Our guest today, Dr. Erika Ebbel Angle, is the CEO and co-founder of Ixcela - the Internal Fitness Company. Ixcela is the ultimate health assessment tool to deliver nutrition, supplement, mindfulness, and fitness recommendations. By assessing 11 metabolites, you will receive a baseline health score, along with a personalized health plan. Dr. Erika shares the importance of optimizing gut health when striving for overall health, why testing is so important, what these 11 metabolites found in the blood tell us about gut health and why we should all seek microbial balance in our lives.SHOW NOTES:1:21 Welcome to the show!4:11 Dr. Erika Angle’s Bio5:26 Welcome Erika6:15 Erika’s health journey8:18 The gut connection9:18 The gut-brain axis10:20 Renee’s experience with gut distress/anxiety11:07 The many manifestations of anxiety13:35 Using the test as a baseline assessment14:42 Blood tests vs Stool tests17:10 Measuring Tryptophan18:06 Comparing Ixcela to urine tests20:16 How the Ixcela test works21:35 “Test, don’t guess”23:24 Tryptophan, an essential amino acid26:04 Serotonin & Leaky gut28:30 Healing the gut30:18 You need to know the why31:05 The 11 metabolites on the test33:23 Explaining the (gut) immune system37:22 The Indole group of metabolites43:16 Purine metabolites45:51 The importance of testing47:51 What does “higher risk” really mean?50:12 “Things are constantly changing”52:08 How often to retest53:17 Renee’s Ixcela results55:13 Matching test results56:22 Interpreting & correlating the results57:48 The importance of recovery59:35 “Knowing is so important”1:03:06 Seeking a microbial balance1:09:42 Final piece of advice1:11:52 Thanks for tuning in! RESOURCES:Ixcela WebsiteOrder your test kit here - use Pro code: RENEEBELZ for a professional discount and for an extra 10% off through January 31st use code: TRANSFORM10Ixcela Sample ReportIG: Ixcela WellnessErika's Ted Talk - Your Gut MicrobiomeBook: Eat DirtSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/biohacker-babes-podcast/donations