Alex Mercer 
The short answer: approximately 15–17 grams per day — which is roughly half of what most health guidelines recommend, and dramatically less than what the human gut evolved to handle. This isn’t a minor nutritional shortfall. The fibre gap between what Americans currently eat and what their gut microbiome needs to function well is one … Read more
If you have IBS, you know the feeling: staring at a menu, a fridge, or a supermarket aisle and having no idea what’s safe. There’s no shortage of advice online — but very little of it is clear, practical, or specific enough to actually use in a meal. This cheat sheet is designed to change … Read more
If you’ve ever Googled “why does my stomach hurt after eating” at midnight, you’re not alone — and you’ve probably landed on advice that’s either too vague, too technical, or trying to sell you something. That’s exactly why I wrote this complete guide to better digestion. After more than a decade researching gut health and … Read more
The first time I encountered a patient with SIBO — small intestinal bacterial overgrowth — I was three years into practice and genuinely puzzled. She had been told repeatedly that her bloating, cramping, and unpredictable bowel habits were simply IBS….
About three years into my clinical practice, I started keeping an informal tally. Of every new client who came to me with IBS, unexplained bloating, or a recent flare of inflammatory bowel symptoms, I asked them one question before we…
About eight years into my practice, I sat across from a client — I will call her Rachel — who had been following high-fibre dietary advice to the letter for six months. She was eating bran cereals, adding flaxseed to…
A few years into my practice, I started noticing a pattern. Clients would arrive clutching printouts from gut microbiome tests they had ordered online, convinced they had finally found the answer to their bloating, fatigue, or unpredictable bowel habits. Some…
The conversation almost always starts the same way. A new client sits down across from me — sometimes in my clinic, sometimes on a video call — and says something like: “My doctor thinks it might be IBS, but they…
Digestive enzyme supplements are one of the most commonly purchased gut health products — and one of the most frequently misused. People buy broad-spectrum “digestive enzyme” supplements without knowing which enzymes they actually need, or whether the problem they’re experiencing is even enzyme-related. This guide cuts through that. Here are the five key digestive enzymes, … Read more
When people search for “probiotic fiber foods,” they’re often looking for something specific: foods that don’t just contain live bacteria or just contain prebiotic fiber — but ideally both. This combination has an official name in nutrition science: synbiotics. The logic is sound. Probiotics (live beneficial bacteria) and prebiotics (the fibre that feeds them) work … Read more