The gut is a fascinating and currently hot topic in scientific literature. It is no longer just a place to digest food, as was once believed.
Contemporary research tells us the gut or gastrointestinal tract is equivocal to the second brain. Anatomically, the stomach is followed by the gut or gastrointestinal tract; a long hollow tube that stretches out to equal the outlines of a tennis court. Walls of the G.I. tract are embedded with pools of nerves: the enteric nervous system. It sends information about what and how the tract is doing to the brain. It had previously been thought the only functions of the gut were to break down foods, absorb nutrients and water, and move waste to the outside of the body. But recently, its complexity is just beginning to be understood. Today I will go over its lesser-known functions: the housing of good bacteria (referred to as your microbiome), converting a portion of thyroid hormone to the active form, making vitamins, and synthesizing more neurotransmitters than the brain itself.
The nine-meter length of the gastrointestinal tract should be lined by three pounds of beneficial bacteria. The good bacteria prevent bad bacteria and food particles to leak into the bloodstream. If too much of the good bacteria die off or there is an overgrowth of the bad bacteria, we start to see food particles and the bad bacteria in the bloodstream. This phenomenon is referred to as a ‘leaky gut’. The body tags these undigested food particles as foreign. Eventually, the body launches an immune response to these particles that have leaked into the blood. In some cases, it can cause or worsen an autoimmune reaction, such as Celiac disease, Rheumatoid Arthritis, SLE, Crohn’s disease, as well as many other autoimmune inflammatory disorders.
A healthy gut or microbiome produces an assortment of B vitamins, vitamin K and folate. These vitamins are essential for all tissues of the body especially the structure of the red blood cells. When the structure of the red blood cell is built properly it carries oxygen and vital nutrients to tissues and toxins away from tissues. The lack of production of such elements by the gut can contribute to anemia and other deficiencies in the building of red blood cells.
A majority of the body’s neurotransmitters are made in the gastrointestinal tract in conjunction with colonies of good bacteria. Neurotransmitters are used throughout the nervous system to communicate between each and every nerve in your body; including between hemispheres of the brain, from your brain to your arm, as well as from your brain to your gut. Good types of bacteria fed with the right foods produce a sufficient amount of neurochemicals. However, overgrowth of bad bacteria leads to abnormal levels of these neurotransmitters being synthesized in the gut. The aberrant level of neurotransmitters is thought to contribute to disorders such as ADHD, autism, anxiety, mood disorders, and depression.
Another job of good bacteria in the gut is to take a portion of T4 hormone made by our thyroid and convert it to T3, the active form of thyroid hormone. T3 is a major player in the body’s ability to control metabolic rate. This includes regulating the body temperature, energy levels, digestion, detoxification processes, weight and controlling the production of other hormones.
Overgrowth of the wrong bacteria causes malabsorption: the inability to obtain full nutrition value from foods and supplements. Bad bacteria start to occupy more space in the G.I. tract over time leaving less area to absorb foods. They even steal some of our own food supply to preserve their life cycle. This takes away net nutrition value that we should obtain from each meal.
As you can tell it’s extremely important to keep the gut healthy. A way to do that would be to feed it the right kinds of foods. The gastrointestinal tract loves green vegetables, healthy fats, bone broth, proteins, and eggs. Starches, processed foods, preservatives, refined and artificial sweeteners give the bad bacteria a chance to overgrow and maintain a strong foothold. Without the right foods for the good bacteria, overgrowth of the wrong types of bacteria is almost guaranteed. As mentioned, the overgrowth of the bad bacteria, yeasts, and fungi are linked to depression, mood disorders, leaky gut, ADHD, autism, poor digestion, slow metabolism, obesity, irregular bowels and many other degenerative diseases.
Regimens like antibiotics, painkillers, birth control, and over-indulgence of alcohol unintentionally kill a good microbiome. After a course of any of the above mentioned, it is important to take a probiotic. A probiotic is living beneficial bacteria in a supplement form. You should find a capsule that provides a number of bacteria with preferably ten billion strains, at the least. Regardless, The addition of a good probiotic can have lasting effects on your overall health. A daily regime of 2 capsules of probiotic before bed or an hour after dinner should be practiced for preventive measures to maintain a healthy gut.