Janese Laster, MD

Janese Laster, MD Gut Theory Total Digestive Care is a comprehensive nutrition, weight management, and minimally invasive bariatric endoscopy practice.

08/16/2026

🚨 Another food recall update… because apparently grocery shopping needs a risk-management strategy now.

▪️If it feels like you’ve been hearing about food recalls constantly lately, you’re not imagining it.
▪️The FDA recall list includes everything from produce and eggs to prepared foods and not every recall is for the same reason. Some involve potential bacterial or parasitic contamination, while others involve undeclared allergens or foreign material.

🥬The update on the iceberg lettuce/Cyclospora outbreak: The FDA linked the outbreak to recalled iceberg lettuce sourced from central Mexico. The affected retail products had best-by dates through August 3, 2026, so they should no longer be available for sale. The FDA’s investigation, however, is still listed as ongoing.

✅For the recalled iceberg lettuce specifically, the FDA recommends discarding it and cleaning and sanitizing anything it touched.

💾SAVE this reel so you know where to look the next time a recall hits.

💌SHARE it with the person who does the grocery shopping in your house.

And tell me below 👇🏾 Have all these recalls changed the way you shop or eat or are you carrying on as usual?

🫶🏾Follow me for evidence-based GI, nutrition and food-safety updates without the unnecessary panic.

www.guttheoryhealth.com
888-755-4881

08/10/2026

If your pipe bursts, you call a plumber.

If your lights start flickering, you call an electrician.

If that little light comes on in your car, you go to a mechanic.

But somehow when it comes to your own body, the thing you actually live in, you go to Google. Or ChatGPT. Or whatever “gut health guru” showed up on your For You page at 1am.

Honest question: did it work last time?

I’m quadruple board-certified in Internal Medicine, Gastroenterology, Obesity Medicine, and Nutrition. I built Gut Theory for exactly this reason, so you have an actual expert to call instead of a search bar.

Please, trust a professional with your pipes. Trust one with your gut.

📌 Save this for the next time you’re 45 tabs deep into symptoms at midnight.

💬 Comment “BOOK” and I’ll send you the link.

🔁 Share with the friend who self-diagnoses via TikTok.

➕ Follow for more reasons to put the phone down and make the appointment.

Link in bio to book. 🔗
www.guttheoryhealth.com
888-755-4881

08/09/2026

Sunday reset: one small swap, big difference. 💧

A lot of you aren’t going to like this one, but sparkling water is a major hidden cause of bloating. That carbonation doesn’t just disappear, it’s gas, and gas has to go somewhere. For a lot of my patients, that somewhere is a very uncomfortable Sunday.

I’m not saying never again (I’m a doctor, not a monster). I’m saying if you’re already dealing with bloating, reflux, or a stomach that just feels “off,” swap the bubbles for regular water this week and see what happens. Sometimes the fix isn’t a supplement or a new diet, it’s just less air in your gut.

Try it for one week and tell me I’m wrong. 👇

Comment “WATER” if you’re doing the swap this week, save this for your next grocery run, and follow for more simple, no-BS tips on what’s actually affecting your gut.

www.guttheoryhealth.com
888-755-4881

08/08/2026

Kinda chic to still be that little girl with the big dream. 💫

I didn’t have a roadmap. I built one as I went: through training, through opening Gut Theory with nothing but a vision, through getting Quad A certified at 38 weeks pregnant because deadlines don’t wait and neither did I, through presenting at national meetings, through teaching other physicians the exact playbook I wish someone had handed me.

Turns out “chic” was never the letters after my name or the stage time. It’s deciding your timeline is the only one that counts and building anyway, tired, pregnant, scared, whatever season you’re actually in.

✔️If you’re a physician sitting on a “someday” dream, this is your sign. OWN IT. exists because I built the practice I wish existed, and now I teach other doctors how to build theirs.
✔️ If you’re a patient that is ready to start their gut health & weight journey- let me know below
✔️ If you need a colonoscopy head to the website

Link in bio.
www.guttheoryhealth.com
888-755-4881

Comment below& let me know what chic season you’re in 👇🏾

Save this for the day you need reminding that big dreams don’t come with a deadline. 💜

💜Reasons to follow (or unfollow) me as a GI and obesity medicine doc 👇🏾💩I talk about fiber and p**p a lot, and you’ll pr...
08/07/2026

💜Reasons to follow (or unfollow) me as a GI and obesity medicine doc 👇🏾

💩I talk about fiber and p**p a lot, and you’ll probably get sick of me.

🫘I calculate how much protein you need and your muscle mass at every visit. High muscle mass and low visceral fat trump the number on the scale every time.

💉I don’t just increase your GLP-1 medication monthly. It’s a balance of eating appropriately, no symptoms, and weight loss.

🍪I’m not going to tell you that you can never have dessert again. Just healthier versions, and not every day. I’m also not going to tell you to eat under 1000 calories a day, because that’s crazy and you’ll be hangry.

👩🏾‍⚕️I am going to annoy you about your screenings: colonoscopy, mammogram, Pap smear, age-appropriate vaccines. And I will preach about your sleep every visit, because it drives your food decisions more than you’d think. (Sometimes you’re just dehydrated, not hungry.)

📝Obesity is a disease, not a moral failing. Not all GI symptoms are IBS. You gotta cut out the processed food. And I believe in using every tool for weight loss: nutrition, exercise, medications, ESG, gastric balloon, and bariatric surgery.

😬I will vent about healthcare policy and insurance in this country. Every patient deserves access to care, and GOOD care. And doctors deserve to be happy and have a life too.

💼I’m a founder, and I love showing people how to take control of their lives.

🧘🏽‍♀️I believe in prayer, therapy, meditation, and gratitude practices.

🧑‍🧑‍🧒And I’ll talk about finding balance with your significant other, your kids, and yourself, because you matter most.

💜💜If any of that resonates, welcome. If not, no hard feelings 😊

📍 Gut Theory Total Digestive Care, Washington DC
🔗 GI + obesity medicine care.
Group Reset enrolling now. Link in bio.
www.guttheoryhealth.com
888-755-4881

08/06/2026

There actually have been a few patients who have changed how I practice medicine. But this patient, in particular I saw after fellowship, while I was working as a locums provider, and just dreaming of my practice. I was going back-and-forth on whether I could actually do this!

She presented as a pretty typical GI patient. Her chief complaint was bloating and constipation. But when a dug further, she also had hair loss, skin, rashes, fatigue, and a long-standing history of yo-yo, dieting, significant food noise, and disordered eating patterns- in which she ranged from days she didn’t eat at all with days she over ate.

On her labs, she had iron deficiency, anemia, low vitamin D, elevated cholesterol, elevated liver numbers suggestive of fatty liver, and pre-diabetes. We completed an upper endoscopy and colonoscopy due to the anemia. They were normal. By every measure, I’ve been trained on, the visit was a success and we were done. But she felt awful, you could see it in her eyes.

So I asked if she would mind if I filled in the blanks for her just a bit about her eating habits and how they can contribute to all of her lab findings and her underlying difficulty with weight loss. She indulged me. And then I noticed her starting to tear up, she said no one had ever taken the time to discuss this with her. They all just told her to lose weight. No one had ever given her just a little bit of education on tips that were actionable.

She forever changed to me! Negative biopsies and a normal endoscopy and colonoscopy are not the end. It’s why Gut Theory Total Digestive Care exists. It’s why my visits are a minimum of 30 minutes but often last an hour. It’s fun, I feel like I actually move the needle and improve people’s overall lives!

🗒️ If any of this sounds familiar, comment NUTRITION and I’ll text you more about our practice in our approach to care
👯‍♀️ Share with a friend who has told you a similar story

🔗 in the Bio
Guttheoryhealth.com
888-755-4881

08/05/2026

Rating patient is excuses for putting off their colonoscopy, as a public service 😃

*Cause I love y’all and HATE diagnosing colon cancer

✅“I don’t have time” : Honestly, the actual appointment for the procedure itself takes an hour for prep , thirty minutes for the procedure , thirty minutes to forty five minutes for postop , then it’s over!

✅ “I already feel fine” : That really is the whole of screening. Most patients in which I have removed polyps or even those with colon cancer had zero symptoms and also felt fine.

✅ “I’m scared of the prep”: This one I sort of get, the prep has gotten a bad wrap overtime. But there are so many different options out there now. We can find one that is best for you. And provide tips to get through the day.

✅ “I’ll do it next year” But, why? Why not do it now, and get it over with. The screening age was recently dropped to 45. We know that rates are increasing and in younger people. So there is no time like the present.

All jokes aside, I know having a procedure can be anxiety provoking for many. But, that is why we are here to talk through your fears and to provide solutions. Don’t let fear keep you away from a life-saving screening tool.

With love & so much care 💜

Send this to someone who has given you these exact same excuses or tagged them to call them out 😬

www.guttheoryhealth.com
888-755-4881

08/03/2026

“It’s probably just something I ate.” The sentence I hear right before someone tells me they’ve had heartburn 4 nights a week for the past year.

Here are 5 real causes worth knowing:

1️⃣ Large meals — overloading your stomach puts pressure on the valve that’s supposed to keep acid down.
2️⃣ Eating close to bedtime — lying down with a full stomach makes reflux almost guaranteed. Give yourself 2-3 hours before you lie flat.
3️⃣ Hiatal hernia — part of the stomach pushes up through the diaphragm, weakening the barrier that normally keeps acid where it belongs.
4️⃣ Untreated H. pylori — a bacterial infection that can quietly damage your stomach lining and worsen reflux symptoms until it’s treated.
5️⃣ Extra weight around the midsection — more abdominal pressure means more acid pushed upward, which is exactly where GI and weight management overlap in my practice.

Why this isn’t “just heartburn”: ignored long enough, reflux can lead to chronic esophagitis & ongoing inflammation of the esophagus. Left untreated, that inflammation can progress to Barrett’s esophagus, a precancerous change in the tissue that raises your risk of esophageal cancer. Chronic inflammation can also scar the esophagus into a Schatzki ring, which narrows the passage and causes real difficulty swallowing.

What we’re actually looking for on an EGD (upper endoscopy): esophagitis, hiatal hernia, early signs of cancer, and Cameron lesions. We also take biopsies of the stomach and small bowel to rule out other causes of your symptoms.

Treatment is not one-size-fits-all:
🔹 Diet, meal size, and trigger-food changes
🔹 Lifestyle adjustments (timing of meals, elevating the head of the bed, weight management)
🔹 PPIs when appropriate — especially important if Barrett’s esophagus is present
🔹 Dilation for a Schatzki ring causing difficulty swallowing
🔹 EndoFLIP-guided assessment for hiatal hernia repair
🔹 Surgical referral for hernia repair when indicated

08/01/2026

Most people think the goal is to hit a certain number on the scale.

But what if that number came with:
❌ Muscle loss
❌ Persistent cravings
❌ High visceral fat
❌ Poor metabolic health

Would it still be worth it?

As an obesity medicine physician, I rarely celebrate the scale by itself.

I’m looking at:
✔️ Muscle mass
✔️ Visceral fat
✔️ Blood pressure
✔️ Blood sugar
✔️ Energy
✔️ Strength
✔️ Hunger and cravings
✔️ Quality of life

Because health isn’t measured by one number.

If you had to choose, which option are you picking? 👇🏾

(There isn’t a wrong answer—but I’m curious where your mind went first.)

💾 Save this for the next time the scale makes you question your progress.
📤 Share it with someone who’s frustrated because the number isn’t moving.

www.guttheoryhealth.com
888-755-4881

07/29/2026

The things I hear in clinic vs what I actually want to say 🙃

I absolutely love my patients, and I have to talk them off the ledge quite a bit. It’s really about reversing a lot of old-school ideas.

Weight loss isn’t about starving yourself, it’s not a tea, it’s not a trend, or just a number on the scale, it’s honestly physiology!

And I walk them through it step-by-step whether in our new Group Reset setting or in the one:one membership setting, we get the job done!

Let me know in the comments, the most unhinged thing you have done for weight loss 🫣

And if this resonates, be sure to book your appointment today.
Link in the bio
Comment GET STARTED and I will send you more information directly to your DM
www.guttheoryhealth.com
888–755–4881

Address

5225 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Suite 200B
Washington D.C., DC
20015

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

Telephone

+18887554881

Website

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