Diet, daily activity, and sleep have a huge impact on people’s well-being and overall health, it’s indisputable. However, it’s worth noting the gut health and mental health link.
There’s a complex communication network connecting the gut and the brain called the gut-brain axis, and it’s essential for regulating mood, behavior, and emotions.
It’s possible to find easy solutions like supplements which improve your mental health, but there are many factors affecting it, and they’re important to remember as well in order to reduce damage and get the best treatment.
The Importance of Gut Health and Mental Health
Source: hbr.org
When you think about the body, you don’t keep in mind that trillions of microorganisms live there, from bacteria and viruses to fungi, and they’re also known as the gut microbiota. There are several studies that have revealed the crucial role of this microbiota in regulating people’s mental well-being besides just physical health.
Moreover, research suggests that the gut-brain axis plays an important part in understanding many mental health conditions.
Maintaining a healthy gut is not something that people are concerned about on a daily basis, but its importance can’t be overstated. The prevention of digestive disorders, obesity, and heart diseases is not the only aspect that gut affects, it can also be the key to good mental health.
Depression, anxiety, and even schizophrenia – all these conditions are more likely to affect people with poor gut health, according to a variety of studies. So adopting lifestyle changes and taking gut health seriously is essential if you’re willing to promote a healthy microbiome.
Source: atlasbiomed.com
Even though the link between gut health and mental health may seem complex, it’s worth keeping in mind. This link involves a range of biological, psychological and environmental factors, and by understanding the gut-brain axis and improving gut health, it’s not that hard to boost your mental well-being and reduce the risk of mental health conditions. Here’s what you need to know about it:
- The gut-brain axis ─ As it was already mentioned, the gut-brain axis connects the gut and the brain. It’s a bidirectional communication network that includes a complex interplay between endocrine, immune, nervous systems and gut microbiota, affecting state of mind, behavior, and feelings.
- Gut microbiota ─ It plays a huge role in maintaining gut health and overall health. The imbalance in gut microbiota can lead to depression, anxiety, and other mental health issues, besides physical health problems.
- Dietary factors ─ It’s pretty clear that diet is crucial for overall health, maintaining gut health. Including fiber, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and supplements to your diet promotes healthy gut microbiota, reduces inflammation, and makes you feel better. So if your diet is high in sugar, processed foods, and saturated fats, it disturbs your gut microbiota, negatively affecting your mental health.
- Inflammation ─ Even though inflammation is a natural response to injury or infection of the immune system, chronic inflammation has negative effects on both physical and mental health. Anxiety, depression, schizophrenia, and other mental health problems can be linked with chronic inflammation, so balance in gut microbiota is highly important for a better mental health.
- Neurotransmitters ─ Serotonin, dopamine, GABA, and other neurotransmitters are produced in the gut. They transmit signals between the nerve cells, playing a crucial role in regulating the frame of mind and feelings. Neurotransmitter levels can be altered by imbalances in gut microbiota, affecting a person’s mental health.
Source: frontiersin.org
So now you understand how important gut health is when it comes to your mental condition. However, it’s possible to implement a few tips that can help you promote a healthy gut and improve mental health. There are some of them that you can follow.
- Have a healthy diet ─ Eat products that are high in fiber, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Get rid of junk food in your diet, you can start with just minor changes in your nutrition plan, and it won’t take you long to notice positive changes.
- Take probiotics ─ To restore the balance of gut microbiota, probiotics like Morning Complete can be a beneficial solution. They can help maintain digestive health and boost the immune system. You can consult with a healthcare specialist to figure out whether they’re right for you or not.
- Avoiding antibiotics unless necessary ─ When probiotics can have a beneficial effect on gut microbiota, antibiotics can disrupt its balance and lead to many negative consequences for gut bacteria. If there’s no essential need for you to take them, it would be better to avoid them at all.
- Manage stress ─ Practicing meditation, yoga, deep breathing exercises, or other stress-reducing activities that work for you can help you cope with stress. Chronic stress negatively affects gut health and mental condition, and such practices promote better well-being.
- Exercise regularly ─ Implement regular exercises to your daily routine to promote a healthy gut microbiota and reduce inflammation. You can start with half an hour of exercising most days of the week and increase the time if you’re comfortable with it.
- Get enough sleep ─ Having a proper sleeping schedule is essential for physical and mental health. Focus on getting at least 7-8 hours of sleep each night. Also, try not to eat, use your phone, or watch TV in bed to get the best sleep quality.
Such tips can actually help you promote better gut health, even if some of them seem gut-unrelated at all. By adopting these and similar tips, it’s way easier to cope with symptoms of mental health disorders, reduce the risk of their development, or fully prevent them.
Source: atlasbiomed.com
Conclusion
The connection between gut health and mental health is pretty complicated, but it’s definitely worth keeping in mind if you’re struggling with any health problems, and gut health is one of the first things you need to get checked if you’re feeling worse.
The gut-brain axis plays a crucial role in body functioning, regulating mood and emotions, so it’s essential to follow healthy tips and avoid imbalances in gut microbiota in order to improve mental and physical health and reap the benefits of a healthy life.
