A Good *Gut* Feeling
TLDR: Your gut health is at the center of your overall health, both physically and mentally. Poor gut health can lead to anxiety and depression.
Hello, Friends!
Happy November! I hope everyone is having a great fall so far and is getting geared up for a healthy and happy holiday season! (Side note: don’t forget to change your clocks this weekend, if you live in an area that still does so – I do!)
We’ve been talking about *gut health* this week!
Did you know…
-Your gut is considered the “second brain” because it communicates directly with the central nervous system (aka, your brain)
-Studies show that gut issues like IBS and chronic constipation or diarrhea send signals to the brain that trigger anxiety and depression
-The gut is the main source of serotonin production – the “happy hormone”. A happy, functioning gut leads to a happy mind.
-Signs and symptoms of poor gut health include bloating, gas, constipation, diarrhea, leaky gut, among other, even more severe issue.
Inside your gut lives millions, trillions even, of bacteria that perform different functions in digestion and play a huge role in communication with the brain. Keeping these bacteria healthy and thriving is crucial for good gut health and gut motility.
Let’s talk nutrition
Of course, we all know that what we eat gets digested in the gut but what we often don’t think about is how we are also feeding the bacteria in our gut at the same time. Simply put, if we’re eating junk, so is the bacteria. If it’s not healthy for us overall, it’s not healthy for the bacteria either. And poor nutrition leads to poor digestion and poor gut-brain communication.
Foods that support healthy gut bacteria…
-Foods containing probiotics. Probiotics are live bacteria or yeast that get ingested and make a home in our gut, leading to more diversity in bacteria and better gut health overall. This includes fermented and pickled foods, yogurt, tempeh, and kombucha
-Foods containing prebiotics. Prebiotics are food for the healthy bacteria. We should be eating prebiotic foods such as onions, garlic, whole wheat, spinach, beans, and bananas to keep our bacteria thriving.
-High fiber foods. Fiber is an indigestible carbohydrate. This is crucial for gut health as it helps to keep waste moving through our bowels efficiently, helping to eliminate toxins from building up. The daily recommended amount of fiber for women is 25grams/day and 38grams/day for men.
-Antioxidant foods, especially blueberries, have been shown to destroy harmful bacteria, creating a healthier environment for the good bacteria to live.
Things to limit in your diet for gut health… (these things promote growth of bad bacteria and slow the growth of good bacteria – yikes!)
-Red meats
-Fried foods
-Animal meats where the animal has been given antibiotics (Side note: Antibiotics do have a negative effect on gut bacteria. However, recovery of the bacteria is very quick after the antibiotic treatment has ended. This is why finding animal sources free from antibiotics is crucial for gut health)
-Alcohol
How about a little movement?
A study was conducted on a rugby team to determine the effect of exercise on gut microbiota (that healthy bacteria we’ve been talking about). It was concluded that exercise and a diet high in protein showed a higher diversity in gut bacteria – which means better gut and digestion function overall! Regular exercise also reduces inflammation which is tied to gut issues like leaky gut syndrome.
-Low intensity walking: 20-30 min of walking, 3-5x/week
-Yoga: twisting and forward folding poses put gentle pressure on the digestive organs and helps to move waste through the digestive tract
-Strength training: moderate intensity, 3-5x/week
One thing to note, if you are training in HIIT, long distance running, or other high intensity, high impact exercises and experience poor gut symptoms such as constipation, you may need to scale back your intensity a bit. Overtraining leads to chronic high levels of cortisol – a stress hormone – and causes a slowing down of digestion.
Live well, be well
Diet and exercise are not the only things we can do to support gut health. There are a number of wellness aspects that we need to take care of in order to have a healthy and happy gut.
-Sleep: Good, quality sleep is vital for proper gut function but studies show that lack of sleep, or poor quality sleep leads to obesity which can cause gut and digestive disorders.
-Stress: Constant stress causes the stress hormone, cortisol, to stay elevated in our bodies. Cortisol causes the “fight or flight” response which is when our bodies go into survival mode. To do so, it slows down digestion and other bodily functions to focus it’s energy on surviving the stress.
-Breath Work: Try deep breathing techniques, such a full inhaling while expanding your belly, and fully exhaling while contracting your belly, to calm down your stress responses and get into the “rest and digest” mode
The topic of gut health is vast but our role is supporting our healthy gut bacteria is simple. Eat nutrient dense foods, limit foods that feed the bad bacteria, and move for your gut health every day!
Trust your gut. It has a LOT to say.
