The Gut-Brain axis
- Mind Mesh
- Feb 27
- 2 min read
What?
Ever had that ‘gut feeling?’ Like your gut is telling you something? Or you’ve gotten butterflies in your stomach before doing something exciting like going on a rollercoaster? That's your brain talking to your gut, and your gut talking back! In other words, the gut-brain connection.
But how?
Since forever what we put in our mouths has been crucial to our overall health, and the brain needs a way to monitor our gut, that's why the gut has the most nerve cells in the body outside the brain.
Say if we ate the wrong thing, like a poisonous mushroom, or a mysterious substance off the ground that we needed to avoid digesting. We need to know when these things happen and prevent them from happening again. That’s the job of the Vagus nerve. The vagus nerve is the main neural highway between the brain and gut - the left and right vagal nerves contain 75% of your parasympathetic nervous system’s nerve fibers. The gut and brain communicate with each other through this nerve in real time.
That ‘gut feeling?’. That occurs in moments of high emotion after physical injury can make sensations in your gut feel more intense. In turn, intense physical sensation can heighten stress and emotions. Basically the gut telling the brain ‘hey! I don’t like this!’.
But why?
The gut microbiome plays a significant role in influencing the brain. Our gut is home to a plethora of different organisms, bacteria, viruses, fungi; all are vtial in producing essential chemicals for the body. One of these chemicals is serotonin, a crucial neurotransmitter and hormone that regulates mood, sleep, appetite and cognitive functions such as memory.
Studies have shown that gut health is closely tied to mental health, conversely, your mental health can directly impact your gut. For example, stress can cause muscle contractions in the gut and nausea, as well as the reduction of good bacteria and promotion of bad bacteria. Poor gut health can cause chronic fatigue and pain, and may increase the risk of developing certain neurological diseases such as Parkingsons.
How do we maintain gut health?
Turns out gut health is really important for your overall health! You can improve your gut health in a few ways:
Avoid processed foods - highly processed food containing high amounts of sugar, fats and preservatives can cause an imbalance in the gut microbiome, causing inflammation, bloating, and mental health problems
Eat healthy! - Eat lots of fruits and vegetables and maintain a balanced diet to encourage a healthy gut microbiome.
Include probiotics in your diet - Consuming probiotic-rich foods such as yogurt, kefir and fermented vegetables, and prebiotic fibers such as garlic, onions and bananas will support gut diversity and stability
Manage stress - Stress can both impact gut and brain function. Practice mindfulness and breathing exercises to manage stress. Or you can take frequent breaks to manage stress.
Stay hydrated - Water supports digestion and helps maintain the gut lining.
Sleep well - Poor sleep disrupts gut bacteria and causes inflammation.
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