renee.t.edge The gut has 5 key roles in the body:
Digestion- Breaking down the food you eat into its usable component parts through chewing and the digestive process of the stomach.
Assimilation and Absorption of Materials-Nutrient absorption begins in your small intestine where proteins, fats, carbohydrates, water, vitamin A, and minerals are absorbed through the microvilli.
Immune Regulation- Gut Associated Lymphoid Tissue (GALT) accounts for 70% of the entire immune system.
Symbiosis- The healthy and balanced gut bacteria that that maintain a state of harmony within your body, within the multiple microbiomes.
Detoxification and Elimination-Bowel movements are critical components of the body’s ability to remove waste products.
What is a leaky gut anyway?
Usually, properly digested food is absorbed directly through the cell wall. In a leaky gut the pathway between the cells is opened up exposing the Gut Associated Immune System to a variety of substances your cells are unfamiliar with. This spells DANGER and creates inflammatory signals for your body- the immune system attacks these escaped particles.
Contributors to a leaky gut include:
Poor diet
Stress
Infections
Systemic inflammatory diseases
Low stomach acid
Toxin exposure
NSAIDS
Antibiotics
GMO’s
Lechtins
How to determine if your gut is healthy:
1. All food is digested into its necessary components to provide the nutrients your body needs.
2. Your digestive surface can absorb micronutrients while blocking larger partially digested food particles, bacteria, yeasts, and parasites from entering your body.
3. Your gut associated immune system is activated only when necessary and not overstimulated.
*** When the gut associated immune system is activated you have inflammation throughout the body, with fat deposits building up on the abdomen, weight gain and systemic diseases like autoimmune diseases.***
How gut health=brain health
Your gut impacts how your body feels, but it can also affect your mental health.
Your brain talks to the gut through the vagus nerve that runs the entire length of the digestive tract and is used for brain gut communication.
Your vagus nerve conveys sensory information about the conditions inside your gut from your enteric nervous system to your brain. In response, it conveys motor signals from your brain to your gut.
95% of the “feel-good” neurotransmitter serotonin is produced in your gut, not your brain. Gut microbes produce or help produce many of the chemicals that convey messages between your gut and brain. They also produce other chemicals that can affect your brain through your bloodstream.
Gut imbalances trigger behavioral, emotional, and psychiatric symptoms. Brain related disorders impacted by gut health include: Autism, ADHD, Anxiety Disorder, OCD, Depression, Dementia, and Parkinson’s Disease. On the other side, gut related disorders such as Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) or Crohn’s disease are linked to mental ehalth diagnosis such as anxiety, depression, and even bipolar disorder.
Improving gut health affects brain health. Brain disorders can be impacted by gut-brain rebalancing.
