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- The Saturday Scalpel: Issue 21
The Saturday Scalpel: Issue 21
Cutting through health hype with sarcasm... every damn week!
Dr. Max Maddahali
September 27, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes
From the desk of Dr. Kevin, MD
"I wanna meet the marketer who came up with the term ‘leaky gut’ for the first time. That’s f*ing genius."
Hello Scalpelheads,
It’s the Saturday Scalpel, and this is your boy Kev…
Today, I’m gonna talk about something hot.
Something leaky…
Everyone tells a different story… some say it’s the root of all diseases! Some would deny its existence!
Crazy world out there - you don’t know what to believe…
But as always, I got you…
I spent 26 extra hours this week specifically on this topic to bring you something you can save, come back to, and read over and over again…
So you can praise my genius in simplifying this disgusting, scammy-looking, super-trendy topic…
Yes, the f***ing “Leaky Gut” situation.
Today you’re gonna find out:
What the actual f*** it is, how to identify it, if it’s new, whether you need to do anything about it, and whether lectin is the protein ruining your gut…(spoiler: probably not your arch-nemesis).
Creator: Luiz Fernando Brito
What “leaky gut” actually is (a short rant 😑)
Marketing term: leaky gut.
Clinical idea: intestinal barrier hyperpermeability.
Your gut lining is a one-cell-thick wall with protein gates called tight junctions. (See the picture above)
Now… when those gates get sloppy, more stuff slips through to the immune system than intended → inflammation, symptoms.
Think airport security:
Tight junctions = scanners.
Alcohol/NSAIDs/stress/infections = broken scanners.
Extra particles (bacterial bits like LPS, food antigens) = unscreened passengers.
Immune system = TSA alarm.
If the alarms scream all day, you feel it.
