This episode is bought to you by Quell — to help support rebuilding healthy skin from the outside-in + inside-out!
Take $10 off your next order! Use promo code QUELL10 at check out — Get started HERE!
– – –
Ever wondered what would happen if you handed AI your GI Map stool test results for analysis? With ChatGPT just a click away, more people are turning to artificial intelligence for help with interpreting complex lab tests like the GI Map stool test.
But is it a smart move—or a risky gamble?
I decided to be a guinea pig to see how well ChatGPT would do. So I uploaded my personal GI Map stool test to ChatGPT and asked it to analyze the results and build a protocol.
What I received back was shocking.
This experiment isn’t just about novel curiosity—it was inspired by the growing trend of people relying on AI to manage serious health issues. I’ve seen it firsthand in Facebook groups and in my clinic, where people have used AI to to a GI Map stool test analysis or have followed (and recommended) AI-generated protocols that are based on wildly inaccurate information.
That’s why I decided to take one for the team and see how an experienced clinical nutritionist like myself faired against ChatGPT. I’ll walk you through my GI Map stool test results, and then show you what ChatGPT created. As a clinical nutritionist with over a thousand cases under my belt, I want you to see just how different the outcomes can be.
If you’ve been tempted to use ChatGPT to analyze your labs or build a health protocol, this episode is a must-listen.
Or, listen on your favorite app: iTunes (Apple Podcasts) | Spotify | Stitcher | TuneIn | Subscribe on Android
In This Episode:
- How ChatGPT can be used to help improve your health
- Questions to ask before using AI (especially with sensitive personal data)
- Limitations of stool testing you probably didn’t know
- I walk you through my GI Map stool test results
- ChatGPT’s take on my GI Map stool test
- Why your health history is crucial to accurate lab analysis
- ChatGPT’s advice vs. real-world nutrition gut test protocols
- What grade did ChatGPT get on this assignment?
Quotes
“There's a lot of things that a GI Map stool test can miss so you can't take the results as like the God's honest truth.”
“The things that chatGPT learns are either theoretical or they're old. What is cutting edge, truly up to date or innovative is probably not shared on the internet available for it to read.”
Links
Get help from my team → START HERE
Healthy Skin Show ep. 213: Stool Testing Do’s + Don’t’s For Skin Rashes
Healthy Skin Show ep. 356: Troubleshooting Candida In Stool Tests (+ Other Labs)
Healthy Skin Show ep. 358: Surprising Skin Signs Of A Hidden Parasites-Gut Problem
388: GI Map Stool Test Analysis: ChatGPT vs Clinical Nutritionist (Which Is Better?) {FULL TRANSCRIPT}
Have you started using ChatGPT—or another AI platform—to figure out what’s going on with your health? That’s exactly what we’re diving into today.
I totally get the appeal. Maybe you feel like your doctor isn’t getting to the root of things. Or perhaps you don’t have the budget for a specialist. And let’s be honest—spending countless hours researching on your own can be overwhelming. So, turning to ChatGPT for quick answers can seem like a smart workaround – like when it comes to getting a GI Map stool test analysis.
But here’s the real question: Can you actually trust the information it gives you? Is it reliable? Is it accurate? Is it based on the most current research? And most importantly, will it actually work—especially if you're asking for something specific, like a protocol based on your stool test?
To find out, I decided to use myself as a guinea pig.
As a clinical nutritionist with over seven years of experience and more than a thousand cases under my belt, I wanted to see how my expertise stacks up against ChatGPT’s suggestions. Keep in mind, this AI tool is still fairly new, trained on older data and whatever’s publicly available online.
So, I put it to the test: I uploaded my own GI Map stool test into ChatGPT and asked for a full analysis and protocol, including supplement, diet, and lifestyle recommendations.
And honestly? I was shocked by what it gave me.
Let’s take a look.
Using ChatGPT To Help With Your Health (Pros + Cons)
Before I share my GI Map stool test analysis with you, I think it’s important to first talk about how people are actually using ChatGPT. This is something I’ve pieced together through Facebook groups and my own experience working with clients in my virtual clinic—and you might recognize yourself in some of this.
A lot of people are using ChatGPT for things like creating recipe lists based on what’s in their fridge, generating quick meal ideas, writing grocery lists, or even putting together exercise routines. That’s all pretty harmless. But what really started to concern me was seeing people using ChatGPT to tackle complex health issues.
In some Facebook groups, I saw posts where someone would ask ChatGPT to explain something like the root causes of leaky gut and then request a full gut test protocol to “fix” it. They’d copy and paste the AI’s response into the group and say, “See? ChatGPT has all the answers!”
As someone who has worked in this field since 2027, I looked at that and thought:
A) This is full of inaccuracies.
B) This is not a substitute for professional help or current, evidence-based information.
Worse, people are starting to treat these AI-generated protocols as if they’re personalized and trustworthy—and then sharing them publicly as “solutions” that are supposedly effective for everyone.
But here’s the thing: you have no idea if that advice will actually help, let alone fix or rebalance anything.
We even had clients who uploaded their GI Map stool tests into ChatGPT, got a gut test protocol, and then showed up to their appointments asking questions that didn’t make much sense. The interpretations were often inaccurate, and ChatGPT focused on irrelevant details. That made for some awkward and eye-opening conversations between my team of clinical nutritionists and those clients.
This is how we began to notice this growing trend—ChatGPT vs. the clinical nutritionist.
There are definitely pros and cons to this conversation. I think many people overlook the downsides because AI feels like a quick, easy, cheaper shortcut. But here are some real questions to ask:
- What information is ChatGPT basing its answers on?
- Is it outdated?
- Is it even accurate?
Let’s be honest—there’s a lot of misinformation on the internet, and ChatGPT can’t always tell the difference between what’s valid and what’s not. Plus, our understanding of health issues evolves as new research emerges. If AI is pulling from sources that are five or even eight years old, you could be missing the mark completely.
On top of that, ChatGPT isn’t a mind reader. It doesn’t understand the full context of your case (including your health history, symptoms and critical case details), and it can’t ask clarifying questions like a practitioner would. Sure, you could offer up additional information to AI in addition to your gut test, but the reality is that you might not even know what information is important, nor relevant.
And here's another important point—when you upload personal health data, where is that information going? Who has access to it? What happens to it? These are valid concerns, and I’ll circle back to them after we look at what ChatGPT told me about my own stool test.
So just to give you a little background—I had this GI Map stool test done in 2022. It’s my personal health data, so I redacted identifying details because I don’t feel comfortable uploading private info into ChatGPT. I thought it’d be fascinating to see how the platform interprets the results.
First, I’ll walk you through the actual GI Map stool test so you can see what I see as a clinical nutritionist. Then we’ll dive into ChatGPT’s analysis, the protocol it gave me, and some interesting follow-up questions I asked based on its responses.
My GI Map Stool Test Analysis (From A Clinical Nutritionist)
I had a GI Map stool test done in January 2022. Before diving into the results, I think it’s important to acknowledge a few limitations of stool testing in general:
- Parasites are often missed.
- Fungal or candida overgrowths aren’t always accurately detected.
- pylori infections can be underestimated—or missed entirely.
No stool test is perfect.
But even when results aren’t dramatic, they can offer valuable insights—if you know how to interpret them properly. (If you want to see the visual breakdown of the stool report, )
The first page of my report, which screens for major pathogens, came back clear.
There was some H. pylori detected—not a high level, but it’s still worth noting. I tend to take any presence seriously and always ask, ‘Why is it there?'
Looking further down into the normal bacterial flora section, nearly everything was either below detectable levels (<DL) or flagged as low. Essentially, my gut looked more like a concrete parking lot than the lush, diverse microbial pasture it should be.
In the dysbiotic/overgrowth bacteria section, the standout was elevated Streptococcus species, flagged in red. While it was the only one above range, it wasn’t drastically high. Other species like Bacillus, Methanobacteria, and Staphylococcus were present but still within normal limits.
Under the potential autoimmune triggers section, species like Prevotella and Fusobacterium showed up, but again, all within range.
No parasites (protozoa or worms) were detected on the next page.
Toward the bottom, a few markers were borderline. For example, steatocrit was technically in range, but just barely—which I found worth noting. That said, pancreatic enzyme output (measured via Elastase-1) looked solid.
The biggest red flag on this test was elevated secretory IgA, indicating heightened immune activity in the gut, along with a high anti-gliadin IgA level—which points to a gluten-related immune response.
This surprised me, because I’ve been strictly gluten-free since 2008 and absolutely was during the time of this test. (Though if you’ve followed my podcast, you know I’ve since reintroduced some sourdough.) Still, at the time, this marker being elevated didn’t make much sense based on my history and diligence.
It’s important to point out that ChatGPT lacks the context to interpret these findings fully. There’s no awareness of my symptoms, health history, or dietary background.
If this were a client case, I’d be asking detailed questions and looking at the broader timeline—not just the data on the page.
My GI Map Stool Test Analysis (From ChatGPT)
When I uploaded the full PDF of my GI Map stool test to ChatGPT, I asked it to analyze the results, highlight key findings, and create a protocol with supplements, diet, and lifestyle recommendations.
What I got back was untouched—exactly what the AI produced. Let’s break it down.
(If you want to see the visual breakdown, .)
1. Missed or Misleading Interpretations
- “No pathogens detected”: While it flagged no bacterial, viral, or parasitic pathogens, this is misleading. GI MAP stool test (and most other functional gut test) is notoriously unreliable at detecting parasites. (Read more about this problem here.)
- “No yeast or fungal overgrowth”: That might be what the test shows on the surface, but I had multiple tests at that time confirming candida overgrowth—something stool tests often miss because yeast tends to overgrow in the small intestine, not the colon.
2. Surface-Level Regurgitation Without Context
ChatGPT focused on:
- Elastase-1: Noted it was within range, indicating good enzyme output—fine.
- Steatocrit (14%): It claimed this was “normal,” but that’s nearly elevated. Clinically, I’d question bile flow or possible SIBO. ChatGPT didn’t.
- Calprotectin and beta-glucuronidase: It said both looked good, and that’s true.
- Commensal bacteria: It noted that many were low or absent, which was obvious from the report.
- Streptococcus species (high): ChatGPT fixated on this, suggesting a link to inflammation or possible SIBO—but failed to consider other clinical causes like low stomach acid or pylori, which was present on my test.
It didn’t recognize that high Strep often reflects the oral microbiome being swallowed and surviving due to low stomach acid—not necessarily something pathological in the lower gut.
3. Over-Simplified Connections & Root Cause Confusion
ChatGPT pointed to my elevated secretory IgA and anti-gliadin IgA and suggested that I might have gluten sensitivity or even early-stage celiac. I’d been gluten-free since 2008, so this didn’t make sense clinically.
It also listed leaky gut and food sensitivities as root causes, which is incorrect—they’re symptoms or consequences of other root causes.
4. Oversimplified & Generic Recommendations
ChatGPT Diet Suggestions:
- Suggested a gluten-free diet—which, again, I was already strictly following since 2008.
- Recommends a polyphenol-rich, high-fiber diet—which includes FODMAPs and fermented fibers. But in a gut as depleted as mine, that’s not enough to rebuild microbial diversity.
- Suggested removing ultra-processed foods and added sugars—helpful in theory, but not useful if the AI doesn’t know I that my diet is pretty clean.
ChatGPT Supplement Suggestions:
- Recommends probiotics like MegasporeBiotic. While I’ve used it clinically, it’s far too mild to repopulate a gut as underdeveloped as mine – AND it doesn’t contain strains that are normally in the GI tract.
- Suggests prebiotics—which I agree with, but they need to be taken to tolerance and carefully paired with the right combo and dosing of probiotics.
- Recommends glutamine and gut repair powders, which I don’t use early on in a case (especially out of the gate) because they won’t be effective. Unless the root cause issues are resolved, this is a total waste of money at this stage.
- Recommends digestive enzymes, even though my enzyme levels (Elastase-1) were in great shape.
5. Highly Problematic: Antimicrobial Herb Protocol Overkill
This was the most concerning part. ChatGPT recommended four strong herbal antimicrobials—berberine, oregano oil, garlic, and thyme—to address the high Strep.
Here’s the problem:
- Streptococcus, in this case, likely isn’t even pathogenic.
- Recommending four potent antimicrobials for a depleted gut microbiome (especially as depleted as mine) is not only overkill—it’s wildly reckless. They would wipe out what little balance I do have.
- No consideration was given to herb-drug interactions, as it didn’t ask if I was taking any medication and someone might not know that this is important (ie. berberine + cyclosporine cannot be taken together).
- Its justification for using all four herbs? Nonexistent. One well-chosen antimicrobial could be enough—if it’s even necessary
6. Protocol Timeline & Testing: Unrealistic
ChatGPT suggested:
- Starting probiotics and gut repair powders right away (again – dosing matters for probiotics, and gut repair powders at this stage are pretty useless).
- Adding prebiotics later (odd—should be done in tandem with probiotics).
- Monitoring symptoms, but failed to explain what to track.
- Retesting the entire stool test in 3 months—which is both unnecessary and financially wasteful. I can often get 6–12 months of insight from one test unless something major changes.
- Optional extra testing to do in the future: zonulin (total waste of money), SIBO breath test (a skilled clinician can often assess this without testing), and organic acids micronutrient testing (not necessary and likely a waste of money since I can get a ton of helpful infor from standard blood labs because of my knowledge of nutritional biochemistry).
That’s a lot of extra money spent on extraneous, unnecessary testing, if you listen to the robot.
Ultimately, this gut test protocol reflects a textbook education with zero clinical nuance or real-life experience. It's what you’d expect from someone in college or grad school, not someone working with real people. It lacks personalization, over-applies generic fixes, and—worst of all—could cause harm in a gut like mine.
So if you’re using ChatGPT to design your gut health protocol, be cautious. It can sound convincing, but without context, it may lead you in the wrong direction—or set you back entirely.
Final Thoughts: How Did ChatGPT Do Analyzing a GI Map Stool Test?
To be honest, my overall impression of ChatGPT’s ability to analyze a stool test and provide a solid protocol? Not great.
As my mentor once said, “AI stands for average intelligence.” That really stuck with me—because when you think about it, “average” means C-level work. And that’s exactly what I got.
Sure, if this were a master’s-level assignment during my nutrition degree, ChatGPT’s analysis might earn an A. But in the real world—where clinical outcomes matter—that same level of work just doesn’t cut it. Once you start working with actual clients, you quickly realize that theoretical knowledge alone doesn’t produce results. Experience, nuance, and critical thinking do.
What ChatGPT delivered lacked context, clinical insight, and any real personalization. It spit out generic, surface-level recommendations based on what’s in textbooks or on the internet—but not necessarily what actually works in practice.
And when I pushed it further with added case details, it started suggesting supplements that don’t exist (literally a supplement name from a brand I know that has never existed). As well as certain types of supplements that will likely cause a HUGE flare up in symptoms (which I’ve seen repeatedly and know NOT to use them at this point in a case).
All of this madkes me wonder: Where is this information even coming from?
Much of it felt outdated, overly simplistic, or even flat-out wrong for my case. And the truth is, cutting-edge information doesn’t live online—at least not in the places AI has access to. The tools, protocols, and patterns I use in my clinical practice are built on years of experience, deep research, and real-world trial and error—not on blogs or databases.
So it’s not just about knowledge—it’s about wisdom.
You can’t expect AI to connect complex dots or understand when a textbook recommendation could backfire. For example, in my case, ChatGPT recommended using multiple strong antimicrobials for a gut that was already severely depleted. That kind of “protocol” could cause real harm—and someone with clinical experience would know better.
Herbs and supplements aren’t harmless just because they’re natural. Timing, dosing, and knowing when not to use them is just as important as knowing whether they’re truly appropriate in a given situation.
One last thing—if you’re uploading your personal health data (like a GI Map stool test) into ChatGPT, please think twice. Where is that information going? Who has access to it? How is it stored?
Unless you've fully redacted your private information, you’re taking a risk. ChatGPT isn’t designed to safeguard your health data, and you could be exposing sensitive personal details without even realizing it.
Bottom line: the experienced clinical nutritionist wins.
When it comes to comparing ChatGPT to a seasoned clinical nutritionist—especially one who's worked with complex, chronic skin and gut issues like myself—the clinical nutritionist still comes out on top. AI simply doesn’t have the experience or intuition to replace a real practitioner.
So if you're using ChatGPT for personalized health advice, just know that the information might be incomplete, misleading, or potentially harmful without the context of your unique history and biology.
I totally get the appeal of using a free, fast tool. And yes, there are some practical uses for AI. But don’t mistake convenience for competence. Just because it sounds smart doesn’t mean it’s right.
So next time you’re tempted to upload a test or ask ChatGPT to build you a gut test protocol, pause and ask:
Is this actually safe? Is it accurate? And is it enough to truly help me?
And whatever it spits out, take those results with a grain of salt and consider getting help if the issue you’re dealing with is pretty significant.
Because not all protocols are created equal… and the wrong recommendations can unfortunately make things worse.
And I’d hate for that to happen to you!
Jennifer Fugo, MS, CNS
Jennifer Fugo, MS, CNS is an integrative Clinical Nutritionist and the founder of Skinterrupt. She works with adults who are ready to stop chronic gut and skin rash issues by discovering their unique root cause combo and take custom actions with Jennifer's support to get clear skin (and their life) back.