Who we are
Our website address is https://stemsfromthegut.com. Stems From The Gut is a small UK-based information site providing plain-English content about fibromyalgia, ME/CFS and chronic pain.
For the purposes of UK data protection law we are the data controller for this website.
If you have any questions about this policy or how we handle your data, you can contact us at stemsfromthegut@gmail.com
Comments
At the moment, comments are either turned off or moderated on most parts of this site.
If we enable comments in future and you choose to leave a comment, we may collect the data shown in the comments form, your IP address and browser user-agent string. This helps us with spam detection and security.
If we use an automated spam-detection service, your comment and associated data may be checked by that service before it appears on the site.
Media
We don’t currently allow visitors to upload their own media files directly to this site.
If that changes in future and you upload images, you should avoid uploading images with embedded location data (EXIF GPS). Visitors to the website could download and extract any location data from images on the site.
Cookies
Cookies are small text files stored on your device. We use them to:
- Remember basic site preferences (for example, if you’ve accepted a cookie notice)
- Help secure the site and prevent abuse
- Understand how people use the site so we can improve it (via analytics – see below)
You can control or delete cookies at any time in your browser settings. If you disable cookies, some parts of the site may not work as intended but core content should still be accessible.
We do not use cookies to run personalised advertising at this time.
Embedded content from other websites
Articles on this site may include embedded content (for example, videos, images, or articles from other websites). Embedded content from other websites behaves in exactly the same way as if you had visited the other website directly.
These third-party sites may collect data about you, use cookies, embed additional third-party tracking and monitor your interaction with that embedded content. This might include tracking your interaction if you have an account and are logged in to that service (for example, YouTube or X/Twitter).
We try to embed content only from reputable providers, but their privacy practices are outside our control. You may wish to review their own privacy policies.
Who we share your data with
We do not sell your personal data and we only share it when it’s necessary to run the site or when the law requires it.
We may share limited information with:
- Our web host (currently Hostinger), who provides the servers and technical infrastructure for this site.
- Analytics providers, in particular Google Analytics, so we can see anonymous statistics about which pages are visited and for how long.
- Service providers who help us run email communications or forms (for example, if you sign up to a newsletter in future).
- Security and spam-prevention tools, where used, to help protect the site and our visitors.
- Regulators, law enforcement or legal advisers if we are legally required to do so or to protect our rights.
All such providers are only allowed to process your data on our instructions and must keep it secure.
How long we retain your data
We only keep personal data for as long as we have a genuine reason to keep it.
Examples:
- If comments are enabled: comments and their metadata may be kept indefinitely so we can recognise and approve follow-up comments automatically instead of holding them in a moderation queue.
- If you contact us by email or via a form, we will retain your message and our reply for as long as is reasonably necessary for record-keeping and to handle any follow-up.
- If you join an email list (for example, a newsletter) we will keep your details until you unsubscribe or the list is closed.
Analytics data is generally stored in aggregate or pseudonymised form and does not allow us to identify you directly.
When we no longer need personal data, we will delete it or anonymise it.
What rights you have over your data
Under UK data protection law, you have a number of rights over your personal data. These include the right to:
- Ask for a copy of the personal data we hold about you
- Ask us to correct any inaccurate or incomplete information
- Ask us to delete your personal data in certain circumstances
- Ask us to restrict how we use your data in certain circumstances
- Object to certain types of processing, such as direct marketing
- Ask for your data to be provided in a portable format, where technically possible
If you want to exercise any of these rights, please contact us at stemsfromthegut@gmail.com and we will respond in line with legal timeframes.
You also have the right to lodge a complaint with the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) if you are unhappy with how we handle your data. The ICO’s website explains how to do this.
Where your data is sent
This website is hosted on servers operated by third-party providers. As part of running the site and using tools like Google Analytics, your data may be processed or stored outside the UK or European Economic Area.
Where this happens, we aim to ensure appropriate safeguards are in place (for example, standard contractual clauses or equivalent protections required by data protection law).
If we use an automated spam-detection or security service, comments or form submissions may be checked through those external services.