What Are Gut Hormones? The Digestive System as a Giant Hormonal Gland

When most people hear the word “hormones,” they think of the thyroid gland, the pituitary gland, or the pancreas (insulin). But the truth is that the entire digestive system – from the stomach to the small intestine to the colon – is the largest hormonal organ in the body. Dr. Diaa Al-Awadi, may Allah have mercy on him, explains that the walls of the stomach, intestines, and colon contain specialized cells that secrete hormones in response to food entering the body. These hormones not only regulate digestion itself but also enter the bloodstream and affect every organ in the body. The colon alone secretes more than 25 different hormones. This means the colon is not just a “waste tube”; it is a hormonal gland that controls your entire body.

25 Hormones in the Colon: The Basic List Mentioned by Dr. Diaa

Dr. Diaa Al-Awadi, may Allah have mercy on him, mentions several of the most important hormones secreted in the digestive system and colon. Serotonin: known as the happiness hormone, but 95% of it is produced in the gut, not the brain. It controls mood, sleep, appetite, and intestinal movement. Histamine: responsible for allergies, inflammation, and blood vessel dilation. Insulin: the primary blood sugar hormone, secreted by the pancreas but its effect is linked to gut function. Glucagon: counteracts insulin and raises blood sugar when needed. GLP-1 and GLP-2: hormones responsible for satiety, blood sugar regulation, and intestinal cell growth. Somatostatin: inhibits the secretion of other hormones. Gastrin: responsible for stimulating stomach acid secretion. These hormones work in precise harmony when the digestive system is healthy.

Local Hormones vs. Systemic Hormones: Where Do They Act?

Dr. Diaa Al-Awadi, may Allah have mercy on him, distinguishes between two types of gut hormones. The first type: local hormones (paracrine), which only affect neighboring cells within the digestive system itself, such as some hormones that regulate intestinal movement or enzyme secretion. The second type: systemic hormones (endocrine), which are secreted into the blood and travel to distant organs such as the brain, heart, liver, and muscles. The major problem occurs when systemic hormones are too high in the blood due to colon disturbance or liver weakness. These hormones reach places they should not reach at high concentrations, causing multiple side effects: nausea, loss of appetite, lethargy, psychological disturbance, heart palpitations, insomnia, and allergic reactions.

What Happens When Gut Hormones Rise in the Blood?

An inflamed or waste-filled colon secretes gut hormones in abnormal quantities. These hormones do not pass through the liver for breakdown (or they do, but the exhausted liver cannot break them down efficiently), so they reach the main bloodstream at high concentrations. Excess serotonin in the blood can cause anxiety, insomnia, nausea, diarrhea, and heart palpitations. Excess histamine causes allergies, facial redness, headaches, low blood pressure, and rapid heartbeat. Excess GLP-1 causes severe nausea and appetite loss that may reach the point of food aversion. Excess insulin (or its analogs) causes low blood sugar, fatigue, and dizziness. This explains why an irritable bowel patient may suffer from psychological and physical symptoms that seem completely unrelated to digestion. The symptoms are not “in their head”; they are from runaway gut hormones.

Why Does Dr. Diaa Reject Weight Loss Drugs Like Victoza and Ozempic?

Dr. Diaa Al-Awadi, may Allah have mercy on him, strongly rejects weight loss drugs such as Victoza, Ozempic, and Mounjaro. The reason: these drugs mimic the action of GLP-1, a gut hormone naturally secreted by the colon and small intestine. In the natural state, GLP-1 is secreted in response to food to give a feeling of satiety and regulate blood sugar. But when the colon is full of waste and inflamed, GLP-1 is already secreted in large quantities. Adding high pharmaceutical doses of it can cause severe nausea, forced appetite loss, and even pancreatitis. Dr. Diaa believes these drugs are a “chemical solution to a structural problem.” Instead of injecting a hormone that mimics colon blockage, it is better to empty and repair the colon so it returns to secreting its hormones naturally. Weight will come down automatically when inflammation disappears and hormonal balance returns.

How Does the Tayyibat System Restore Gut Hormone Balance?

The plan Dr. Diaa Al-Awadi, may Allah have mercy on him, presents is simple and logical. First: clean the colon of accumulated waste and difficult-to-digest foods (white flour, dairy, eggs, legumes, raw vegetables). When the colon empties, pressure decreases and inflammation decreases. Second: rest the liver so it can break down excess hormones naturally. A rested liver (without excess toxins, medications, and alcohol) handles gut hormones more efficiently. Third: rebuild a healthy microbiome that helps regulate hormone secretion. Fourth: intermittent fasting to give the digestive system complete rest periods, allowing hormones to return to their baseline levels. When the colon heals and returns to its normal function, gut hormones return to balance, and chronic psychological and physical symptoms disappear without any hormonal medications.

Gut Hormones and a New Understanding of Depression, Anxiety, and Panic Attacks

One of the most important practical applications of understanding gut hormones is reinterpreting psychological disorders. Many patients with depression, anxiety, and panic attacks have a disturbed colon, but no one has connected the two. When the colon is inflamed and secretes serotonin, histamine, and GLP-1 abnormally, brain chemistry is disrupted. A psychiatrist might prescribe an antidepressant (SSRI) to increase serotonin in the brain, while the original problem is excess gut serotonin. Dr. Diaa believes that many cases of “treatment-resistant depression” and “panic attacks of unknown cause” may originally be gut hormone disorders resulting from a diseased colon. When the colon is repaired, the psychological symptoms disappear spontaneously.

Conclusion

Gut hormones in the Tayyibat System are the key to understanding the relationship between the colon and the rest of the body. The colon is not just a digestive organ; it is a hormonal gland that secretes more than 25 hormones affecting mood, sleep, appetite, heart, immunity, and metabolism. When the colon is disturbed by difficult-to-digest foods (white flour, dairy, eggs, legumes), these hormones become imbalanced, and symptoms appear that seem far from digestion: depression, insomnia, panic attacks, heart palpitations, chronic headaches, and nerve inflammation. Weight loss drugs like Ozempic mimic GLP-1, a hormone the colon naturally secretes in a state of blockage, and they are a chemical solution to a structural problem. The real treatment is cleaning the colon, resting the liver, and rebuilding the microbiome. When gut hormone balance returns, the balance of the entire body returns.

Read Also

• What is the Tayyibat System?
• List of Forbidden and Allowed Foods in the Tayyibat System
• Biography of Dr. Diaa Al-Awadi
• Download the Tayyibat System PDF

This article is a simplified and organized summary of the video content, aiming to arrange the ideas and concepts mentioned in it and connect them to their context within the Tayyibat System. You can watch the video on YouTube here.

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