The Truth About Gut Health, Constipation, and Detoxes with Dr. Liz Dalglish ND
TL;DR: Chronic bloating and constipation are rarely about one thing. Dr. Liz Dalglish, a naturopathic doctor specializing in gut health, breaks down what’s usually going on. She also tackles why detox culture is mostly noise, and why perfectionism might be the biggest barrier to actually feeling better.
If your gut health toolkit is “eat more fiber” and a $400 supplement stack with no explanation, you’re not alone. I sat down with Dr. Liz Dalglish, a naturopathic doctor at Rooted Naturopathic Clinic and Blue Haven Wellness in Barrie, to talk about what’s actually going on when your gut isn’t cooperating. Turns out, a lot of the standard advice gets it wrong.
The Patient Dr. Liz Sees Most Often
Dr. Liz calls this patient “Mary.” She’s bloated most days. She struggles to go to the bathroom regularly. She’s already tried cutting dairy, cutting gluten, and buying a supplement stack she found online. She’s motivated, and she Googles everything. But she’s usually missing the full picture.
Chronic constipation, Dr. Liz explains, is rarely about one thing. It can trace back to irregular eating patterns or a strained relationship with food. It can also come from gut motility that slows down. That happens when the body isn’t getting consistent signals about when food is coming. In other words, your gut likes routine, so skipped meals and inconsistent timing throw that rhythm off.
There’s also a piece that doesn’t get talked about enough: disordered eating patterns don’t have to look like a clinical diagnosis to affect your gut. Fear around food, rigid rules about what counts as “clean” enough to eat, and body image struggles can all show up as digestive symptoms.
What the “Blue Poo Challenge” Actually Measures
One of Dr. Liz’s go-to tools is a transit time test. Yes, it involves blue food dye, and yes, patients can look it up themselves. The goal is simple: figure out how long it actually takes food to move through your system. A healthy range is usually 12 to 24 hours. So if it’s taking two or three days, that’s useful information, not a reason for panic.
From there, she looks at eating patterns and stress around meals. She also checks whether patients are getting close to their daily fiber needs — something roughly 15 percent of North Americans actually hit. Fiber, movement, nervous system regulation, and sometimes a laxative protocol, used without shame when it’s warranted, are all part of the plan.
Why Detoxing Is Mostly a Waste of Money
Dr. Liz doesn’t hold back on this one: you don’t need to detox. Your liver and kidneys are already doing that job. If you’re not detoxing properly, that’s a medical emergency, not a wellness trend, and the average person isn’t dealing with that.
Parasite cleanses, colonics, and expensive functional medicine panels with no real research behind them — she’s seen it all. Instead, she’d rather see that money go toward something that actually helps, like a session with a pelvic floor physiotherapist or a real food-tracking check-in.
The Real Barrier to Feeling Better: Perfectionism
The biggest myth Dr. Liz sees isn’t about a specific food or supplement. It’s the idea that you have to execute your health routine flawlessly, or it doesn’t count. So one rough night of sleep, one missed meal prep, or one stressful day, and people write the whole week off.
Her take: a chicken nugget and mac and cheese dinner with some carrots on the side is a completely acceptable meal. Progress isn’t about a perfect plan. Instead, it’s about noticing what happened, learning from it, and moving forward without starting over from scratch every Monday.
Building a Practice With a Newborn at Home
Dr. Liz had her second baby, Rory, five months before this conversation. Her daughter Charlie is two and a half. And she’s candid about what it’s actually taken to keep her practice running: a supportive partner, family she can call to vent, reliable childcare, and clinics built by women who understand what it means to also be a parent.
Her advice for anyone trying to hold both roles at once isn’t about doing more. Instead, it’s about building a support system honest enough to say what you need, and flexible enough to let a sick kid mean a cancelled patient day without guilt attached.
What Self Made Means to Dr. Liz
When I asked Dr. Liz what “self made” means to her, she pushed back on the word itself. Nobody gets anywhere entirely on their own, she said. Being self made, to her, means realizing you’re not alone and being willing to ask for help.
Loved this conversation? There’s a lot more where it came from. Tune into more episodes of The Self Made Life Podcast for real conversations with women building businesses on their own terms.
FAQ
What causes chronic constipation? Chronic constipation can stem from a combination of factors, including inconsistent eating patterns, low fiber intake, stress, and a disrupted relationship with food. A naturopathic doctor can help identify which factors are driving symptoms for a specific person.
Do I need to do a detox or cleanse for gut health? No. The liver and kidneys already handle detoxification. Most detox products and cleanses are not backed by research and are not necessary for a healthy gut.
How much fiber should I be eating? Only about 15 percent of North Americans meet their daily fiber needs. A naturopathic doctor or dietitian can help determine an appropriate target based on individual tolerance and current intake.
What is a gut transit time test? A transit time test measures how long it takes food to move through the digestive system, from mouth to bowel movement. A healthy range is typically 12 to 24 hours.
About Dr. Liz Dalglish: Dr. Liz Dalglish is a naturopathic doctor practicing at Rooted Naturopathic Clinic and Blue Haven Wellness in Barrie, Ontario, and the founder of the Women in Midlife Method. She specializes in gut health and works with women navigating digestive and hormonal health concerns.
