I was reading at diagnostechs website that Salivary SIgA does not correlate with Gut SIgA, so I was wondering what does a depressed salivary SIgA means.

I thought that my gut problems were caused by my depressed salivary SIgA, but now I'm confused as to what's the relationship between low salivary SIgA and gut status.

Can someone with a depressed salivary SIgA have a normal gut with good nutrients absorption?

Maybe I should get my gut SIgA tested to measure the permeability status of my gut.

Thanks and your help is greatly appreciated,
Aaron

Great question. Gut problems are not caused by decreased or poor secretory IgA (SIgA) or salivary IgA. The typical gut problem can often begin because of the over-production of cortisol, due to stress.

You see cortisol erodes your intestinal lining, which makes you more susceptable to food allergens, yeast, fungus, candida and parasites. Also, increased cortisol will decrease your immune system by reducing the level of secretory IgA.

This will also make you more vulnerable to the above named problems and cause all the gut irritation such as bloating, gas, indigestion etc...

Also, I seriously doubt that you can have normal absorption when your salivary IgA is reduced.

Stress has such an impact on so many systems in our body, and it disrupts normal function. If you want there are some additional information on my blog as well as some articles.

I hope this helps.
Dr. Len

Last Edited Dr. Len on 21-Apr-2005 2:44 PM

keep in mind that when you are in adrenal fatigue the lack of cortisol production prevents or inhibits the regeneration of the intestinal tissue, which allows your gut to be easily overtaken by harmful bacteria.

as far as the rash from the tea, i wish i had an answer....it could be that your body doens't like jasmine. you could just have an allergy or reaction to that particular herb.

remember getting over Adrenal Fatigue is about nourishing the adrenals and STOP doing the things that are making your adrenals work so hard. if you don't lower the stress and identify where the stress is coming from, you will always be taking two steps forward and two steps backwards....

hope that helps,

Dr. Len

glad to hear your numbers are coming back in line...that's a good start and if you have a couple of tests to determine a baseline...it sounds like you are heading in the right direction.

Dr. Len

Thanks!
Marie270

Date Age Method Results Reference Range My Score As % Of Mid-Pt

May-94 32 Stool 230 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 36%

November-94 33 Stool 60 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 9%

February-95 33 Stool 130 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 20%

September-95 34 Stool 250 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 39%

March-03 41 Stool 331 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 52%

August-06 45 Stool 106 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 17%

April-07 45 Stool 30 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 5%

June '07 45 Stool 14 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 2%

August '07 45 Stool 15 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 2%

Nov '07 46 Stool 78 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 12%

Sept '08 47 Stool 13 400 - 880 (midpoint is 640) 2%

Tests only tell us where you are at with your health...it does nothing in helping us figure out what caused the problem.

I wish there was an easy way, but I would suggest a consultation, especially if you've been working at it for all this time...and have little to show for it.

Find someone who is pretty knowledgable. If you want me to help, let me know and I will have someone get in contact with you so we can figure out what you are doing that is help/hurting....

Dr. Len

my gut secretory Iga was also low and was advised to take essential fatty acids and butyric acid to help heal the lining of the gut. Plus, my stool test also showed too much bad bacteria so i am taking antibacterials (natural) to kill them...i am starting to feel much better....just a thought and hope helps....

DR. Len

For the past 2 years I have suffered from extremely high cortisol levels and numerous health issues (fast heartbeat, breathing problems, insomnia, hair loss, acne, food allergies, digestion and bowel issues). These health issues seemed to happen out of the blue, until I finally found out that they were being caused by household mold, and I am allergic to mold. I moved and within 2 months, my cortisol and other hormones and symptoms have returned to normal thank goodness.

However, I do still have a very big problem digesting food and having bowel movements. I am so severely constipated that I go to the bathroom maybe every 10 days. My abdomen is very distended and bloated. No Gastro docs have been able to help me so far.

I would like to know if my stomach and GI tract will ever return to normal - and how long it will take now that my cortisol is back to normal. I have been taking pro-biotics, digestive enzymes, aloe vera, etc...

THANK YOU!

Last Edited on 18-Nov-2008 8:32 PM

I wish there was a way to tell you exactly how long it may take, but without knowing so much more i.e. your diet as it pertains to how much fiber you consume? do you eat enough fiberous food? do you drink enough water? do you get any exercise? etc....

I will say that going ever ten days is not good especially if you are eating 3 meals a day.

Dr. Len

Thank you for the quick reply! My diet is very clean -- I eat 5-6 small meals per day and I eat about 50% carbs, 30% protein and 20% fat. I eat 25-30 grams of fiber per day and drink 6-9 glasses of water (I am 105 lbs). I have about 8 servings of fruits and vegetables per day and eat brown rice, oatmeal, quinoa, millet or yams for the complex carbs. I also don't eat any of the major food allergens just in case they could be a problem, although I never had food sensitivities before the adrenal/mold problem.

I take liquid vitamins and minerals, a B complex, fish oil, flax seed, and super greens & wheat grass. I exercise (cardio & weight train) 4-5 days per week.

I had a series of colonics which didn't really help and my stomach was still distended afterwards. Also, I sometimes feel full after one bite of food, or not even hungry for my next meal. I tend to feel crampy and nauseated, like I have food poisoning.

In case it's relevant, my last SIga saliva test was at 17 (normal range was 25-60). It was a 7 a few months ago before I moved.

THANK YOU!
Karen

It sounds like you are doing better; with the better diet and better SigA results. and i appreciate all your dieting information, but without any clue as to what symptoms your body is giving it is very difficult to give you specific help, only general help.

You mentioned what you were taking but are you using and digestive enzymes like Digest Plus and/or possibly yeast overgrowth....and it could be harboring in both your small and large intestines, which could be affecting elimination. Again this takes us back to asking you a bunch of questions or getting a good history i.e. Health Assessment Profile that gives me all the information to help figure out and understand what all the various symptoms are telling us.

hope that helps, let us know if we can help you or if you want some specific help for your problems.

Dr. Len

I just talked to a friend who is into holistic medicine and he said I could have a problem with my PH. I just tested it and I am VERY acidic. I will try rice protein powder instead of animal proteins for a while to see if that helps!

Thank you for your help.

Karen

Last Edited on 20-Nov-2008 8:59 PM

if you want to do a phone consultation we can do that to help get you on the right track.

Yes, acidity is important, but is it what is slowing down your transite time? I am a fan of rice protein, particularly when most other proteins cause allergic responses (dairy, soy).

Take care,

Dr. Len

Thanks!!

Karen

Last Edited on 23-Nov-2008 9:39 PM

I also had a food allergy test which came back with so many things on it that I don't know what I'm going to eat now. All my usual foods showed up on the list, including soy, dairy and lettuce! I'm a vegetarian (9 years on) so the soy is a big deal.

I am already taking a probiotic, and many other supplements Vitamin D, Multi, etc as well as ground flax, chia seeds, acai berry powder and maca powder. What else can I do without overdoing it? Thanks for any insight you may have to offer.

Let me first say that a test only tells me where your current health status is at....it doesn't tell me how or why you are there...that takes a lot more information and history in order to give you some solid suggestions.

As far as the normal cortisol reading. Is this your first reading? If it is we don't know what it looked like 3 months ago...it could have shown a high cortisol level and now you are falling into true adrenal fatigue and exhaustion. I think that because your DHEA is low....again that is my first thoughts with the limited amount of information I have.

As far as having low SIgA....I would suspect an over active adrenal glands. and the fact that you are showing allegies to everything is not uncommon. I have seen that, but have found when I take my patients off the most common allergens....which are usually the things they eat the most of....Dairy, Wheat, Corn, SOY, Coffee, MSG, Artificial sweeteners for at least 2-3 weeks we start doing a lot better. too often I see people worried about the allergy response to the pineapple or carrot that they only occassionally eat and fail to pay attention to the dairy or soy or wheat that they eat almost every meal.

Take ALL of those foods out of your diet for a minimum of two weeks and see how you feel. YOu have to eliminate all of them otherwise you are wasting your time and efforts.

let me also add that you are taking a lot of supplements and not doing so well, which tells me you are missing something or in need of some good advice because you are literally wasting money on supplements for results you are not getting....so if you want to set up a consultation let my office know. I would first recommend taking our online health quizzes and make sure all those bases are covered....your digesting is working fine, your elimination is working fine, your blood sugar is staying balanced, etc... because that could be where you are missing the boat.

Blessings,

Dr. Len

I show a moderate amonut of yeast (Rhodotorula glutinis/mucilaginosa) and am slightly low in butyrate (13%; .44mg/mL).

I have working on lowering my TSH through detoxing which was last measured at 13 (down from 26).

I would like to do something to decrease the immune response in my body. Is there any one good thing that I might consider?

(I already eat organic and buy food from an organic farm, steer clear of fast/rest. food, don't eat processed food/drink pop, take cod liver oil/butter oil/CoQ10/Royal Bee Jelly, have been seeing a traditional chinese medicine doc which has been helping some...and don't want to go back to my endocrinologist for more blood work until I can lick these last few bacteria.)

Thank you for your input.

Last Edited on 12-Jan-2009 2:49 PM

Have you had your adrenal glands measured? More than 80% of my thyroid patients have a primary adrenal problem...which is pulling your thyroid out of balance...that is my first thought especially since the adrenal glands activate your immune system, your first line of defense from invaders...so the reason your SigA may be out of line could be becasue the adrenals are weak and unable to activate your natural immunity as it is supposed to.

As far as all you are taking, sounds great, but without more history, symptoms, etc....I can only make general suggestiosn, but that would be the first thing to check.

I have no idea how good or bad your digestion is working? that would have a major affect on it as well.

Hope that gives you something to think about and some direction, let me know if we can help.

Dr. Len

I am a 33 year old female. I have recently taken a series of tests that have shown the following:
Milk (Casein) Ab.SIgA Negative
Soy (Protein) Ab.SIgA Negative
Egg (Albumin) Ab.SIgA Negative
Gliadin Ab, SIgA <1 Negative
Total Salivary SIgA <5 Depressed

Cortisols
Morning 14.7
Noon 4.7
Afternoon 1.7
Nighttime 1.6

Cortisol Sum 22.7
DHEA-S Average 2.99
Total Cortisol/DHEA-S Ratio 7.6

I was told that I most likely have a gluten intolerance despite the Gliadin Ab, SIgA being negative. I was told that the SIgA being so depressed is a sign that I do indeed have a Gliadin intolerance. Is this true? Is there not another test that can be done or is going on a gluten free diet the only way to know for certain?
As more information, my mother was recently diagnosed with several food allergies including gluten, dairy, egg, and cane sugar. I suffered from a variety of allergies (though not food allergies that I was aware of) and asthma as a child, but grew out of them as a young adult. I have also had a hard time the majority of my life keeping my weight down. Recently (the past year) I have gained more than 10 lbs and I am at the heaviest I have ever been (200 lb). My healthy weight seems to be around 170. I have had stomach problems (gassy, bloating, general discomfort) for the past 6 years or so. I spent several years in South America and had more than a few boughts with various parasites and assumed/attributed my current situation to that. I don't recall having any types of intestinal issues until that time. Perhaps it's a coincidence, but I'm not certain. Any insight would be helpful.

Best Regards,
CathyMT

The fact that your Siga is so low, it can be giving you a False Negative....into thinking all is well, but the fact that your SIGA is so low I would question the reliability of those specific food allergie tests.

The fact that you had allergies and asthma, and I don't have any other helpful information, I may or may not suspect possible adrenal problems, which are highly related, but the fact that your adrenals look so low..I would first consider getting your adrenals back in line otherwise your allergies will never get better.

The fact that when your adrenals were pumping out so much cortisol and adrenaline for all those years. The extra cortiosl begins to erode your intestinal lining which makes you susceptible to food allergies and yeast, fungus, candida and parasite overgrowth. To which if you read my "Health Steps "IRS" Protocol" it will walk you through the steps to deal with this problem. All the information is on the site for you, but if you want some individualized help to ensure you get where you are going, you can setup an initial consulation to help ensure you get started on the right path...so often people begin down the wrong path and wonder why they don't get better. You have to make sure you address the root of the problem, which is always my goal. and the way to ensure good health is by Restoring Normal Function back to your body and that begins with digestive and elimination function as well as blood sugar regulation and of course our stress hormones.

Adrenal Fuel will work great for helping your adrenals, but remember you also have to stop doing things that get you worse.

Dr. Len

Yes, it could be the house and a potential mold problem. If the house is older, has carpet, kids/babies lived there....those are all reasons to consider a possbile mold problem...but don't over-look some of the other more obvious things that I always seem to find with my patients such as:

- Poor diet...adrenal exhaustion...blood sugar imbalances...digestive problems....poor elimination....hormonal issues...stress....these can all be part of your problem, so don't look for the mold problem....when there could be something else that is probably more detremental to your health....but let's not forget the potential for mold.

We even need to look at your yeast/fungus/candida overgrowth....it could be what is exasperating the problem.

Hope that helps,

Dr. Len