Digestive wellness has been a hot topic for quite some time, but much of the conversation focuses on how to take care of the digestive tract rather than why we should be doing it in the first place. Understanding why can help be a motivator in maintaining one’s digestive tract.
Avoiding common digestive complications like bloating, constipation, and stomach pain are all great reasons to take care of one’s health, but the impact of the digestive tract far surpasses these unwelcome symptoms. Our digestive health is connected to a variety of different systems and sectors of our overall health such as our mental state, our hormonal balance, and our energy levels.
Let’s further explore these connections to better understand the true impact that a healthy digestive tract can have on our health.
The Impact of Our Digestive Status on our Social and Mental Health
Your digestive system influences the way you think, the way you feel, and the way you interact with others in social settings. Your gut is responsible for producing around 90% of the serotonin in your body. Serotonin is famously known as the happy chemical and helps to regulate sleep, anxiety levels, and mood. So what happens when the biggest producer of said chemical becomes unstable? The production of serotonin is disrupted which can potentially contribute to emotional instability.
Sometimes, people with digestive conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome list a rise in anxiety as one of their symptoms which is a great example as to how this gut-brain axis can impact one’s health. A situation in which a person is experiencing both digestive and mental health complications can create a vicious cycle.
Can you recall a time you chose to decline a social invitation due to digestive unease? Digestive complications can also create a sense of uncertainty and rise in anxiousness in social settings. Unpredictable digestive issues can cause a person to feel unstable when out in public especially when easy access to a bathroom might be limited. Potential dietary restrictions due to digestive complications can also create a sense of unease when going to meal outings with loved ones.
Understanding this impact on our mental health can help us better understand the sensitive nature of taking care of our digestive tract.
How Gut Health Can Impact Hormonal Balance and What This Means for One’s Overall Health
Digestive issues can also coincide with hormonal imbalance and the negative setbacks that come along with that such as energy instability. The trillions of bacterial particles found in the gut influences how our body processes, activates, and eliminates hormones.
The gut microbiome helps produce a variety of digestive hormones such as ghrelin and secretin. Estrogen, the female sex hormone, becomes metabolized by the gut. The collection of bacteria found in the gut, also known as the estrobolome, helps along the metabolization process of estrogen. When the bacterial population in the gut becomes impacted, estrogen can become imbalanced. An overload of estrogen and a deficiency of estrogen contribute to their own health complications. Mood swings and irregular periods are potential symptoms from this imbalance.
Chronic digestive issues can start to impact the viability of the stress hormone called cortisol. When digestive issues stick around, high levels of cortisol tend to stick around alongside them. High cortisol contributes to poor sleep and a change in metabolism.
Given the part in which gut bacteria plays in hormone stability, we must look towards maintaining the bacteria in the gut. Taking a probiotic supplement for bloating like Probiotic Renu can help to manage gut bacteria. Without a probiotic for bloating, you are giving harmful bacteria the chance to overpopulate and take over your gut microbiome. Be sure to also focus on eating foods rich in fiber, natural probiotics, and healthy fats to boost hormone support.
By understanding the connection between your digestive tract and your hormones, you gain a deeper look as to why solving digestive complications can bring you relief in more ways than one. Taking care of your health requires focus on all sectors. From irregular period cycles to bloating, health complications will arise, but with the proper understanding of their connections we can bring them down.
Stable Energy and Longevity are Indicators of a Healthy Digestive Tract
Hormone and mental stability is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the breadth of impact that the digestive system has on our bodies. The status of your digestive system can also dictate your energy levels and how long your body can feel sustained.
The nutrients that your gut extracts from the foods you consume get converted into cellular energy. When digestive health is stable, your cells have the tools they need to power the mitochondria. However, it is important to note that sometimes eating a healthy diet and taking all the right supplements is not enough. If we are not careful digestive disruption can still occur and cause a decline in energy.
The bacteria in your gut produces short-chain fatty acids that provide energy to your colon cells and support your metabolism. These short-chain fatty acids also protect your gut barrier and stop potential inflammation from arising. Chronic inflammation and a weak gut barrier is another reason for a decline in energy.
A disruption in nutrient absorption is another potential way that your digestive tract can be impacting your energy levels. When your digestive system does not have the right support to maintain nutrient absorption, you miss out on the benefits of the foods you are consuming. It is essential for a person to derive and absorb the nutrients from the foods they consume to use it as an energy source.
Throughout this blog we have covered multiple reasons why digestive health is of utmost importance. The impact of digestive health far surpasses the stability of our stomach. Understanding why taking care of your digestive health is so important will help you to stay dedicated to doing just that. Take some time this week to truly notice how the different aspects of your health could be impacting one another.