A healthy gut = A healthy human.

75% of our bodies immunity is hosted within our gut. We also have a number of other hormones such as dopamine and serotonin which are produced within the gut that have a significant impact on our bodies ability to function throughout the day. 95% of serotonin is produced within the gut and this is responsible for the production of our happy hormones. 50% of dopamine is created within the gut and this is responsible for our drive and motivation. If we suffer from bad gut health such as leaky gut, low stomach acid, constipation, diarrhoea and bloating (just to name a few) these symptoms can all contribute to low levels of motivation, tiredness, anxiety and depression.

Our gut and brain have a direct correlation with each other when it comes to signals throughout the day in regards to if we are full or hungry. It is important that we are in tune with how feel after eating a meal to ensure that our digestive system is working smoothly.  A healthy gut is vital for ensuring that nutrients are being absorbed but also that the good bacteria is fighting off the bad bacteria that is entering the body. Poor gut health can lead to inflammation of the gut lining, thus, directly affecting the ability to absorb nutrients within the body. If food is not able to detoxify it can lead to our bodies suffering from being able to flush out harmful toxins. This can therefore lead to fermentation of food within the body which can reabsorb back into the blood stream. We store around 3kg of bacteria within our gut, therefore its important that we are able to regularly remove harmful toxins that enter our body through our food.

Indicators of poor gut health:

Skin:

It’s true when they say the outer skin is a reflection of the inside. Poor gut health is not only nested within the gut, it can also show up on the skin through breakouts such as:

• Eczema,

• Rosacea,

• Acne

• Dermatitis.

Food intolerances:

If you find that you have a variety of food intolerances, this can also be a sign of how your gut health is effecting your ability to consume a wide variety of food groups. Its important to always seek to understand, before being understood. Firstly having an understanding as to why you are intolerant to that certain food and questioning and analysing through blood or stool tests if it is the food itself or something underlying within the gut which is causing those symptoms to arise.

Symptoms can include:

• Bloating

• Constipation

• Reflux

• Diarrhoea

• Discomfort after eating

• Poor stomach acid

• Zinc defiency

Often, some of these symptoms can be normalised within society as something that naturally occurs, however over time, this is placing more stress and harm on your intestinal lining, stomach acid and the bodies ability to remove toxins. If you are someone who regularly experiences discomfort after meals, I highly suggest that you seek professional health and find the root cause of your gut issues to ensure you are addressing it correctly. It’s important to note, that cutting our food groups will decrease the symptoms, however it doesn’t address the root problem.

Stress :

Stress is also another indicator which inhibits the ability for our digestion to work effectively. More commonly, women experience symptoms of constipation more regularly then compared to men, and this can be due to higher levels of stress. We have a number of stressors within our lives that has an impact on the bodies ability to respond, causes of this can lead to histamine related issues and also an inability to produce serotonin within the body. When we are stressed, our body goes into a fight or flight mode which means it is only focused on fighting off danger.

Stress inhibits the bodies ability to digest food optimally, hence why I suggest when consuming food, remove yourself from stressful environments (such as your work desk) so that you can place your body into a rest and digest state which enables you to consume, absorb and digest food effectively. This helps with placing less stress on the intestinal lining to brea down the food as your body is in a state to be able to do so, also being more mindful and chewing your food will enable the process to run smoothly as well as keeping you fuller for longer.

It is vital to be in tune with your gut health as it plays such a vital part in our overall health, how we show up each day and our ability to function as optimal humans.