Hey, I'm Alyssa, a registered dietitian with Nutritional Weight and Wellness. Have you heard about L-glutamine? You may have heard L-glutamine promoted as a supplement for leaky gut. Let's add some clarification around what L-glutamine is and what it does in your body. L-glutamine is an amino acid that your body actually naturally makes. In fact, L-glutamine is the most abundant amino acid found in the body. It is important in supporting your immune system and overall digestive health, specifically helping to maintain the integrity of the gut barrier. L-glutamine is considered conditionally essential. This means under certain conditions, such as illness or injury, the body's needs of L-glutamine are higher and it cannot produce enough to keep up with needs. So, L-glutamine becomes essential. We need to get it from food. Now, where do we find it? Well, mostly those protein foods, specifically animal protein foods such as eggs, beef, poultry, dairy products are going to have the most L-glutamine due to their overall high protein content. Focusing on overall diet and getting enough protein throughout the day is going to be key here. Eating a balanced meal with protein every three to four hours during the day helps ensure that you're meeting L-glutamine needs. Having L-glutamine as a supplement is not a magic solution. However, it is a tool that we often use in helping to support those that are having increased L-glutamine needs. This helps ensure that the body gets the L-glutamine it needs to support healing, such as healing for gut repair, while we also focus on those foundations, the basics, and we make sure that we're getting those foundational foods to support overall health.