Chris Kresser: Yeah, this is kind of a popular product right now in the CIRS community that I’m a part of, chronic inflammatory response syndrome. I’m a little bit perplexed, to be honest, by the popularity of it because I have seen very little research. I mean, I can hardly get much information about what it is, how it was sourced. I don’t believe there have been any really meaningful human studies that have been published in a peer-reviewed journal. The research they have on their website refers to a journal or a magazine or something that, as far as I can tell, they just created themselves or someone did. It’s just a Microsoft Word document or something. So I’m not really impressed by the research, but having said that, some practitioners are using it and seeing what they claim to be pretty remarkable results in people who couldn’t tolerate cholestyramine at all, which is one of the main treatments for chronic inflammatory response syndrome, and after using Restore, were able to, or people who have had really big improvements in their gut health after using it.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with the product, it’s essentially a prebiotic, and it’s made from peat, which is the substance that eventually forms into coal. It comes in a big liquid bottle. You take a teaspoon or two a day, and it’s a soil-derived substance that is supposed to modulate intestinal permeability by effects on zonulin. I’m interested, I’m curious, I’d like to learn more. So far, I’m not super-impressed with the research and information they have on the website, but I’m open minded about it. I know some practitioners are having a lot of success, and I take that seriously, so I’d like to see more.