Time to read: 3 min
The influence of your gut on your brain
Stress, toxins, bad bacteria, sugar, and other culprits affect your gut health. There are no quick fixes for better gut health, but apply these tips today and see a mental and physical improvement.
Mental issues
Causes of problems like depression, chronic fatigue, and brain fog aren't usually associated with the gut. Yet, this is often where they originate. The same goes for hormonal imbalance, anxiety, mood swings, and a bunch of other discomforts. How come?
Microbiome
In your gut resides your second brain: the microbiome, also known as your gut. Your gut encompasses your entire digestive system: your mouth, stomach, belly, intestines. Here, bacteria, parasites, fungi, yeasts, and other microbes live. Your colon is a jungle of microbes, hosting trillions of them.
Gut-Brain Connection
Your gut and your brain are directly linked through the vagus nerve, the highway between your brain and your belly. Signals from the gut go to the brain and vice versa. The microbes in the intestines send signals to the intestinal wall, which are then picked up by the brain.
Inflammation
If you don't take good care of the bacteria in your gut, you can get seriously sick. Your gut health even determines whether your brain is inflamed or not. This is also where the majority of your immune system is located. So, take care of this organ as if it's a newborn baby!
Support Lines
The good news: you can influence the gut microbiome to change our intestines and the signals sent to the brain. There's no quick fix, but if you start making lifestyle changes now, you might have fewer complaints for a lifetime.
Balanced Gut Flora
The recipe for better gut health starts on your plate. Think about it: everything you eat ends up in your belly, where your intestines are. And all the bacteria you consume cause more or less inflammation (yes, everything!). To tackle inflammation, you need a whole army of good bacteria. You have some of them naturally, but you can always use some reinforcements. The key is to maintain balance in your gut flora.
- Incorporate healthy fats into your diet (coconut oil, flaxseed oil, hemp seed oil, avocado, nuts).
- Add fermented foods. These are products pickled with good bacteria, such as pickles, miso, tempeh, coconut yogurt, and sauerkraut.
- Eat foods that your gut bacteria love. These include all vegetables and fruits with low starch content: garlic, onions, avocados, black beans, broccoli, berries, bananas.
- Avoid sugar, junk food, and artificial sweeteners, as they can disrupt the balance in gut bacteria.
- Stress also has this nasty characteristic. Meditating for ten minutes daily, or even just counting to ten more often before reacting to something, can lower your stress levels.
- Include probiotics in your routine. Our probiotics contain 13 essential strains and digestive enzymes that help your body absorb nutrients better.
- Ensure you get enough sleep, exercise, and relaxation.
- Fitblogs
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