Best Leaky Gut Supplements

Craving relief from mysterious gut symptoms? Frustrated that IBS is feeling more like IDK? These leaky gut supplements might help.

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Medically reviewed by:
Last updated: Jul 8th, 2024
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Best Leaky Gut Supplements

Nearly two-thirds of Americans experience at least one gastrointestinal (GI) problem daily. About 8 million annual trips to the emergency room are related to GI concerns. Yet these problems often never receive a diagnosis, and even the lucky few with diagnoses don’t often receive treatment that alleviates their symptoms. When irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) feels more like a catch-all diagnosis, mounting frustrations with modern medicine might spill over, worsening your symptoms.

Some attribute chronic GI distress to leaky gut syndrome, a constellation of symptoms related to separations in cells in the intestinal walls. While many medical doctors don’t yet recognize the condition, GI health supplements offer some hope for those suffering.

Among other tests and nutritional changes, adding a GI health supplement — particularly those labeled as “leaky gut supplements” — to your daily routine might mean the difference between feeling uncomfortable and having an easy start to your day. We’ve rounded up the top five best leaky gut supplements and analyzed them in this guide.

Don’t have enough time to read the entire article right now? Check out our top picks below.

Summary of recommendations

Our Top Choice

Terra Origin Healthy Gut combines high-powered gut-healing ingredients into a delicious powder.

Terra Origin includes several ingredients shown to boost gut health. Choose between eight great-tasting flavors, and enjoy free shipping on orders over $50. Purchases are covered by a 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Table of Contents

In this Review

Why you should trust us

At Innerbody Research, we extensively test each health service or product we review, including leaky gut supplements. Our team has spent more than 630 hours studying gut health, poring over hundreds of scientific journal articles pertaining to intestinal permeability, the microbiome, and digestion as a whole. We’ve also heavily researched the most commonly recommended leaky gut supplements and examined other possible avenues of treatment with supplements commonly used for other purposes. Our assessments of customer service, shipping logistics, and other aspects of the purchase process come from our experiences ordering the products ourselves.

Additionally, like all health-related content on this website, this review was thoroughly vetted by one or more members of our Medical Review Board for accuracy. We’ll continue to monitor the gut health landscape for developments in leaky gut treatments to keep this content current.

Over the past two decades, Innerbody Research has helped tens of millions of readers make more informed decisions about staying healthy and living healthier lifestyles.

Special Offer from Terra: FREE Shipping On Orders Over $25

How we evaluated leaky gut supplements

Evaluating leaky gut supplements required us to consider several factors that would mean the most to the average consumer. The first we’ll discuss is effectiveness, which speaks to whether a given supplement is likely to work for you. We also looked at cost, safety, and convenience to round out our considerations and give you the best sense of what could fit your needs. Let’s take a closer look at each criterion to see what supplements rose to the top.

Effectiveness

Winner: Terra Origin

Finding the right combination of ingredients for your leaky gut symptoms is hard. Since everyone’s body is different and symptoms might come from several causes, the right blend and balance can vary significantly between people. So, while the best leaky gut supplement may not work for everyone, the one that ranks highest in efficacy will specify well-researched ingredients like glutamine and zinc in effective doses without fillers, proprietary blends, or overpromising results.

NatureM.D. and Terra Origin have highly similar ingredient lists. They both have 5g of L-glutamine and substantial amounts of zinc (NatureM.D. has 3mg; Terra Origin has 2.15mg). Terra Origin has more N-acetyl-D-glucosamine (NAG), slippery elm, and marshmallow root, and NatureM.D. contains more quercetin and licorice root, but each difference in ingredient strength is only a matter of 50-100mg. However, NatureM.D.’s formula has a shorter ingredient list, and some beneficial ingredients are left out to ensure it remains a viable option for vegans. As a result, we give the effectiveness category to Terra Origin, despite the fact that it contains shellfish.

Cost

Winner: Revive Glutamine

When it comes to a supplement’s cost, we consider several factors. Is the supplement offered at a relatively low price, and do you receive a decent amount of it for what you pay? Are there other deals, savings, and subscriptions you can opt into for an even lower price? Do you have multiple purchase options to find the best deal?

As we mentioned in our efficacy section, glutamine is among the most thoroughly studied supplements for gut health, and there’s a generous amount of scientific evidence to support its role in treating a leaky gut. For that reason, a simple glutamine supplement may be enough for many people. You can get Revive Glutamine for $19.99/month with or without a subscription — less expensive than anything else on our list — and its 10g serving of glutamine is twice as much as the next best supplement. It may lack other useful ingredients like zinc, but it’s liable to be effective for many, and its price can’t be beat.

Safety

Winner: Terra Origin

Your GI system is one of the most important parts of your body. You have more frequent, direct interactions with it — and control over it — than with almost any other internal organ or system. When you’re experiencing leaky gut symptoms, it’s especially important that anything you put into your gut is safe. When we evaluate a product for safety, we look at its ingredients and dosing (including fillers and additives), testing measures, and manufacturing processes, as well as how much information about the product the company is willing to share with its customers.

Most of the supplements in this guide offer comparable safety profiles, with relatively low doses of most ingredients that are well below what studies show can cause adverse reactions. Part of the reason we gave the edge to Terra Origin is that it’s:

  • Dairy-free
  • Gluten-free
  • Soy-free
  • Non-GMO
  • Made in a cGMP-certified facility

But many of those things can be said of Terra Origin’s competitors. So, then, why Terra Origin? It was a subtle aspect of Terra Origin’s ingredient list that showed us the company’s concern for its customers in the formulation of its product: copper.

Zinc is a common ingredient in leaky gut supplements, as several impressive studies support its ability to help repair and maintain tight junctions in the intestines. But zinc supplementation can deplete copper levels, and Terra Origin is the only product on our list to include copper in its formula as a way of offsetting this potential for deficiency.

Convenience

Winner: KaraMD

Gut health supplements often come in capsule or powder form. Powders are slightly easier for your body to absorb, but a supplement is only convenient when it’s easy for you to take and dose, too. Taking multiple capsules or measuring an odd fraction of a teaspoon for proper dosing gets complicated and only worsens if there are strict rules about when and how to take the product.

None of our top picks are perfectly convenient, but KaraMD’s Vital Restore comes close. You need only three capsules a day to maintain good gut health, and you can take them at any time of day with just a glass of water (no food necessary). That three-capsule dose also allows you to titrate up, starting with just one capsule to see how you react and working your way up to three over time.

Another convenience measure that KaraMD offers over most others is a lengthy money-back guarantee. Some of the supplements in this guide have no guarantee, just short return windows for unopened products. Terra Origin offers a 30-day money-back guarantee, but leaky gut supplements don’t always work that quickly. KaraMD’s 90-day guarantee allows you to try its products for three months before making a determination about them. Gundry MD is the only other company here with a 90-day guarantee, but its products don't offer the same dosing convenience as KaraMD.

How our top recommendations compare

To help you understand the similarities and differences among our top picks, we’ve created a chart that breaks down all the information you need. We’ve used the cost of a one-time purchase for each and included potential savings options:

Terra Origin
KaraMD
Revive Glutamine
Gundry MD
NatureM.D.
Cost per bottle
$36
$35
$20
$50
$54
Servings
30
30
30
30
30
Price per serving
$1.20
$1.17
$0.67
$2.33
$1.80
Form
Powder
Capsule
Powder
Capsule
Powder
Pre- or probiotics?
Prebiotic
Both
Prebiotic
Vegan?
Flavors
8
Unflavored
Unflavored
Unflavored
2
Savings available?
Bulk and subscription
Bulk
N/A
Bulk and subscription
Bulk and subscription
Free shipping?
$50+ to contiguous U.S.
Orders of 2+ products
$150+
$99+
All U.S. orders

What is leaky gut?

Leaky gut is more formally known as increased intestinal permeability or decreased intestinal mucosal barrier function. The term “leaky gut” has been used to describe a set of general GI symptoms related to issues with your intestines “leaking” toxins and bacteria into your bloodstream as they process food. Specifically, leaky gut is tied to:

  • Chronic diarrhea or constipation
  • Gas and bloating
  • Nutritional deficiencies
  • Sugar or carbohydrate cravings
  • Fatigue
  • Headaches
  • Difficulty concentrating
  • Joint pain and other forms of inflammation

Some people believe that a leaky gut on its own is the cause of their GI problems, referring to it as “leaky gut syndrome.”While the theory that it’s a separate diagnosable disease is becoming more popular, it hasn’t really been embraced in contemporary Western medicine, and leaky gut syndrome isn’t typically something with which a doctor will diagnose you. Most doctors can’t administer formal and reliable tests to check for a leaky gut, and since it can be indicative of many GI diseases, it’s more likely that you’ll be tested for things like celiac and Crohn’s disease if you present with the above-listed symptoms.

What causes leaky gut?

So, leaky gut involves a degradation of your gut’s mucosal barrier, but what causes it in the first place? To understand that, we need to investigate the mucosal barrier and what it does.

Every inch of your intestinal tract is covered in a mucosal barrier. This physical barrier helps keep the lumen — the inside of your intestines — separate from the rest of your body. A normal intestinal mucosal barrier is full of several different kinds of cells, which all work together to absorb nutrients and keep things moving through your intestines. The protein zonulin helps to mediate this permeability as well. Tight junctions connect your intestinal cells, regulating the movement of water and other substances through your GI tract.

When your mucosal barrier is compromised, those tight junctions between cells in the intestinal walls open up, leading to small gaps where bacteria and other toxins can move freely. Leaky gut is thought to occur when these tight junctions open up relatively widely, allowing for a greater influx of harm to the intestinal tract. This hyperpermeability can expose your bloodstream to bacteria and other toxins and may affect the contents of your gut microbiome.

There are dozens of different reasons that your intestinal barrier could be weakened. These include (but aren’t limited to):

  • Age
  • Genetics
  • Excessive sugar intake
  • Long-term nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) use
  • Excessive alcohol use
  • Vitamin D deficiency
  • Chronic inflammation
  • Yeast (candida) overgrowth
  • Starvation
  • Parenteral feeding
  • Bodily trauma
  • Emotional stress
  • Infection
  • Chemotherapy
  • Radiation

A leaky gut could also indicate more complex health concerns, such as:

  • Food allergies
  • Celiac disease
  • Ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease
  • Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
  • Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
  • Metabolic diseases
  • Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
  • Diabetes
  • Sepsis

Despite some claims, leaky gut doesn’t appear to be related to autism, depression, anxiety, or skin problems like eczema. That said, there is a strong link between gut health and mental health due to the number of neurotransmitter receptors across the digestive system, so poor gut health can affect how you feel.

How do leaky gut supplements work?

Leaky gut supplements are designed to help quell your symptoms and rebalance off-kilter gut properties. There are three main places and mechanisms that leaky gut supplements support:

  • Digestion
  • Intestinal mucosal barrier function
  • Gut microbiome

Leaky gut supplements contain many ingredients to ease digestion, support your intestines, and bolster your gut microbiome. We’ve rounded up some of the most common ingredients so you can understand exactly what they do to help.

L-Glutamine

Glutamine is the most common amino acid in your body and one of the most critical nutrients for soothing leaky gut symptoms. It’s made in your muscles and used in all parts of your body to create proteins and other amino acids. In your GI system, it’s used as fuel for your intestinal cells and has anti-inflammatory effects, both of which are necessary for well-rounded mucosal barrier function. It also helps keep tight junctions together, preventing bacteria and toxins from slipping out and playing a core role in your intestinal permeability.

Probiotics

Your gut microbiome is made of billions of good bacteria that help fight off harmful bacteria, send food from your stomach to your intestines, and perform a host of other protective functions. Taking probiotics adds more good bacteria to your system, improving your digestive health and preventing the overgrowth of bad bacteria. Research has shown that good bacteria can, in some cases, reverse the symptoms of leaky gut by bolstering tight junction proteins, though researchers are still working to understand exactly how that works.

Prebiotics

Like probiotics, prebiotics work to improve your gut microbiome’s health. Prebiotics are food for the healthy bacteria in your microbiome, stimulating their growth. Most prebiotics are made from carbohydrates found in plant fibers that your body can’t otherwise digest. By feeding the good bacteria in your gut, prebiotics help to promote the growth of good bacteria and prevent the overgrowth of bad bacteria.

Digestive enzymes

Your body naturally makes digestive enzymes, which break down your food so you can access its nutrients, but a leaky gut can deplete how many enzymes you can access. Adding digestive enzymes like amylase, lipase, and protease can start the breakdown process before food reaches your compromised intestines, ensuring that you’re still getting most of the necessary nutrients from your diet.

Zinc

Having too little zinc can worsen your intestinal permeability. For more than two decades, clinical researchers have known that adding zinc to your diet can reinforce tight junctions. Zinc helps maintain a robust immune system, promote cell growth, build protein, and heal damaged tissue, all of which can improve the symptoms of leaky gut.

Tryptophan

Tryptophan is an essential amino acid. It may be better known for making you sleepy after eating turkey on Thanksgiving, but a recent discovery also points to its protective role against leaky gut. Not having enough tryptophan can shrink your gut microbiome and increase systemic inflammation. Increased intestinal permeability has been linked to lower levels of tryptophan for those very reasons, so keeping your dietary tryptophan intake stable can help prevent inflammation that loosens tight junctions.

Vitamin D

Your body creates vitamin D when it gets enough exposure to sunlight. It’s critical for daily functioning, yet about 80% of people have some level of vitamin D deficiency. The vitamin helps to build and maintain bones, protect your nervous system, and keep your immune system working its best. In the GI system, vitamin D plays an integral role in diversifying your gut microbiome, ultimately protecting your intestines from damage.

Magnesium

Magnesium, like other minerals, has a cyclical relationship with leaky gut: not having enough can make inflammation happen faster, and more inflammation means you absorb less magnesium through your diet. It also plays a secondary role by improving fatigue, a common leaky gut symptom. Supplementing magnesium can help to quell the inflammation, but be warned that too much of certain types of magnesium can have a laxative effect by increasing the amount of water moving through your intestines.

Omega-3s

Omega-3 fatty acids are found in many foods but are most common in fish, crustaceans (like krill), walnuts, and flaxseed. While there’s still research to be done on exactly how omega-3s support gut health, it appears to change the bacterial makeup of the gut microbiome to prioritize healthy bacteria and provide anti-inflammatory compounds. The interaction between the gut microbiome and the anti-inflammatory properties of omega-3s appears to positively affect intestinal mucosal barriers.

N-acetyl glucosamine (NAG)

NAG is a chemical related to glucose that helps build joints and connective tissues. It’s primarily found in shellfish, so most supplements with NAG aren’t vegan-friendly. Most of the time, NAG is used to treat IBD, as it creates a biofilm that supports the intestine’s mucus layer. This also means there’s a chance it can help with leaky gut symptoms, though research is still ongoing.

Demulcents

Demulcent plants — such as marshmallow root, slippery elm, licorice, and aloe vera — have anti-inflammatory properties; they coat the mucous membranes in your intestines. The additional mucosal coating is thought to protect irritated, sensitive mucosal barriers from extra leakage while they heal. Clinical research on this function is limited, but some studies have shown that demulcents effectively help optimize gut health in people with IBD.

Quercetin

Quercetin is the most commonly consumed flavonoid in dozens of plants and foods. As a flavonoid, it adds pigment to plants and has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It also plays a role in capillary permeability, so increasing your quercetin intake could help keep toxins from a leaky gut out of your bloodstream.

Collagen

Best known for its role in skin care, collagen plays a function in maintaining your cell’s structural health. It’s broken down into amino acids during the digestive process, which then help build proteins that support things like tight junctions. Some initial studies show collagen’s effectiveness at improving tight junctions in individuals with IBD, but research on its role in leaky gut is still limited.

A good leaky gut supplement combines the above ingredients to provide structural support for your intestinal lining while reinforcing good bacteria in your microbiome, so your body can continue healing long after you take the supplement.

Are leaky gut supplements safe?

Most leaky gut supplements offer some benefits to people struggling with GI distress. They’re generally designed with holistic gut health in mind, so finding the right one for you is a matter of identifying ingredients that can offer the most relief for your specific symptoms.

Of course, like all supplements, leaky gut supplements are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the same way as pharmaceutical medications or food. They cannot legally claim to cure, diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease.

Since ingredients can vary wildly between leaky gut supplements, make sure to read a product’s Supplement Facts to ensure there are no potential adverse effects for you. Most leaky gut supplements include L-glutamine, which people with a history of liver or kidney disease shouldn’t take. If you have any history of psychiatric conditions, be cautious when starting a leaky gut supplement. Adding glutamine to your daily routine can worsen mental health symptoms such as psychosis. It can also interfere with anti-epileptic medications and epilepsy in general.

Probiotics are generally safe for most people to take, though, as with any supplement, you should reach out to your doctor before beginning a new regimen. However, if you have pancreatitis or a severely compromised immune system (from undergoing chemotherapy, for example), you should take a leaky gut supplement that doesn’t include probiotics. That’s because probiotics are still bacteria, and even otherwise beneficial bacteria can pose a risk to the immunocompromised.

Pregnant or lactating people should also avoid leaky gut supplements, as should children.

In addition, don’t mix powdered leaky gut supplements into hot liquids, as L-glutamine deteriorates under heat. Likewise, don’t cook or bake with any leaky gut supplements.

Terra Origin Healthy Gut

Best overall and best powder

Pros

  • Long ingredient list combines several well-researched components
  • Generous doses of glutamine and methylsulfonylmethane (MSM)
  • Low cost with some bulk order options
  • Comes in eight flavors
  • 100% satisfaction guarantee policy
  • Free shipping on orders over $50 to the contiguous U.S.

Cons

  • Length of satisfaction guarantee is shorter compared to some competitors
  • Stevia may cause stomach upset for some
  • No international shipping

Terra Origin’s Healthy Gut is a powdered formula specifically designed to taste good and help you feel better. It has a long list of gut-healthy ingredients, including:

  • L-Glutamine: 5g
  • NAG: 500mg
  • Slippery elm: 200mg
  • Marshmallow root: 200mg
  • Licorice root: 100mg
  • Quercetin: 50mg
  • Aloe vera extract: 10mg
  • Zinc: 2.15mg
  • Copper: 1mg
  • MSM: 200mg
  • Stevia: 100mg
  • Inulin

Inulin is a prebiotic, though it isn’t marketed as such. It can add a layer of support to your gut, but because the quantity isn’t specified, the dosage here probably isn’t enough to make a big difference in your digestive system. Stevia is likely included to give the powder a little sweetness and boost its flavor. However, anecdotal evidence indicates that stevia can cause stomach upset in some people, including bloating and excess gas (which most people are trying to avoid when looking for a leaky gut supplement).

Terra Origin Healthy Gut is available in the following eight flavors:

  • Mint
  • Berry
  • Peach Banana
  • Matcha Green Tea
  • Honey Lemon
  • Watermelon
  • Green Apple
  • Chocolate

The company used to offer some of these flavors in 90-serving containers, as well, but it has since simplified the offerings to 30-serving containers only. There’s also a 21-serving stick pack exclusively in the Berry flavor.

Pricing

You can order Terra Origin’s Healthy Gut Powder in sets of one, two, or three containers, either as one-time purchases or on a flexible subscription basis. You can also order the 21-serving boxes of individual stick packs along the same lines.

One containerTwo containersThree containers
Container, one-time purchase$35.99$64.80$91.80
Container, subscription$32.39$59.40$84.15
Stick packs, one-time purchase$35.99$64.80$91.80
Stick packs, subscription$32.39$59.40$84.15

As you can see, the stick packs cost the same as the containers, but they only contain 21 servings, not the 30 servings you get in each container. Ultimately, you end up getting less of the product for the same amount of money thanks to the added packaging involved. The best course of action to ensure consistent daily consumption may be to subscribe to the containers and make one-time purchases of the stick packs. That way, you have your main source of supplement in bulk form and a handful of on-the-go packets if you ever need them.

Subscription options are only available for 30-day supplies and automatically ship at your chosen pace every 30, 60, or 90 days.

Terra Origin has a 30-day return policy with a 100% satisfaction guarantee, so no matter how much you’ve tried, you can return your Healthy Gut Powder for a full refund as long as it’s within 30 days of purchase. That’s not as long as the guarantees from KaraMD or Gundry MD (90 days each), but it’s still better than Revive’s 15-day return policy for unopened items only.

Revive Glutamine

Best budget pick and most potent

Pros

  • Significant 10g serving of glutamine
  • Third-party tested
  • Low cost with 15% off for subscribers
  • No poorly studied ingredients included
  • No fillers
  • Flavorless

Cons

  • Lack of other ingredients may limit efficacy for some people
  • Free shipping only kicks in if you spend $150 or more
  • No money-back guarantee
  • Strict 15-day return policy

Since so many studies have illustrated L-glutamine’s potential to treat various intestinal injuries, a simple glutamine supplement like Revive might make sense for anyone looking for the cleanest possible start on their gut repair journey. We’ve created a guide to our favorite glutamine supplements, and Revive Glutamine is among the best.

The studies we’ve looked at have employed doses of glutamine as high as 40g per day with very few adverse effects. Glutamine has been effective in these studies at doses as low as 18-20g/day. It’s hard to know exactly why leaky gut supplements are content with what appears to be a market-wide maximum of 5g per serving, which is why going straight to a single-ingredient source might prove beneficial.

Revive Glutamine contains 10g of L-glutamine per serving. It’s an unflavored drink mix you can combine with water, or really any preferred drink. It’s third-party tested, but the results of that testing have yet to be posted on the Revive website.

Revive lacks many of the other common ingredients in leaky gut supplements, like zinc, but you can combine it with a decent multivitamin for less than the cost of some leaky gut supplements.

Pricing

One 30-serving bottle of Revive Glutamine costs $19.99. Subscriptions are available, but they don’t save you any money; they’re just there for convenience. Unfortunately, shipping from Revive is only free on orders of $150 or more — the highest threshold in our guide. The company offers around 40 supplements, as well as apparel and several bundles that can help increase your cost and get you closer to free shipping. But none of those bundles contain Revive Glutamine. If you use Amazon, you could subscribe and save there.

KaraMD Vital Restore

Best for restricted diets and best money-back guarantee

Pros

  • Includes berberine, a supplement usually sold separately
  • Gluten-free, non-GMO, and vegan
  • Third-party tested
  • Made in an FDA-registered lab
  • Free shipping on orders of two or more products
  • 90-day money-back guarantee
  • Bulk discounts of up to 20%

Cons

  • May not be safe for people with diabetes
  • Moderate risk of zinc over-supplementation
  • No subscription option

KaraMD’s Vital Restore is made with five simple ingredients, all of which are well-tolerated by most people:

  • Zinc oxide: 50mg
  • L-Glutamine: 1g
  • Berberine: 500mg
  • Turmeric root powder (for curcumin): 250mg
  • Slippery elm powder: 250mg

Berberine is a particularly interesting inclusion in this leaky gut supplement. The alkaloid is found in several plants (including goldenrod and Oregon grape). It activates AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), impacting conditions such as type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome, hypertension, and high cholesterol. Specifically, it lowers blood sugar and HbA1C as effectively as some hardcore prescription medications like metformin, but without the gut-churning side effects.

Research about berberine’s effects on a leaky gut is minimal. It’s likely included in the Vital Restore formula because lower blood sugar can mean fewer cravings, and a streamlined metabolic process means less bloating, leading to improved GI symptoms. So Vital Restore supplement has less to do with fixing the symptoms of leaky gut than it does with optimizing overall gut health. It may not be safe for those with diabetes, so consult your doctor before trying Vital Restore.

One serving of Vital Restore is three capsules, which you can take at any point in the day. The formula is gluten-free, vegan, and non-GMO. It’s made in an FDA-registered facility and independently tested by a third party for quality assurance.

One important safety note to consider is that Vital Restore contains 50mg of zinc oxide, which delivers 40mg of elemental zinc. According to the National Institutes of Health, 40mg is the tolerable upper intake limit for daily zinc consumption if you’re 19 or older. Zinc oxide is not a chelated form of zinc; it hasn’t undergone a process that makes what is normally a poorly absorbed substance a bit easier to get into the bloodstream. That means you likely won’t get all 40mg of the dose, but it will take you close enough to the upper limit that you could experience occasional adverse reactions if you also follow a zinc-rich diet or take a multivitamin that contains zinc.

Pricing

Right now, there’s no subscription option for Vital Restore. You’ll need to remember to purchase a new bottle every month as long as you want to take it. However, KaraMD offers some excellent bulk deals on all of its products.

Cost per bottleShipping costBulk savings
One bottle$34.95$8.95
Two bottles$34.95Free
Three bottles$31.46Free10%
Four bottles$26.21Free20%

If you aren’t happy with your order, you have 90 days to return it for an unconditional full refund. This is the most generous money-back guarantee among any of the leaky gut supplements we’ve reviewed (tied with Gundry MD). And since it can take several weeks to start feeling a real difference from leaky gut supplementation, the extended return period is especially useful here.

Gundry MD Bio Complete 3

Best option that includes probiotics

Pros

  • Pre-, pro-, and postbiotics cover every angle of the gut microbiome
  • May help you curb cravings as well as improve gut health
  • Physician-founded and developed
  • Tested by a third party for quality and purity
  • 90-day money-back guarantee

Cons

  • No CFUs specified on the label
  • Contains maltodextrin

Gundry MD is both the brand name and the name and title of the founding physician who develops the formulas sold under its banner, including Bio Complete 3. This supplement is designed to address leaky gut by improving your gut microbiome by way of a probiotic with two additional supporting ingredients.

One serving is two capsules, which Gundry MD recently reduced from four during a slight reformulation (and, presumably, an upgrade in capsule size).

While it isn’t a perfect supplement, Bio Complete 3 has several ingredients that may help your leaky gut heal itself without supplementary intervention. There are three major ingredients listed:

Sunfiber

Sunfiber is a branded prebiotic that provides soluble fiber to your system. It’s low FODMAP (low in fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols), meaning it’s suitable for those with IBS, IBD, and other sensitivities to FODMAPs. This, alongside Sunfiber’s other benefits, helps it absorb quickly without causing bloating or excess gas.

Bacillus coagulans (ProDura®) and Bifidobacterium bifidum

These are good bacteria that can create lactic acid and help to prevent diarrhea and bloating. Bifidobacterium bifidum is a recent addition to the Bio Complete 3 formula; Gundry MD doesn’t advertise the balance between it and Bacillus coagulans or state either bacterium’s quantity in colony-forming units (CFU), a widely accepted measurement of probiotic material in the industry. We were able to pry enough information from company reps to learn that there are 2 billion CFU of ProDura in the blend, but Gundry did not provide the CFU for its other probiotic.

CoreBiome

This 30% tributyrin formula is a postbiotic, which cleans up waste left behind by the pre- and probiotics. Tributyrin is a triglyceride alternative to butyrate that is easier to absorb and releases more slowly throughout the GI tract.

Bio Complete 3 also contains maltodextrin, a simple carbohydrate that converts to glucose and preserves the supplement, increasing its shelf life.

Pricing

There are several different ways you can order Bio Complete 3. You can get single or multiple bottles in bulk, and creating a free Gundry MD account unlocks extra savings. We’ve included a chart to help you understand the price differences between your options.

Cost (standard)Cost with Gundry MD accountSavings
One bottle$70$5029%
Three bottles$189$13529%
Six bottles$354$25528%

Gundry MD also offers a subscription program that would save you an additional 10% off every order.

You can get free shipping on every order over $49 (so every one-bottle purchase of Bio Complete 3 will ship free to your home). And if you try it and find it doesn’t agree with you, you can take advantage of Gundry MD’s 90-day money-back guarantee to get all of your money back (minus the cost of return shipping).

Interested in learning more? Check out our full review of Bio Complete 3.

NatureM.D. GutConnect 365

Pros

  • Contains good doses of several gut-healthy ingredients
  • Vegan, non-GMO, and soy-free formula
  • Two flavor options
  • Order in bulk for more savings
  • Free shipping on almost all orders
  • 60-day money-back guarantee
  • Subscribe & Save up to 32%

Cons

  • Some ingredients aren’t as scientifically sound as others
  • Contains stevia
  • Makes big promises that don’t always hold up
  • Guarantee has a $10 restocking fee

GutConnect 365 is one of the two supplements on our list that provides 5mg of L-glutamine per serving. As such, it targets tight junction regulation and anti-inflammatory signaling, even if 5g is less than clinical recommendations. In comparison, most studies use about 0.5g per kg of body weight, and Revive Glutamine delivers a 10g dose per serving.

Here are all the ingredients you can find in GutConnect 365:

  • Zinc: 3mg
  • Quercetin: 250mg
  • Slippery elm bark: 150mg
  • Organic marshmallow root: 150mg
  • NAG: 150mg
  • Licorice root: 150mg
  • Aloe vera extract: 50mg
  • Maitake mushroom extract: 30mg
  • MCT oil powder
  • Stevia

While maitake mushrooms might not have the most scientific evidence pointing to gut support, they do add beneficial fiber to the powder.

GutConnect 365 comes in both chocolate and vanilla flavors. The powder is completely vegan, gluten-free, soy-free, and non-GMO. NatureM.D. advertises that it can work as a meal replacement, but with only ten calories per serving, that seems like false advertising.

Pricing

NatureM.D. can be purchased directly from the company or from popular websites like Amazon. It has both bulk options and a subscription plan that you can mix and match for maximum savings. The amount you save with the subscription plan varies depending on how many containers of GutConnect 365 you order. We’ve put together a quick chart to break down your pricing options and the maximum percentage you could save per jar.

One-timeSubscription
One jar$54$44
Three jars$134$120
Six jars$244$220

Choosing the six-jar subscription gets you the best value, bringing your cost per bottle down to just under $37.

NatureM.D. provides free shipping on most orders in the U.S. If you or your gut aren’t happy with GutConnect 365, you can return it for a full refund within 60 days of purchase, even if you’ve opened and tried it. That’s not the longest guarantee we’ve seen in the space, but it could be long enough for many customers to know whether the supplement is having any effect.

FAQ about leaky gut supplements

Alternatives to leaky gut supplements

If you’re not sure a leaky gut supplement is right for you, there are several other options you can try to solve your GI problems. Some may require a trip to the doctor’s office, but a few you can employ from the comfort of your home.

We’ve laid out several of them below.

GI tests

Investigating suspicious symptoms is always a good choice. You can complete some tests at home, like a gut microbiome test or food sensitivity testing, or you can go to your doctor’s office for an endoscopy to check for more severe problems like celiac or Crohn’s disease. Since leaky gut symptoms overlap heavily with other GI diseases — and sometimes leaky gut is a symptom of a larger GI disease — ruling out other problems should generally be your first step.

Probiotics

Taking probiotics on their own can massively improve your gut health, including leaky gut symptoms. The beneficial bacteria can help to heal the mucosal wall by promoting mucus secretion and tightening junctions through increased zonulin. They also help to break down food more efficiently, meaning you’ll take in more nutrients from what you’re eating. Some of the gut microbiome testing brands we recommend, like Viome, will actually tailor custom probiotics to your unique microbiome needs.

Dietary changes

We are what we eat, so following a more gut-healthy diet can make a difference when there isn’t a clear answer to your symptoms. That means consuming less refined sugar, saturated fats, alcohol, and caffeine and eating more whole grains and high-fiber foods. If you need guidance on changing your diet, you can speak to a gastroenterologist or nutritionist or get recommendations from at-home microbiome testing companies.

Exercise

Post-Thanksgiving dinner walks aren’t just to get away from your family for a few minutes. Research shows that walking for 15-20 minutes after eating can help stimulate your stomach and intestines, helping your body digest food more efficiently.

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