I always say, “Test, don’t guess!” And this is definitely true of your gut health. 


If you can't sleep 7+ hours a night without interruption, your gut isn't healthy. And doing a stool test such as the GI Map will give a lot of insight into what's causing your insomnia. 


In this article, we’ll discuss how the GI Map looks at gut health and shows why you can't sleep, the 3 top gut issues that impact sleep, and how an unhealthy gut leads to other imbalances in the body that sabotage sleep. 


You’ll also learn exactly what you can do to improve your gut health and sleep well again.


How the GI Map looks at gut health and shows why you can't sleep


The GI Map tells us what’s living in your gut: pathogens, parasites, h. Pylori, bacterial overgrowth and/ or candida. 


This test also shows how well you're digesting food, how strong your immune system is, and how much inflammation is in the gut. It gives an overall snapshot of your gut health.


The GI Map test is a simple stool test that you can take at home, send into the lab, and work with a functional practitioner like me to read the results for you.


When your gut is healthy, you have a better chance of sleeping well at night, because it helps balance many other areas in your body.


The 3 top gut issues that impact sleep


There are 3 gut issues that impact sleep:


1. An unhealthy balance of commensal or keystone bacteria, otherwise known as the good bacteria in the gut. It’s really important to have good bacteria in your body because it helps your body fight off pathogens. 


They also makes 90% of your neurotransmitters; including serotonin, GABA, dopamine, and melatonin. These are the neurotransmitters that will help you feel calm, relaxed, happy, and able to sleep well. Many people think these neurotransmitters are made in the brain, but most of them are actually made in the gut. 


2. Pathogens living in the gut that wreak havoc on the body. Not everyone who can’t sleep has pathogens living in the gut, but many do. These creatures are nocturnal, so they are eating, excreting, and releasing toxins in the body at night. This causes inflammation in the body, which triggers your body to release cortisol to fight the inflammation. Unfortunately, this will wake you up at night.


3. Leaky gut causes inflammation. The cells of your gut wall are designed to keep things in the gut. But when those cells become damaged, things like toxins and undigested food particles get through the gut wall and into the bloodstream that shouldn’t be there. This causes inflammation and your body will react in a way that affects sleep. 


How an unhealthy gut leads to other imbalances in the body that sabotage sleep


If you have an unhealthy gut, it can lead to other imbalances in your body that affect sleep including:

  • Liver issues
  • Food sensitivities
  • Mineral imbalances
  • Heavy metal toxicity 
  • Neurotransmitter deficiency
  • Inflammation in the body 
  • Immune function not working optimally


Just to name a few!


When the body is unbalanced it will be difficult for you to sleep at night, but there is something you can do about it…


What you can do to improve your gut health and sleep well again


Remember, “Test, don’t guess!” Especially when it comes to your gut health.


The GI Map test is what I recommend for this and it’s the gut test I run on my clients. If you are having trouble sleeping, the GI Map is one of the tests I recommend for you too.


When you improve your gut health, you will be taking powerful steps towards sleeping 7+ hours a night without interruption.


My client Emmanuel, who is in my Insomnia Insight program, said: 


“When I saw I have H Pylori, a lot of things started to make sense. Believe it or not, many functional medicine doctors I visited in the past didn't detect it using the other tests they use. It now makes sense why none of the other treatments I tried in the past had any effect.  


I have been taking the supplements for a week. For the first time in years, I had 3 nights in a week where I slept 7 hours straight. So something right is definitely happening.”


Are you ready to take control of your health so you can sleep 7+ hours a night uninterrupted?


The Insomnia Insight program includes 4 lab tests (DUTCH, GI Map, Neuro Focus Panel, and Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis) that you take from home to find out exactly what's going on in your body and why you can't sleep.


1. The DUTCH test is a comprehensive dried urine hormone test that shows what’s going on with your sex hormones, cortisol pattern, liver function, melatonin, and more.


2. The GI Map test (which you learned more about in this article) tells us what’s living in your gut: parasites, bacterial overgrowth and/ or candida. This is a common cause of insomnia since those creatures are nocturnal. This test also shows how well you're digesting food, how strong your immune system is, and gives an overall snapshot of your gut health.


3. The Neuro Focus Panel looks at 7 key neurotransmitters. In my program, we use this test to support any deficiencies or excesses and get you sleeping better as soon as possible.


4. The Hair Tissue Mineral Analysis (HTMA) test shows minerals and heavy metals and gives clues about how well your adrenals, thyroid, blood sugar system and more are working.


Learn more about the Insomnia Insight program and sign up today. And soon you’ll be sleeping 7+ hours a night uninterrupted….consistently!