Video Transcript:
Today we're going to dive into the world of natural prokinetics.
I'm going to answer the questions of how do prokinetics work, what kind of common conditions are treated with prokinetics?
What are some of the benefits of kinetics, as well as who should really consider using pro kinetics.
I'll also answer what are the differences of prokinetics with other treatments?
And lastly, how do you use prokinetics?
But before we dig into this topic, my name is Marcie Vaske and I'm a licensed nutritionist with Flusso Nutrients. So at Flusso Nutrients, we provide you with education on various types of supplements so that you can make a good choice in what's best for you.
Now, we don't know what kind of medications you're on or other supplements you're on, so it is always best to speak to a supplement literate healthcare professional, and just to make sure that there's no contraindications happening when you're making your choice of supplements.
But today I'm going to jump into what are kinetics. And this isn't oftentimes something we hear a lot about, so I think it'll be interesting and fun on.
What Is A Natural Prokinetic?
So prokinetics are often used for people who are struggling with various gastrointestinal issues, and they're a type of supplementation that helps to stimulate the bowel and regulate your bowel movements.
And I use them all the time with certain clients that are struggling with specific issues and things just aren't moving, so they can be super helpful.
So what's cool is how prokinetics work.
And what they do is that they work by enhancing the movement in our intestinal tract, which is called peristalsis.
And sometimes if we have a lot of slow motility going on, that's our digestive system or our intestinal tract that is just sort of, it's very slow and things are not moving through.
We need to have a healthy amount of peristalsis going on to move our food through and therefore our stool through.
So prokinetics just stimulate the bowel.
And in addition to stimulating the bowel, they help to strengthen and create a proper movement.
So meaning it's not irregular. So if we think about irritable bowel, irritable bowel is irregular movement of your intestinal tract, right?
Because you might have gas or bloating or abdominal cramping. And when we have using a prokinetic, oftentimes it helps to just kind of get that frequency going in a more positive way.
Now, some prokinetics actually work to help to increase our neurotransmitters because we need to have enough serotonin in our digestive system or in our intestinal tract to keep that per assalis from moving properly.
Gut Motility Issues
And other kinetics work in more of a broad spectrum range. So what are some of the common conditions that I use or that other practitioners use kinetics for?
GERD Help
And one of 'em is going to be acid reflux or gerd, gastrointestinal reflux disease.
And GERD is going to be, it's helpful to use the pro kinetic in this way because what happens is that it reduces that your esophageal sphincter from staying open and not closing properly.
And so using the prokinetic, it's a better flow and therefore you actually have less acid reflux flares.
Gastroparesis Help
Another condition that prokinetics are oftentimes used for is gastroparesis.
And gastroparesis is where we have a delay in our gastric emptying. And so if you struggle with symptoms like nausea or getting full fast, you might be struggling with some sort of gastroparesis and using pro kinetics can help to move that through slowly, not slowly, but it moves it through more properly just like it does for your intestinal tract and the pertalis, it just keeps things moving. It's just a little bit of a stimulant.
Constipation Help
Another condition that I use it for commonly is going to be chronic constipation. And chronic constipation is just going to be an episode where you're just not having a bowel movement every day or even for several days if you can't get your movement right?
Using kinetics can be really helpful in the way that it helps to move the stool through the intestinal tract via stimulating that paristalsis.
Another way pro kinetics are used is with functional dyspepsia.
And when, again, kind of back to gastroparesis, they're similar in the way that you have a slower or delayed gastric emptying, you might feel nauseous more.
You might even feel like you have acid reflux. You get bloated and feeling like things just aren't moving through or moving and kind of digesting. And so using that pro kinetic will help to stimulate that process.
And lastly, another one that's very common is IBS.
So irritable bowel syndrome, as I noted earlier, using a pro kinetic is super helpful because if you have an irritable bowel, you have a bowel that's not moving properly and contracting the way we need it to and usually creating a lot of symptoms.
So using a prokinetic can actually just kind of get it back into its groove.
So those are some of the conditions that I use prokinetics for and other practitioners do as well.
Prokinetic Benefits
And so what are the benefits?
And as I was going through some of the conditions, you've already heard what some of those benefits are.
So number one off the top would be symptom relief. Using those pro kinetics for those various different symptoms that we're having can really make just a really big difference and people feel better very quickly.
ProKinetics, you don't have to take them for an extended period of time until they work. They work just like digestive enzymes in the way that once you take it, it should be helping to move things along and get some symptom relief.
Now with some of these prokinetics, there will be that neurotransmitter piece to it, which then is something that would build up over time.
But out of the gate, you can have some really nice symptom relief by putting in a pro kinetic. In addition to the symptom relief, the benefit also is better absorption of our minerals and vitamins.
So if we're digesting things better and moving them through our body more efficiently and steadily, we're going to have a lot more absorption of our minerals and vitamins, which of course is going to help support all the systems in your body.
And also by using prokinetics, there is a reduction in complications.
So for example, if you have a chronic history of constipation, we know that could create colon cancer or other GI issues such as just a more leaky gut because there's a lot of toxins sitting there for a long time.
Other complications in GERD or acid reflux could also be gastritis. So if you have low stomach acid and your food is just sitting in your stomach for a long time, that's just inflaming the lining of your stomach, which could create gastritis and just more pain.
And of course, using pro kinetics are going to make the quality of your life so much better when you're not struggling with GI symptoms and using kinetics with other therapies is always the best way to go.
I would never suggest someone just start taking a pro kinetic and not change one other thing about their health, unless they're doing everything wonderfully to begin with.
But many times using kinetics in addition to number one, changing your diet. So making sure you're taking out inflammatory foods or processed packaged foods and really implementing a whole food diet also by using other modalities to help support chronic constipation.
For example, sometimes just adding in magnesium citrate as a way to go, but we need a little extra support.
You can put a prokinetic in. And of course, if there's other underlying GI issues going on such as SIBO or maybe Leaky Gut or just a dysbiosis going on in your microbiome, those things need to be taken care of.
ProKinetics aren't going to fix those things, but they can help support.
Potential Side Effects
Now you might be thinking, oh, they sound pretty good and this is maybe something that could help me, but there's always going to be side effects to everything, even supplements.
And sometimes there's few for some people and someone else using the same supplement won't have one side effect.
But potential side effects when using pro Kinetics can be abdominal cramping.
So if it's maybe you took too much or maybe you did it on an empty stomach, and so you'll have some abdominal cramping, there could also be some acid reflux or just kind of heartburn feelings.
A lot of times in these pro kinetics, they're high in ginger, and we're going to run through that in just a moment. Other symptoms can look like and feel like maybe even dizziness, headaches. And so if you're struggling with symptoms while taking a pro kinetic, just stop it.
I mean, just let it go and you can always start adding it back in maybe at a much lower dose or obviously speak to your healthcare practitioner who recommended it for you and come up with a different plan.
Prokinetic Supplements
So what are some kinetics that you could look for that might be helpful?
Number one that I use a lot is MotilPro, which I will link down below, has a nice amount of ginger as well as 5-HTP.
Now, ginger is a root that helps to stimulate our digestive system. It's been used for thousands of years for digestion. It works beautifully.
And in addition to that, there's 5-HTP in there, and 5-HTP is a precursor to our serotonin. And serotonin is a neurotransmitter that we need to have in good supply in our intestinal tract to help keep it moving properly.
That paristalsis talking about. So within MotilPro, you've got the Ginger to stimulate and you've got the 5-HTP to help build up your serotonin. And so that one works wonderfully. I love it.
Now in addition to Motil Pro, there's also Motility Activator and then Motility Pro. And both of those don't have 5-HTP in them. And so if you're taking an SSRI or antidepressant, you are not going to want to take the Motil Pro that has 5-HTP, but the Motility Activator and the Motility Pro are both going to be very, very similar to the Motil Pro and they all have the same name.
So it's a lot of motility, but just making sure, again, understanding who you are, what medications you are, and making the right choice in pro kinetic is going to be the way to go. I'm going to link those supplements down below, so you check 'em out, see what feels right to you, and you can easily incorporate them into your daily routine.
I typically would say start with one capsule at lunch and one capsule at dinnertime. And you can always change it. Some people need more, and some people are good with two a day.
So it really depends on your symptoms and your whole body constitution.
And so lastly, what are ways to make these most effective for you?
And number one is going to be following the dosage instruction. So whether you're a health practitioner is supporting you with that or you're just reading the label on the back, always start with what the label says and then you can go from there.
The second thing is going to be consistent. These are not types of supplements that you can just take whenever you'll want to take them every day, because what you're trying to do is essentially reteach your digestive system to function in the right way to move properly.
And also you're going to want to be able, you want to be sure that you're making those lifestyle modifications.
So changing your diet while you're working on your gut health is they go hand in hand. You can't do one and not the other.
You've got to change the food because I always say you cannot outs supplement a bad diet. So be very consistent.
Do the right dosing, play around with it for yourself, make sure you talk to your practitioner as well as making those lifestyle changes.
And then lastly, be patient. That's one of the most frustrating things with a gastrointestinal health is that it doesn't change in a day. Now, your symptoms can feel better overnight, but they're not going to be gone. And so be patient, lean into it and know that you're on the right path to supporting your gut health.
So in conclusion to all this, I hope it was helpful and kind of shed new light on a supplement that oftentimes isn't really talked much about.
And kinetics can be wonderful for acid reflux, gerd, IBS, things like chronic constipation and making sure that you're understanding who you are in terms of what medications you might be on or either other supplements, and then incorporating those in a healthy balanced way.
So I will link those supplements below, which are motil Pro Motility Activator and Motility Pro.
And thank you for watching today, and we'll see you next week.
Check out the high-quality supplements we discussed in this video - links below for your convenience!
1) MotilPro: create an account here, then search the name "MotilPro by Pure Encapsulations" - https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/flussonutrients. Additional options: Motility Activator, and Motility PRO
2) ALL PROFESSIONAL QUALITY SUPPLEMENTS: https://flussonutrients.nutridyn.com & https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/flussonutrients