You can’t fix something if you don’t know what’s broken. That’s why the GI Map stool test has made the biggest difference in helping my clients. We can hone in on the problem right away. No more guessing or experimenting.

People skeptical of testing have taken the wrong tests that are not sensitive enough to identify existing problems.

Many gut tests will produce false negatives for parasites or h. pylori, in particular, offer little biome information and don’t look at digestive markers.

This throws people off track and delays their healing process.

The PCR technology used by the GI Map helps it use DNA clues to identify pathogens other tests miss.

The GI Map must be ordered through a practitioner because it is not intuitive to interpret.

Even some clinicians have a hard time interpreting it. That’s why I offer second opinion consults on previous GI Map tests.

A GI Map is valid for one year, after that I suggest retesting as things can change.

I’ve personally taken the GI Map twice, a year apart. And I’m sharing my results and protocols.

The GI Map is an at home test that can be sent worldwide, with a few exceptions. It can’t be sent to China or Argentina and there’s a workaround for New York State residents the USA.

In the video below I go through both tests in detail so you can understand the value it brought me. I’ve also written the highlights below.

Take aways from first test 

Page 1 checked for food born pathogens, viruses and parasites.

This page revealed that I had two food born pathogen. One of the pathogen is associated with SIBO, but luckily I never developed it.

The big change I made from this result is cutting out the sushi and rare burgers I ate frequently. I also stopped eating pork.  

Page 2 looked at h. pylori and it’s virulent strains. H. pylori is a bacterial infection of the stomach. I was negative for h. pylori.  

Page 2 also measured beneficial bacteria

My beneficial bacterial looked good. The keystone strains (the strains that feed and influence other strains) were strong. There are two major groups of bacterial phyla that make up 80 percent of your biome, one of my phyla, the firmicutes, was low.

Firmicutes are  bacteria responsible for producing an anti inflammatory short chain fatty acid called butyrate.  

To support my firmicutes population, I 1) added a prebiotic supplement fiber to my diet, 2) added probiotics and 3) increased veggie density and diversity. 

Page 3 measured my opportunistic bacteria and  potential autoimmune trigger bacteria.

I had more pathogenic bacterial overgrowth that I imagined. I had klebsiella overgrowth. This is an autoimmune triggering bacteria associated with Rheumatoid Arthritis. 

It also measured my fungal and yeast load, as well as additional viruses such as the Epstein Bar Virus.

I was positive for candida, a yeast species.

Typically yeast and bacterial overgrowth requires an herbal antimicrobial protocol to correct. 

The top of page 4 tested for parasites 

I was positive for two of them.

This was another reason I quit eating raw fish, rare meat and pork. I also washed my fruits and veggies better.

The bottom half of page 4 looked at digestion, liver function and immunity

My pancreatic enzyme function was below optimal. Which meant I did not produce enough digestive enzymes. So I began taking digestive enzymes to optimize my digestion and lower my yeast and bacteria overgrowth. 

My fat digestion and my liver function was ok.  

My sig A (secretory IGA) was very high because it was fighting off the parasites and the food born pathogens.

Sig A is one of the most important markers on the test because it determines the resiliency of your system. It show how much fight there is in your gut’s immune system and it’s a good sign if it is high when responding to infections/threats. It is not a good sign when it is low however. 

The normal SigA range is between 500 and 2000. Ideal is above 1000. 

When Sig A is low, depending on how low, it’s important to first use a support protocol to raise it before starting a killing protocol.

This crucial step can make all the difference. If your system is exhausted, the herbs alone are often not enough. 

Antigliadin is marker that tests the immune response to gluten. Mine was below 100, which meant that I had no inflammatory reaction gluten. 

My inflammatory marker, calprotectin was ok. Below 50 is good and I was at 49.  Again, it was creeping up because I was fighting off two food-born pathogens and two parasites. 

I did not add on the zonulin marker, which determines if you have leaky gut (intestinal permeability). I regret not ordering this marker but ran it during the next test. 

My response to my results

I did a strong, two month herbal antimicrobial protocol to get rid of the parasites, and this antimicrobial protocol also aimed to lower the pathogenic bacteria and opportunistic yeast. 

I also lowered my carbs to starve candida/yeast and stopped eating sushi, rare meat and pork to lower exposure to parasites. 

I added digestive enzymes, probiotics, prebiotics and upped my veggie diversity. 

GI map retest 1 year later

In between test one and test two I went through a lot of stress. I wrote a cookbook (work stress), I lived in an apartment with toxic black mold (immune system stress) . 

This time page 1 was clear, no more food born pathogen.

But on page 2 h. pylori showed up and it was high. This was a response to the stress of the last year. 

When my h. pylori flared (this is an infection I had and cleared in the past) it also triggered a bacteria called clostridia to overgrow. When this bacteria overgrows it often causes symptoms of anxiety and OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder). I was definitely anxious. 

My firmicutes, the bacterial phyla that was low last time, was now high. 

My bacterial overgrowth had improved significantly and the klebsiella was now gone. Which was a huge relief. 

Candida/yeast was at the same level as last time but that was to be expected with mold and mycotoxin exposure. Mycotoxins are fungal in nature and drive up candida. H. Pylori is also a root causes of candida because it lowers stomach acid. 

Both parasites were gone. My parasite cleanse worked well. And I ate a lot of my famous parasite ball busters . 

Fat digestion and enzyme production were at the same level as last time. I  continued taking enzymes with meals.  Especially protein meals. 

My secretory IgA (SigA) returned back to normal and was just under ideal at 924. 

My inflammation improved tremendously. With no parasites to battle it went from a 49 to a 1. 

The bad news was that I became sensitive to gluten.

The stress of living in toxic mold for a year broke my tolerance to gluten. That meant that I needed to strictly follow a gluten free diet. 

The other bad news was that I had leaky gut. Perhaps it was driven by inflammation from gluten intolerance or the mold toxicity, but it was there and it was high. 

You can fix leaky gut with diet and lifestyle changes and clearing infections like h. pylori and candida from the gut.

This was good information because I knew what to do. 

What I did 

I did a 2 month h. pylori protocol that addressed both the h pylori and candida at the same time. 

H pylori is getting harder and harder to kill, because of antibiotic resistance. That is why I wrote the h. pylori rescue guide, which details the exact protocol I used to clear the toughest cases. 

To be honest I did not have many h. pylori symptoms (GERD/reflux and constipation are the biggest complaints but were not issues for me) but it lowered my stomach acid, which effected my digestion and biome. 

To heal leaky gut I had to address h. pylori first, cut out gluten and began a  protocol for sealing the gut lining. 

Leaky gut can also cause other food sensitivities so I took a food sensitivity test.  

If you continue eating the foods you’re sensitive to it can perpetuate the cycle of inflammation and leaky gut. 

Typically, food sensitivities need to be removed for 6 months and then reintroduced after the gut heals. 

I plan on taking my third GI Map next month to see how successfully I addressed my leaky gut, candida and h pylori. 

While I have not experienced digestive symptoms during this time, I did have some autoimmune issues pop up. Sealing the gut lining can reverse antibodies and put autoimmunity into remission.

For me, the clean up work I did post GI Map was the best preventative medicine I could do to protect against future issues. 

I think my lack of symptoms had to do with my good SiGA levels and robust biome. That is what was keeping me in balance and symptom free. 

One common question I get asked about the GI Map is if tests for SIBO. It does not, though a few bacterial markers on it can be clues that SIBO is present. 

Email me with any questions. You can get more info on GI Map testing and pricing here . 

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Angela Privin is proof that IBS is NOT an incurable disease or a disease at all. IBS is a body out of balance. It’s an invitation for change. After solving her own IBS mystery more than a decade ago Angela trained as a health coach to help others.

Angela uses both science and intuition to help people figure out what’s out of balance in their body. She works with lab tests, dietary changes, supplementation and nervous system rebalancing. Get help rebalancing your digestive system and solving your IBS mystery here.

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