Love & Guts

#324 You've probably heard serotonin called "the happy chemical." But over 90% of the serotonin in your body isn't made in your brain at all — it's made in your gut, and it does a completely different job there.
In this episode, I walk through what gut serotonin actually does for motility, why gut and brain serotonin are largely separate systems (even though your gut and brain are still deeply connected, just through other pathways), what can cause reduced gut serotonin production, and what the newest research says about the gut bacteria that may influence it. I'm upfront about what's genuinely proven and what's still early-stage animal research—including a promising, evidence-backed link between fibre, short-chain fatty acids, and serotonin production that ties right back to why fibre matters.
Links: 📅 Book a 1:1 consultation with Lynda: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/book-an-appointment/
📖 Get Things Moving — Evidence-based guide to overcoming constipation: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/product/constipation-guide-get-things-moving/
🍵 BetterMe Tea: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/shop/
 
This content is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please consult with your healthcare provider before making any changes to your diet or health routine.

#323 Fibremaxxing is having a real moment right now — and while I'm all for people increasing their fibre intake to support their microbiome, "eat more fibre" isn't universal advice for constipation. For a specific group of people, more fibre doesn't just fail to help. It genuinely makes things worse.
In this episode, I walk through exactly who fibre can backfire for and why — including SIBO and IMO, pelvic floor dysfunction (dyssynergic defecation), and slow transit constipation. I cover the real mechanisms behind how fibre works, why fluid intake changes the equation, what the research actually shows about low FODMAP diets (and what it doesn't), and why I don't believe in long-term fibre or FODMAP restriction. If you've increased your fibre, done everything "right," and either nothing's changed, or you've gotten worse — this episode explains why that's not failure; it's information.
Links:
📅 Book a 1:1 consultation with Lynda: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/book-an-appointment/
📖 Get Things Moving — Evidence-based guide to overcoming constipation: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/product/constipation-guide-get-things-moving/
🍵 BetterMe Tea: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/shop/
This content is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please consult with your healthcare provider before making any changes to your diet or health routine.

#322 Constipation in children is one of the most common — and most misunderstood — issues parents bring to a practitioner's door. What if the medication your child has been prescribed isn't actually teaching their bowel how to work?
My guest today is Sonya Reynolds, a Sydney-based, degree-qualified Nutritionist and Life Coach with over 17 years of experience. Sonya specialises in gut health, digestive disorders, and paediatric nutrition, with a particular focus on natural epilepsy management, something that stems from her own family's journey after her daughter's epilepsy diagnosis in 2012. Sonya is also the founder of Paediatrics in Practice, a practitioner education summit for those working in children's health.
In this episode, we cover the real drivers of childhood constipation, why osmotic laxatives don't teach the bowel to work on their own, and how food, hydration, magnesium, and targeted probiotics can be layered in alongside conventional treatment.
In this episode, you'll discover:
✅ The most common causes of constipation in kids, and how it differs from adults
✅ What fecal impaction actually is, and why it can look like diarrhoea
✅ How withholding behaviour develops, and how to support kids through daycare or school toileting anxiety
✅ Sonya's food-first approach by age group, from stewed apples to resistant starch
✅ Why partially hydrolysed guar gum (PHGG) works well for fussy or sensory-sensitive kids
✅ When to reach for lactulose vs. Macrogol, and how to avoid long-term dependence
✅ The specific probiotic strains Sonya uses clinically, and why
✅ The red flags that mean it's time to refer to a GP for further investigation
✅ Whether there's a "critical window" for shaping a child's long-term gut health
Sonya Reynolds is a Sydney-based, degree-qualified Nutritionist and Life Coach with over 17 years of clinical experience, specialising in gut health, digestive disorders, and paediatric nutrition. Her focus on natural epilepsy management stems from her own family's journey — in 2012, her eldest daughter was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of epilepsy, and is now seizure-free and medication-free following dietary and lifestyle intervention.
This content is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please consult your healthcare provider before making changes to your health routine.

#321 If you've been told to take magnesium for your constipation, there's a good chance you were handed magnesium oxide — it's cheap, it's everywhere, and it does work. But once you understand what actually happens to it in your body, there's a compelling reason I don't reach for it first with my clients.
In this episode, I walk through the real mechanism behind how magnesium moves your bowels, what the research actually shows about magnesium oxide's effectiveness, and why its conversion process may work against you if methane-driven constipation (SIBO-methane or IMO) is part of your picture. I'll also share the dose used in the research for magnesium citrate, my clinical approach to titrating it safely, and the red flags that tell you it's time to stop self-prescribing and get your case properly investigated.
⚠️ If you're on medications, have kidney issues, or are unsure if magnesium is appropriate for you, please check with your practitioner before supplementing.
If you've been taking magnesium and it's just not cutting it — or if it seems to be making things worse — self-prescribing can only take you so far. Book a consultation with me and let's work out why.
Links: 📅 Book a 1:1 consultation with Lynda: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/book-an-appointment/
📖 Get Things Moving — Evidence-based guide to overcoming constipation: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/product/constipation-guide-get-things-moving/
🍵 BetterMe Tea: https://www.lyndagriparic.com/shop/
This content is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please consult with your healthcare provider before making any changes to your diet or health routine.

#320 Travel is one of the most common gut disruptors I hear about in clinic — and one of the most preventable. In this episode, I'm sharing exactly what I pack to keep my gut moving when I travel, what the whole family takes, and why every single choice is backed by research.
Whether you're someone who has no issues at home but completely shuts down the moment you board a plane, or someone who already deals with sluggish bowels and knows travel makes it significantly worse — this one is for you.
I walk you through the six key reasons travel disrupts your bowels, and then get into my bare minimum gut travel toolkit: the four things I never leave home without, plus the two free foundations that make everything else work better.
We cover GOS — the prebiotic I start seven days before travel that research shows may significantly reduce the incidence and duration of traveller's diarrhoea, and that also supports gut motility. I explain how to dose it, which form has the strongest research behind it, and importantly, who should not be taking it without professional guidance (if you have active or suspected SIBO, please speak with a qualified gut-informed practitioner before adding prebiotic fibres).
We also cover PHGG for gentle, bloat-free bowel regularity, magnesium bisglycinate (and when citrate may be the better choice) for softening stool and supporting peristalsis, and BetterMe Tea — my own herbal formulation that travels everywhere with me.
This isn't a complicated protocol. It's a simple, evidence-based toolkit that works — even when your routine doesn't.
In this episode:
— Why travel is such a powerful gut disruptor (the six key drivers)
— GOS: the prebiotic doing double duty before you board the plane
— Who should not take GOS and how to titrate the dose
— PHGG: bowel regularity without the bloat
— Magnesium bisglycinate (and citrate): which form and why
— BetterMe Tea: my travel ritual
— Hydration and movement: the free non-negotiables
— When travel constipation signals something deeper worth investigating
This episode is for educational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please consult with a qualified healthcare practitioner before making changes to your health routine.
Lynda Griparic is a degree-qualified naturopath with extensive experience in complex gut health conditions including IBS, SIBO, IMO, and chronic constipation. She offers telehealth consultations Australia-wide and internationally.