Listen to Your ‘Gut-Brain’

What sets us apart from the animals is our brain. No, not only the brain which is found in our heads, but also the one which is found in the belly which is known as the ‘gut-brain’: located under the cells of the esophagus, stomach, large and small intestine. Scientifically, this brain is known as the Enteric Nervous System (ENS) and is very rich in neurons and chemicals that stimulate signals from the ‘gut-brain’ to the head-brain and vice-versa.

Therefore, there is a direct relation between your belly and your brain. Your ‘gut-brain’ has plenty to say and the head-brain gladly listens. Apparently, that is why many syndromes like ulcers, IBS and heart burn are stress related.

Speaking about digestion, it is the process which takes something as complex as food and converts it into something our body recognizes. It is only when it is not working properly that we realize how our digestion affects our whole system causing fatigue, heartburn or gas cramps.

Besides the solutions that we seek to improve our digestive tract, we should consider to take a pause and examine our role in the remedy of our digestive function.

We reasonably have less capacity to digest food when our mind is inappropriately digesting life’s experiences, but the problem is that we have become so disconnected from our ‘gut-brain’ and so obsessed about nutrition facts and weight loss tips of the media and the food industries.

The truth is that you never see an animal who’s confused about what to eat for dinner or what’s best for its health; rather they instinctively know what to eat. So do we, but we just don’t know that we know this.

You don’t need to do anything except listening to your belly. The more you listen, the more you will hear to what it has to say, the better food choices you will be making, and the better you will feel.

We really have taken the importance of our ‘gut-brain’ very lightly and harmed our digestive system with junks, chemicals and toxic foods. It is time to assess what you eat when you feel discomfort, ask your gut for feedbacks and if necessary, remove that food from your diet.

Don’t disregard the fact that your digestive problems have many times to do with your current emotional state and nothing to do with food. And in that case, you need to cure the emotion to cure the physical problem.

At last, good digestion is 50% what you eat and 50% what emotional state you are in.

 

Christelle Bedrossian
Dietitian-Nutritionist
Beirut, Lebanon