Endotoxins & LPS: Could Your Gut or Environment Be Keeping You Inflamed and Stuck? | 191

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Back-to-School 2026:
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In this Made for Health solo minisode, Dr. Aaron Hartman continues his ongoing series asking:
Why are you still sick? Why are you stuck? Why aren’t you healing the way you expected?
This time, he focuses on a less-discussed source of inflammation: endotoxins, also known as lipopolysaccharides or LPS.
Dr. Hartman explains that LPS comes from the outer membrane of gram-negative bacteria. These bacterial products can become relevant through environmental exposure, especially in damp or water-damaged buildings, but also through the gut when intestinal permeability allows bacterial components to interact more directly with the immune system.
For people dealing with brain fog, bloating, autoimmune issues, SIBO, chronic inflammation, or lingering symptoms despite treating mold, Lyme disease, MCAS, and other conditions, Dr. Hartman suggests that endotoxin exposure may be another piece worth investigating.
Key Topics Covered
What endotoxins are
Lipopolysaccharide, or LPS
Gram-negative bacteria
Environmental endotoxin exposure
Water-damaged buildings
Actinomycetes and bacterial contamination
Chronic Inflammatory Response Syndrome
Gut-derived endotoxins
Intestinal permeability and “leaky gut”
SIBO and bacterial overgrowth
Immune activation
Systemic inflammatory response
Brain fog and neurological symptoms
Autoimmune disease
PANS and PANDAS
Mold and biotoxin illness
Butyrate and gut health
Activated charcoal as a binder discussed in the episode
Oral IgG
BPC-157
Testing for immune responses to endotoxins
Why gut testing may reveal overlooked drivers of inflammation
In This Episode, You Will Learn
✅ What endotoxins are and where they come from
✅ Why Dr. Hartman distinguishes mold exposure from other components of water-damaged buildings
✅ How gram-negative bacteria can contribute LPS to the environment and the gastrointestinal tract
✅ Why intestinal permeability may allow bacterial products to interact with the immune system
✅ How endotoxin exposure may overlap with inflammatory symptoms such as brain fog, bloating, immune activation, and autoimmunity
✅ Why SIBO can involve more than gas and bloating
✅ How Dr. Hartman connects endotoxins with inflammatory pathways he first encountered in hospital medicine
✅ What testing approaches he considers when evaluating possible endotoxin-related immune activation
✅ Which supportive strategies he discusses for reducing exposure and addressing the gut
Resources & Links:
🌐 Dr. Aaron Hartman – Richmond Functional Medicine: richmondfunctionalmedicine.com
🌐 LinkedIn – Dr. Aaron Hartman: Connect Here
📺 YouTube – Richmond Functional Medicine: Watch Here
🎒 Back-to-School 2026: Back-to-School Bundle
Mentioned in this episode:
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Back to school asks a lot of parents, too. Support your body through the season with three physician-reviewed, foundation-first essentials: Twice Daily Multi, Quercetin + Nettles, and NAC.
For a limited time, save 25% on the Back to School Support Bundle.
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Back to School Support for Parents
25% Off Back to School Support for Parents
Back to school asks a lot of parents, too. Support your body through the season with three physician-reviewed, foundation-first essentials: Twice Daily Multi, Quercetin + Nettles, and NAC.
For a limited time, save 25% on the Back to School Support Bundle.
Visit the link below ⬇️ Shop the Back to School Sale
Back to School Support for Parents