Gut health optimization is a hot topic right now, and for good reason. Ancient wisdom pointed to the importance of gut health for overall health and wellness, and this is now being confirmed by scientific research. Due in part to this, there are a variety of gut-health supplements coming to market these days.
With all those choices, though, comes the question, how do you know if you’re choosing the right supplement? That’s why we’re here to help! We’re going to take a closer look at a well-known gut health option, Onnit Total Gut Health. In this Onnit Total Gut Health review, we’ll dive into this supplement’s ingredients, benefits, claims, pricing, and more so you can find out if it’s worth the purchase.
Ready? Let’s get started!
Onnit Total Gut Health Review: Main Points
- Onnit Total Gut Health is an all-in-one gut supplement with probiotics, prebiotics, and DigesTech (digestive enzymes)
- The ingredients in Onnit Total Gut Health are designed to optimize the gut microbiome
- Possible benefits of Onnit Total Gut Health are better digestion, nutrient absorption, immune support, and reductions in bloating, discomfort, and other symptoms
- It’s pretty expensive at around $2.50/serving, but you can subscribe to save 15%
- Overall, Onnit Total Gut Health seems safe and effective for most people
About Onnit Total Gut Health
Total Gut Health was created by supplement and health company, Onnit. You may be familiar with Onnit as they are the producer of many popular supplements, including Onnit New Mood, Shroom TECH Sport, and Onnit Total Human.
Onnit Total Gut Health is designed to be your all-in-one gut health supplement. With probiotics, prebiotics, digestive enzymes, and betaine HCl, Total Gut Health is geared towards optimizing your gut microbiome, which is supposed to lead to an overall healthier you.
Onnit Total Gut Health Benefits
The main listed benefits of Onnit Total Gut Health are:
- Promotion of healthy gut flora (gut bacteria)
- Increased ability to digest major macronutrients
- Improves the absorption of nutrients
- Immune system Support
Promotion of Healthy Gut Flora
Onnit Total Gut Health is designed to increase the number of probiotics (good bacteria) in your gut by including both probiotics themselves and prebiotics, which feed the probiotics.
Enhanced Digestion
There are also a number of digestive enzymes in Total Gut Health, which are designed to help you digest major macronutrients. Specifically, you’re supposed to be more able to digest carbohydrates, fats, protein, fiber, and lactose.
Improved Absorption
Beyond digestion, Total Gut Health is also formulated to increase the absorption and assimilation of the nutrients you get from your food. This is primarily due to digestive enzymes and betaine HCl.
Immune System Support
Finally, Total Gut Health claims to enhance immune support, based on the idea that there is a tight connection between the gut and immune system. So, optimizing the gut may lead to a healthier immune system.
So, is Total Gut Health the total package? Read on to find out!
Onnit Total Gut Health Ingredients
Onnit Total Gut Health’s formula contains a combination of digestive enzymes, probiotics, prebiotics, betaine HCl, and probiotic-acting yeast. It comes in packets, which contain 7 capsules. Specifically, the ingredients are:
- DigesTech
- DigestTech Power Blend (540mg)
- Organic Fennel (125mg)
- Organic Ginger Extract (125mg)
- AstraZyme (50mg)
- Saccharomyces boulardii (250mg)
- Betaine HCl (500mg)
- Prebiotic
- Organic Jerusalem Artichoke (900mg)
- Organic Dandelion (600mg)
- Probiotic
- Onnit Probiotic Blend (450mg)
Alright, now let’s see what these ingredients may have to offer for gut health and beyond.
DigesTech
The first ingredient is actually an amalgam of various ingredients: the DigesTech Power Blend, Fennel, ginger, and AstraZyme.
DigesTech Power Blend
The DigesTech Power Blend contains many different digestive enzymes, such as amylase, protease, lipase, pectinase, glucanase, and more. (For a full breakdown, please visit their website and check the label).
So, what do all of these “ase” ingredients have in common? They help break down macronutrients, which in turn leads to better absorption and utilization. The gastrointestinal (GI) system makes and produces these enzymes naturally, but sometimes, people don’t produce enough of them, which can lead to digestive issues. One very common example is a lack of lactase production in people who are lactose intolerant. Supplementation with digestive enzymes is often beneficial for mitigating GI-related issues, such as bloating, gas, stomach discomfort, and diarrhea.
DigesTech Power Blend is unique in that it contains many different types of enzymes for all of the different macronutrients. For example, amylase helps to break down carbohydrates; protease helps to break down protein; and lipase helps to break down fats. And there are many more digestive enzymes in this blend, so it is likely that DigesTech will enhance the digestion and absorption of nearly all of the macronutrients.
Fennel and Ginger
The DigesTech Power Blend also includes Fennel and ginger, two herbs that have been used for thousands of years for a variety of ailments. Ginger is most well-known for its ability to reduce nausea and vomiting, but it offers many other digestive benefits too. For example, it can reduce stomach discomfort, bloating, gas, and heartburn. The main mechanism of action is that ginger increases gastric emptying, which ultimately allows things to be digested more quickly rather than just sitting in the stomach.
Fennel also is able to enhance digestion and reduce gas, bloating, heartburn, and stomach pain, among other things. The main thing it does is stimulate smooth muscle contractions in the small intestine, thereby helping move food along and improving digestion. Fennel also is able to reduce gas.
AstraZyme
The final ingredient in DigesTech is AstraZyme, which is a combination of astralagus root, tienchi root, protease, and trace minerals. Research shows that AstraZyme is able to help digest many different substances, especially protein, but also carbohydrates, fats, creatine, and more. AstraZyme is also clinically proven to reduce gas, bloating, and GI discomfort.
Saccharomyces Boulardii
Up next is Saccharomyces(S) boulardii, which is a yeast-based probiotic. S. boulardii can reduce pathogen invasion in the intestines, where it helps decrease toxins and bad microbes. It also increases short-chain fatty acids, stimulates protein and energy production, and may offer immune-regulating activities. Its main benefit is its action as an anti-diarrheal, but research shows it may reduce irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and other GI symptoms
Betaine HCl
Total Gut Health also included betaine HCl, which is an acidic form of betaine. It is designed to increase stomach acid, which in turn would increase protein digestion and digestion in general, since stomach acid plays a vital role in digestion. Betaine HCl has moderate evidence for improving digestion in people with hypochlorida (low stomach acid), but it’s not as clear if the general population would benefit from it.
Prebiotics: Jerusalem Artichoke and Dandelion
In addition to probiotics, Total Gut Health contains prebiotics from Jerusalem artichoke and Dandelion. Prebiotics are substances that are derived from fibrous plant foods, and they help to feed the probiotics and defend against pathogens and other bad bacteria. In this way, the prebiotics in Jerusalem artichoke and Dandelion can improve gut flora composition and overall gut health. Prebiotics themselves can also assist in digestion, especially with protein.
Probiotic: Onnit Probiotic Blend
The final ingredient in Total Gut Health is the Onnit Probiotic Blend, which contains various strains of bacteria:
- Lactobacillus acidophilus DDS-1
- Lactobacillus plantarum
- Lactobacillus rhamnosus
- Bifidobacterium infants
- Bifidobacterium lactis
All of these strains are probiotics, so they confer benefits to human gut health. Basically, supplementing with these probiotics allows more good bacteria to enter the gut…since these strains are literally good bacteria themselves… which in turn improves the overall health of the microbiome.
In turn, this can lead to more health benefits, such as better immune health and brain health, since these areas are tightly connected to the gut. Lastly, these specific strains are scientifically proven to resist breakdown by stomach acid and antibiotics, allowing them to be more effective.
Does Onnit Total Gut Health Work?
As a whole, Onnit Total Gut Health appears to be a very effective product and is very likely to offer gut health benefits (and more). Every ingredient in this product is scientifically proven to work, and this is coupled by a long-held history of effectiveness in traditional medicine. With its combination of enzymes, probiotics, prebiotics, and betaine HCl, Total Gut Health offers a multi-faceted approach that can address a wide variety of GI issues and improve many aspects of gut health.
If you’re looking to see how it compares to some other top gut health supplements, feel free to check out any at this link, especially Bio Complete 3.
Claims vs. Reality
Specifically, Onnit Total Gut Health will very likely exert the proposed claims of a healthier microbiome, enhanced digestion, improved absorption, and immune system support.
Specific probiotic strains in Total Gut Health will likely improve gut microbiome composition. And the prebiotics in this supplement will only add to the health of the gut microbiome by feeding the healthy bacteria what they need.
Also, DigesTech is a really quality ingredient proven to enhance digestion and absorption of many different macronutrients. And it only gets better with the inclusion of betaine HCl, which itself can increase digestion and absorption too.
And with all of these digestive benefits, you can expect less bloating and gas, decreased nausea, improved stomach comfort, improved IBS, and reductions in diarrhea and vomiting. Basically, any GI-related issue you have may very well be reduced with this supplement.
Finally, you’ll likely experience immune system support, given that the gut is tightly linked to the immune system. And there are specific strains of probiotics in Total Gut Health known to influence the immune system, such as S. boullardi.
Who is Onnit Total Gut Health Best For?
Given its multi-faceted actions, Onnit Total Gut Health is best for anyone dealing with GI discomfort and would like to improve their digestion and overall gut health. If you commonly experience bloating, gas, stomach discomfort, sluggishness, nausea, or any GI symptoms after eating, I’d highly consider supplementing with Onnit Total Gut Health.
Is Onnit Total Gut Health Safe?
Overall, Onnit Total Gut Health is very safe. However, there are some possible side effects. Most of these will be GI-related, such as nausea, gas, stomach pain, bloating, and diarrhea, among others.
But wait, aren’t those the things that Total Gut Health is supposed to prevent?
Yes. But if you have an impaired gut microbiota, taking Total Gut Health can lead to an influx of things the gut isn’t used to seeing, which may initially cause discomfort. But if this happens, it’s very likely that it will dissipate over time as the gut gets back in balance.
Where to Buy Onnit Total Gut Health
You can purchase Onnit Total Gut Health from the official Onnit website here.
You can choose to either buy 30 servings (30 packets) or 15 servings (15 packets) at once. The one-time purchase price is $37.95 for the 15-count and $75.90 for the 30-count.
If you really like Onnit Total Gut Health, though, there is a subscribe and save option. If you choose to subscribe, you’ll save 15%, bringing the price of the 15 count box down to $32.26 and the price of the 30 count box to $64.52. You can choose to get your subscription every 7, 15, 20, 30, 45, 60, or 90 days.
Get up to 15% OFF
Onnit Total Gut Health
- Formula includes digestive enzymes, probiotics, prebiotics, and more
- Promotes improved absorption of nutrients
- Benefits gut flora, immune health, and more
Clearly, Onnit Total Gut Health is a somewhat expensive product because you’ll be paying over two dollars per serving regardless of what option you choose.