Your unique gut microbiome is made up of trillions of microorganisms that include various bacteria, viruses, parasites, and fungi. These microorganisms living inside of you influence your overall health, digestive health, energy, mood, skin, and sleep. The GI-MAP stool detects various microorganisms that may be associated with gastrointestinal issues allowing your functional practitioner to help uncover root causes of GI conditions. Functional lab testing would be a good idea if you really wanted to hone in on the specifics of gut microbiome imbalances, hormonal imbalances, vitamin/mineral deficiencies.

What is the GI-MAP stool test?

The GI-MAP, or Gastrointestinal Microbial Assay Plus, test is a comprehensive stool test designed to elevate your gut health by analyzing the trillions of beneficial and harmful microorganisms living inside your GI, or gastrointestinal, tract. It analyzes various bacteria, parasites, viruses, and fungi (yeast) that inhabit the gut.

Gut health is only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to addressing root causes of health conditions and improving overall health. There are many different organs in the human body and each organ works together in harmony to achieve optimal health and longevity.

What health conditions is the GI-MAP stool test used for?

The GI-MAP test provides a detailed view of gut health specifically the microorganisms that are living inside of your gut microbiome and is often used by functional practitioners to develop a personalized functional nutrition plan. It is commonly used for health conditions such as:

• Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth SIBO
• Small Intestinal Fungal Overgrowth SIFO
• Irritable Bowel Syndrome IBS
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease IBD
• Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease GERD
• Celiac Disease
• Leaky Gut Syndrome or Increased Intestinal Permeability
• Pancreatitis
• Weight Loss
• Polycystic Ovary Syndrome PCOS
• Acne
• Helicobacter Pylori or H. Pylori

An Example of the GI-MAP Stool Test Results: A Basic overview

Below is an example of what a GI-MAP Stool Test Result, typically 5 pages long, would look like:

Pathogens: Bacterial, Parasitic, and Viral. This detects harmful gut bacteria, parasites, and viruses that can cause digestive issues.

Helicobacter Pylori: H. Pylori is a bacteria that can live harmlessly in the gut and won’t require treatment unless GI symptoms are present such as abdominal pain, abdominal distention, bloating, and unintentional weight loss. It can cause painful infections leading to stomach ulcers, chronic gastritis¹, and stomach cancer².

The virulence factor genes above for H. Pylori are genes code for proteins that will predispose one to more serious H. Pylori infections.

Generally, when virulence factors are present, the treatment goal will be to fully eradicate the H. Pylori population. Your functional practitioner can help put you on a supplement protocol to reduce H. Pylori.

Commensal/Keystone Bacteria: Commensal Bacteria and Bacterial Phyla. This detects beneficial gut bacteria that naturally exist in the gut. Scoring low in these types of bacteria indicate a gut imbalance or gut dysbiosis ultimately affecting gut health in which treatment would be included in the functional nutrition care plan.

If Akkermansia levels are low, you can choose to add this high quality probiotic strain to a jar of homemade probiotic yogurt linked here.

Opportunistic/Overgrowth Microbes: Dysbiotic & Overgrowth Bacteria, Commensal Overgrowth Microbes, Inflammatory & Autoimmune-Related Bacteria, and Commensal Inflammatory & Autoimmune-Related Bacteria. This detects gut bacteria that have can cause GI symptoms if overgrowth is detected.

In the picture shown above, you can see Klebsiella spp. is elevated, an inflammatory and autoimmune-related bacteria. It can cause various GI symptoms such as abdominal pain, bloating, gas, and diarrhea. It is associated with chronic health conditions like Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis. Your functional practitioner can help create a protocol to reduce levels of opportunistic and overgrowth microbes that includes diet and lifestyle changes along with herbal antimicrobials and probiotic strains.

In the Dysbiotic and Overgrowth Bacteria section, you can see elevated levels of Staphylococcus aureus and Streptococcus spp. Both are associated with various GI symptoms leading to overall gut dysbiosis or an imbalance in the gut. Your functional practitioner can help create a protocol to reduce levels of opportunistic and overgrowth microbes that includes diet and lifestyle changes along with herbal antimicrobials, probiotic strains, and supplementation that has antimicrobial effects.

Fungi/Yeast: fungi are typically found in balanced amounts in the gut microbiome. The problem is when an overgrowth of fungi resulting in illness and symptoms creating fungal dybiosis. GI symptoms associated with fungal dysbiosis are gas, bloating, constipation nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Other symptoms of fungal dysbiosis include eczema, athlete’s foot, vaginal yeast infections, thrush, and jock itch. Candida spp., Candida albicans, Geotrichum spp., Microsporidium spp., Rhodotorula spp. This identifies overgrowth of fungi or yeast, such as Candida, which can cause GI symptoms.

Viruses:

Cytomegalovirus: associated with systemic lupus erythematosus, systemic sclerosis, type 1 diabetes, and rheumatoid arthritis. It is common in inflammatory bowel disease and immunocompromised patients.

Epstein-Barr Virus: it is one of the most common viruses worldwide and is associated with rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, Sjogren’s, multiple sclerosis, and autoimmune thyroid disorders. Symptoms include fatigue, fever, swollen lymph nodes, inflamed throat, enlarged spleen, and more.

Parasites: (protozoa and worms) the GI-MAP tests for pathogenic parasites and protozoa, some of which are non-pathogenic, that commonly occur in the gut microbiome.

Intestinal Health Markers: Digestion, GI Markers, Immune Response, and Inflammation. This evaluates markers of digestion and absorption in the gut related to gut health and can cause GI symptoms.

Digestion:

• Steatocrit:
• Elastase-1: Pancreatic elastase levels.

GI Markers:

• β-Glucuronidase:
• Occult Blood – FIT:

Immune Response:

• Secretory IgA:
• Anti-gliadin IgA: gliadin is a component of gluten, the protein found in wheat and other grains such as barley, malt, and rye. The presence of fecal anti-gliadin antibodies can indicate an immune response (in the gut) to gluten in the diet.
• Eosinophil Activation Protein:

H. Pylori Antibiotic Resistance Genes: this shows various antibiotic resistance genes that are measured for H. pylori. Number and letter combinations are single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), or gene targets, that are involved in H. pylori drug resistance. If any SNP is detected (present), then the H. pylori strain/s are resistant to that class of antibiotics. In the above sample result, this client is not resistant to any class of the above antibiotics.

How can I Use my GI-MAP stool test results to help heal my Health condition or Symptoms with the help of a functional nutrition dietitian?

Each person is unique and this is recognized in a personalized functional nutrition assessment and intervention plan that engages and empowers the patient in this process to restore optimal function, manage symptoms and promote overall health and well-being.

Functional nutrition addresses the whole person, not just an isolated set of symptoms. We look at it from a root-cause perspective and create a focus on prevention through nutrition, therapeutic diets, targeted supplementation, interpretation of conventional and/or functional lab testing, botanicals, detoxification protocols, exercise, and stress management tools.

My storefront is linked here to order functional labs, which is signed off by a nationally-licensed physician, to assess for gut health issues, hormonal imbalances, or vitamin/mineral deficiencies. If you need help creating a personalized functional nutrition care plan based on the interpretation of any of the above functional labs, you can work with us here.

“It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.” – Krishnamurti

References:

1. Malfertheiner, P., Camargo, M.C., El-Omar, E. et al. Helicobacter pylori infection. Nat Rev Dis Primers 9, 19 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41572-023-00431-8 ↩︎
2. Parsonnet J, Friedman GD, Vandersteen DP, Chang Y, Vogelman JH, Orentreich N, Sibley RK. Helicobacter pylori infection and the risk of gastric carcinoma. N Engl J Med. 1991 Oct 17;325(16):1127-31. doi: 10.1056/NEJM199110173251603. PMID: 1891020. ↩︎