Kinkini Gupta
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Written By: Kinkini Gupta | Updated : February 17, 2023 1:23 PM IST
Can A Healthy Gut Reduce Symptoms Of Mental Health Issues?
Stress changes a lot of things in our body; it changes us mentally as well as physically. When we are under extreme stress, all the energy is and important resources are directed to our muscles and brain. This is when our body produces cortisol and this has a major impact on the gut flora.
Additionally, our general mood may be impacted if there is dysbiosis in our gut micro biome. The gut bacterium has a major influence on stress and anxiety. A micro biome which is perfectly balanced can boost our resilience stress while an unbalanced one will not be able to do so that effectively. Therefore, experts draw the conclusion that an unbalanced micro biome can impact our mental state and mental health. Here, we will explain how and why the food that we eat can have an effect on our stress levels and also other mental health issues. Good and healthy food will keep our gut healthy and if our gut is healthy, we might experience less stress or anxiety, says experts.
The first step to better gut health is by switching unhealthy, fatty, high sugar foods with nutritious vegetables, fruits, proteins, etc. These dishes consist of digestive health can be enhanced and intestinal wall protection provided by foods like bone broth and salmon. The fiber in foods like broccoli, sprouts, oats, etc. promotes a healthy digestive system. Omega-3 fatty acids are abundant in salmon, flax seeds, etc. which may help reduce inflammation and enhance digestion.
5 practices by which we can boost our gut health as well as our mental health.
The best way to support our gut health is by being cautious about what we eat. Experts say that our body should be in a rest and digest, parasympathetic mode to digest food properly. Our stomach will be able to digest food much faster when we are in a relaxed state. Stress will only make it worse. Stress hinders the production of necessary juices that helps the absorption of a meal.
Exercise makes our gut health ten times better than it might have been before. Exercise can have a positive impact on stress and that on the other hand has an impact on our digestion.
Probiotic foods and prebiotic rich foods are very good for gut health. It helps the growth of good bacteria which helps in digestion and boosts our gut flora. The absence of healthy gut bacteria will not only impact digestion but also our mental health.
Collagen rich foods like salmon skin, bone broth are very good for our genera; health but they are especially good for our intestinal health. The second thing that we can do is change our diet in a way that our body starts producing more collagen by itself. But, how can we do that? Foods like broccoli, beef, eggs, citrus fruits and nuts are the one's which can help aid our body in producing collagen.