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Have you ever felt like your brain and stomach are secretly plotting against you? For the most part, there’s that twisty, churny feeling when you’re stressed or that punch-in-the-gut sensation when something goes wrong. It’s not all in your head, your gut and brain are constantly “chatting”, and what’s happening in one can throw the other completely off balance. For most people, they know their gut and their overall health are connected, but yeah, it’s definitely true that it goes beyond that.
So, your gut doesn’t just digest your food. It does so much more than just that, and yeah, things can get pretty messy overall (both physically and mentally). Since your mental health and gut are so closely intertwined, is there anything you can do about it? Well, when it comes to improving both?
Your Gut Controls Your Mood More Than You Think
Most people don’t know this, but your gut is basically the serotonin factory of your body. No, really, it’s not just your brain. Actually, around 90% of your serotonin, as you know, it’s the chemical responsible for keeping you calm, happy, and emotionally balanced, and is made in your gut, not your brain. So, this production process relies heavily on the bacteria in your gut. When the good bacteria are thriving, serotonin flows, and your mood stays pretty steady. But when the bad bacteria start taking over, well, you can blame stress, poor eating habits, or too little sleep, but it’s like your gut goes on strike.
So, this alone means that there’s a dip in serotonin, leaving you feeling irritable, anxious, or just not yourself. So, they say you are what you eat, and there’s some truth to it. When you eat whole foods, you tend to feel great, right? But when you binge on junk food, it has a way of making you feel awful on so many levels.
Stress Heavily Impacts Your Gut
If stress and your gut were in a relationship, it would be complicated, to say the least. When you’re stressed, your brain sends a frantic message to your gut, which responds by slowing digestion, creating bloating, and giving you that unpleasant knot-in-the-stomach feeling.
But it doesn’t stop there. Actually, your gut sends signals right back to your brain, which creates this loop. Honestly, it can be hard to break the cycle, which is why it can take days if not weeks to feel physically better when stress happens. It’s easier said than done, but handling stress a bit better can help.
But it’s not just about stress either, it helps during these times to eat healthier too (no matter how tempting it is to eat junk food). Ideally, it’s best to eat food that helps your gut, like those high in fiber, fermented foods, and so on. If you’re wondering whether or not are probiotic drinks healthy (especially if you don’t like the taste of yogurt), then you can consider that too as a part of your diet.
So, yes, stress can impact your health, just like a bad diet can, but eating healthy really can make a massive difference in your gut health too.
When Your Gut is Happy, Your Brain Feels Clearer
Have you ever had one of those days where your brain feels foggy like you’re wading through peanut butter just trying to think? Well, that could be your gut trying to get your attention. When your gut is out of balance, it can lead to inflammation that affects your brain, making focus and clarity feel like impossible tasks.
But on the flip side, a balanced gut sends the “all clear” signal to your brain, and suddenly things feel easier.
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