or rot, resulting in irritable bowel-type symptoms and potentially paving the way for more severe conditions, such as Crohn’s disease.

For this patient, we recommended a whole-food diet and a high-quality probiotic. I like Metagenics products; they offer effective probiotic options. They also have a medical food—UltraInflamX—that targets gastrointestinal inflammation. Taken daily for about sixty days, it often helps calm the gut and reduce leaky gut symptoms.

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Understanding the Gut–Brain Connection

Leaky gut refers to a breakdown in the tight junctions between epithelial cells that line the digestive tract. Inflammation loosens those junctions, compromising the barrier. As food, bacteria, and toxins move through the gut, gaps in the cell lining allow them to spill into the bloodstream, where they can circulate systemically. The result is a body-wide inflammatory state that can feed into food intolerances, immune dysregulation, and even autoimmunity. Conditions like diabetes and lupus are often linked to gut barrier dysfunction. Additional symptoms may include skin issues such as rosacea, eczema, and psoriasis, increased food sensitivities, and an overactive immune response that keeps the body on constant red alert. The adrenal glands become overworked and fatigued from the continual fight-or-flight burden.

The gastrointestinal tract is often called the second brain because of its rich neural network. Remarkably, the microbiome produces approximately 50% of our dopamine and up to 90% of our serotonin. The vagus nerve supplies the gut and constantly sends signals to the brain about digestive needs and status. If a person eats junk or inflammatory foods, the bacterial populations shift toward those that thrive on such diets. Those bacteria then “ask” for more of the same by sending signals up the vagus nerve, driving cravings. This is one reason it’s so hard to break food habits; your gut flora is literally requesting fuel.

To restore balance, reintroduce beneficial bacteria with natural probiotics such as yogurt, kefir, buttermilk, soft cheeses, unpasteurized sauerkraut, certain probiotic juices, kimchi, and miso soup. In some cases, fecal microbiota transplantation is used. While not the most pleasant thought, if it restores a healthy microbiome, the benefits can be significant.

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Conclusion and Final Thoughts

I hope today’s episode opens your eyes to the powerful connections between headache disorders, facial and jaw pain, and the digestive system—particularly leaky gut syndrome. For patients, consider adding natural probiotics and, if needed, medical foods like Metagenics UltraInflamX to reduce GI inflammation. For clinicians, always consider the “second brain” in chronic craniofacial pain. Ask whether the gut is in a chronic fight-or-flight state due to diet, dysbiosis, or a compromised intestinal barrier spilling toxins into the bloodstream. Collaboration is key: gastroenterologists, naturopathic physicians, and skilled nutritionists can be invaluable partners in accelerating recovery from craniofacial pain disorders, migraines, and primary headaches.

Over the years, I have often stood in awe of how quickly headache symptoms can improve once gut health is restored and sympathetic load is reduced. Thank you for listening. I hope you have a wonderful day and that you can use some of this information to help yourself and your family enjoy the highest quality of health and well-being. Take care.

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