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Nourishing Love

Integrative Health Coach Australia

Your Guide to The GAPS Diet

What is the GAPS Diet and is it right for you or your child? You’ve come to the right place for answers to these questions!

GAPS stands for both Gut and Psychology Syndrome and Gut and Physiology Syndrome as coined by Dr. Natasha Campbell-McBride in her book, Gut and Psychology Syndrome. GAPS establishes the seemingly obvious, but often overlooked, connection between the function of your digestive system and the health of your brain and the rest of your body.

The GAPS Diet might be right for you and your family if you’re experiencing any of the following:

  • Asthma
  • ADD/ADHD
  • Digestive Disorders like IBS, Ulcerative Colitis, Chron’s Disease, Chronic Constipation, Inflammatory Bowel Disease, or SIBO
  • Autism
  • Learning or Social Problems
  • Chronic Fatigue
  • Depression or anxiety
  • Food Allergies, including Gluten-Sensitivity
  • Schizophrenia
  • Autoimmune Disorders
  • Hormone Imbalances
  • Eczema or Acne
  • Neurological Issues
  • Seizures

The GAPS Diet has helped thousands of people overcome these conditions and more. Most people begin the GAPS Diet when mainstream medicine hasn’t been able to figure out why they’re ill or is only offering symptom management, rather than true healing.

If you believe that you or your children deserve to return to health, and you’re willing to change your eating and lifestyle to make it happen, you’re a candidate for the GAPS Diet.

If you would like to read some of the published research on GAPS head HERE.

For the 2024 published study on The GAPS Nutritional Protocol As a Dietary Treatment for Inflammatory Bowel Disorders: Analysis of Eight Case Studies go HERE. 

How the GAPS Diet helps:

  • Heals and seals the gut lining in order to restore optimal gut function
  • Normalizes gut flora including bacteria, yeasts, and parasites
  • Corrects nutritional deficiencies
  • Restores your immune system
  • Gently helps your body remove toxins

What is the GAPS Diet?

The GAPS Diet is a therapeutic healing diet and lifestyle that includes:

  • The 6-stage GAPS Intro Diet – An elimination diet that begins with easy-to-digest homemade soups, cooked vegetables, and fermented foods. As you graduate to each new stage new foods and cooking methods are added in.
  • Full GAPS Diet – A delicious whole foods, grain-free dietary plan that’s based on the foods that are most nourishing and healthy for the digestive system and beyond. It’s free of processed sugars, and all artificial ingredients, and is mostly home-cooked. Find the Full GAPS Diet food list here.
  • Supplements – Limited supplements that support digestive healing and provide commonly missing nutrients that are crucial to re-booting your immune system. These include probiotics, cod liver oil, EFA’s, and iodine paint. Optional digestive support supplements are used if indicated, including stomach acid and fat digestion support.
  • Detoxification – Including clearing your home of toxic cleaning and body care products, taking baths with detoxifying bath additives, and fresh pressed juices.

Whether you should begin with the GAPS Intro or Full Diet depends on your health concerns, digestive function, and lifestyle.

GAPS is most often followed for 18 months to 2 years, or for at least 6 months after being symptom free.

If you think the GAPS Diet might be for you, get in touch so that you can receive more personalized guidance and support.