Have you ever noticed that a happier mood tends to be accompanied by a healthy digestive tract? This is due to the connection between your gut and brain. Neurotransmitters lie at the center of this connection also commonly referred to as our “happiness chemicals”. Our day-to-day choices such as what we choose to put into our bodies, how active we choose to be, and how we choose to prioritize certain things in life greatly impacts our mood and digestive tract. Today, we are going to dive further into this connection and how we can boost neurotransmitters in a healthy way!
Different Happiness Chemicals and What They Are Responsible For
The different emotions we feel throughout the day are not just occurring from thin air, but are actual reactions coming from within your body.
Serotonin is the neurotransmitter known to stabilize your mood and helps to regulate anxiety levels as well as your natural sleep cycle. However, what some people neglect to realize is that a majority of our serotonin is produced from our gut. Serotonin can feel like satisfaction and peace. Low levels of serotonin can cause sadness, irritability, and may cause you to feel less socially inclined.
Dopamine is another commonly known neurotransmitter and is often experienced in reaction to a rewarding situation. For example, your body will naturally produce dopamine after participating in an exerting workout class. This dopamine trigger tends to send a signal to your body that completing positive tasks such as these will give it a positive reaction in return, thus leading your body to crave and seek these activities out.
The last neurotransmitter we want to touch on is endorphins. Endorphins are known for their ability to fight stress and reduce pain levels. Endorphins are often associated with positive feelings that one can experience while running for extended periods of time. Due to their impact on pain, endorphins can be a great way to work through particularly painful situations.
These chemicals along with many others make up a big part of the world revolving your mood. It is important to understand their impact on your body and how they can be further produced for positive effect.
How To Naturally Support The Production of Neurotransmitters In Your System
The greatest part about neurotransmitters is that they can be produced by normal day-to-day activities that we choose to participate in! However, our bodies need certain nutrients in order to properly produce neurotransmitters. Amino acids are essential in producing neurotransmitters and they can be derived from eating protein-rich foods such as eggs, beef, and legumes. In addition, carbohydrates and fats help to regulate your brain and help to release the neurotransmitters. This means that a well-balanced diet filled with a healthy amount of all the different macronutrients is essential to success.
Exercise is also your best friend when it comes to releasing neurotransmitters. Participating in physical activity can help to release a variety of different chemicals depending on the type of physical activity you might be participating in. For example, when someone participates in a game of tennis, they are likely to release dopamine due to the reward aspect of a competitive game such as tennis. Whereas if someone were to go on a walk in the morning, they are more likely to release serotonin.
Next, let’s break down how best to support your gut to in turn support your brain. Our gut can be protected by taking a probiotic for bloating, a supplement with gut health enzymes, and ensuring that we are eating a well rounded diet that supports a diverse gut microbiome. Eating foods high in sugar and processed fats diminishes your chances of fostering a healthy gut environment and in turn can impact your body’s ability to produce neurotransmitters. Be sure not to neglect your gut health!
Lastly, maximizing your potential to produce neurotransmitters lies in those small moments each and every day. Small actions lead to big change and this is no different. These actions such as sitting in the sun, connecting with loved ones, being intentional with your movement, and participating in your favorite hobby can make all the difference in the long run. How will you choose to boost your happiness chemicals this week?
How Low Levels of Neurotransmitters Can Negatively Affect Your Digestive Tract
Now let’s dive into how low levels of neurotransmitters can be hurting your digestion to shed light on why these happiness chemicals are so important. As mentioned above, a majority of our body’s serotonin is produced by our guts, meaning that low levels of serotonin will inevitably have an impact on our guts. Our gut becomes imbalanced leading to issues such as inflammation, sensitivity to certain foods, and irregular bowel movements.
In a similar fashion, low levels of dopamine can cause us to feel more than simply sad. It can lead to nutrient absorption complications, slower muscle contractions, and appetite levels. A change in appetitive levels can be especially harmful because that would mean your body has a more challenging time receiving the nutrients it potentially needs.
On top of this, low levels of neurotransmitters means we are more likely to experience high levels of stress with nothing out there to counteract it. High stress levels lead to a weakened gut that is now left vulnerable to other complications. Our gut might be more likely to be affected by harmful bacteria that can cause stomach pain, bloating, and constipation.
It is important to take note of this connection to better understand how to mitigate the issues. It can be challenging to get yourself out from a slump of a poor mood and weak gut, but it can be done!
Understanding how best to take care of our brain health is so crucial to success with our overall health. From exercising to spending time with loved ones, our ability to boost our mood is completely within our hands. We just have to dedicate time to participating in these activities in order to reap their benefits!