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Key points
- The gut, or digestive system, sends signals to the brain based on the food it receives, which can sometimes trigger physical problems.
- Conditions like acne, depression, and joint pain can all be triggered by an unhealthy gut.
- A healthy gut can be maintained by following a balanced diet, staying hydrated, exercising daily, and getting adequate sleep.
We have all experienced the “belly swell." It's that bloated feeling after eating a meal we wanted so bad — and thought would be so good — until the button on our pants pops! We feel bloated and may even develop some cramping and nausea. It is high time to value that "gut feeling" and explore its literal meaning.
Whatever your gut feels, the whole body feels as well. You can also control the way your gut reacts and regulate its feelings. There is a little brain hidden in the walls of the digestive system that scientists call the Enteric Nervous System (ENS). It is the chief operating officer (or COO) of your body, as it has a significant influence on your health, mood, and the way you think. Some of us listen to our gut and decide not to touch that food again when it makes us feel bad, but others keep indulging and eventually develop a resistance to that feeling.
How your gut triggers the brain
Your choice of food matters the most, as it shapes and maintains your digestive health. Your gut strictly follows its standard operating procedures and severely reacts if you consistently feed it unhealthy food. As the COO of your body, it sends messages to the brain (the chief executive officer, or CEO) about how to respond. The brain can then trigger many things, such as giving you acne as an adult, joint pain, or in some cases painting lovely pictures of rashes all over your body, to name a few. The gut can also trigger you to have a depressed mood or make you more anxious. Can you believe this is all because you ate something the COO did not approve of?
Why you should feed your gut well
I would hope we are all in the business of being healthy. With that being said, we want to appease the COO and make sure he communicates the right signal to the CEO. The brain abides by the gut and warns you through multiple steps. The intestines have a lot of functions and oversee a lot of hormones and pathways. The gut is home to various microbes, including both beneficial and pathogenic microbes—the pendulum of health and disease swings between both. Your lifestyle choices decide which type of microbes will rule your gut. Your gut bacteria live off whatever's leftover in your colon after your cells have digested all of the nutrients and amino acids. You should be feeding the intestines complex high fiber foods such as broccoli, lentils, or berries, not inadequate, processed foods. If your food intake is healthy, beneficial microbes keep the pathogenic microbes in check, and a harmonious balance is maintained. However, when this balance is disturbed, the inflammatory bacteria take over and can spread disease throughout the body leaving you in pain and not feeling well.
You can keep the COO happy (i.e., maintain a healthy gut) by following a balanced diet, staying hydrated, exercising daily, and getting peaceful and adequate amounts of sleep. You can also improve gut health by limiting dairy, processed meats, and refined sugars. Keeping a food diary can help you identify specific trigger foods that make you feel bad every time you eat them. If this continues to happen the recommendations would be to find alternatives that work better for you. Keep in mind if you do not want to feel the bloat, do not anger the COO.
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