Brain chemistry, self-esteem, and personal relationships all play an integral role in your mental health. Now researchers are looking beyond these well-known factors to understand how microbial activity — specifically in your gut — impacts how you feel mentally every day.

TheHuman Microbiome Projectstarted in 2007 to catalog the micro-organisms living in our body. Since then, researchers have pinpointed two million unique bacterial genes found in each human microbiome.

While there isn’t an direct connection between our stomachs and our brains, thestomach sends messagesto the brain, just as the brain sends messages to the rest of the body. If the microbiome is out of balance and the neurotransmitters like serotonin anddopaminethat partially determine how you feel on a daily basis aren’t produced effectively, your mental health could suffer.

Without widely-available tests to gauge the health of your microbiome, it’s important to understand how it’s linked to your mental health so you can make choices that promote a healthy, happier you.

1. Your Mood

Dopamine helps regulate movement and emotional responses, whileserotoninsupports overall well-being and happiness, along with regulating your body’s internal clock.GABAworks to reduce high levels of adrenaline, noradrenaline, and dopamine. High amounts of GABA is linked to feeling relaxed and happy, while low levels can lead toinsomniaand feeling anxious, stressed, and depressed. Greater gut health supports the right balance of neurotransmitters that help you maintain the best mood.

2. Depression and Anxiety

The results showed that good bacteria altered the neural chemistry of mice, suggesting that gut health may play a role in managing symptoms of depression and anxiety. Christine Tolman, LPC, a Talkspacetherapist, said that when working with clients who struggle with anxiety and depression, it’s crucial to take a holistic approach that includes a healthy lifestyle.

“A good therapist with proper training will investigate all aspects of your life, including diet and lifestyle choices. We discuss coping skills as a way to manage stress, and making healthy choices is a part of good self-care,” she said.

3. Stress

The gut-brain connection also impacts your stress levels and how you respond to stressful situations. A2016 studyfound that a healthy microbiome can decrease inflammation throughout the entire body, which can lead to a healthier mind along with a healthier body. “Having a healthier foundation can give a person the strength to deal with stress as it comes,” Tolman said.

How can yousupport a healthy microbiome? Try keeping a food diary, eating more fiber, and increasing your intake of whole foods like seeds, avocado, and lean protein.

4. Brain Fog

Often referred to as the “second brain,” your gut and brain actually form fromthe same fetal tissuein the womb. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that gut issues, like leaky gut syndrome, can lead to brain fog or depression. More than4,000 square feetof intestinal lining exists in our bellies to control what’s absorbed into the bloodstream. Large cracks or holes in an unhealthy gut lining let digested foods and toxins escape, leading to inflammation and changes to gut flora.

Add Therapy for a More Balanced Life

While Talkspace therapists are not doctors or dietitians, there is a growing recognition of the critical link between gut health and mental health.A licensed therapistcan help you to recognize lifestyle aspects where you have room to improve, and which would increase your overall health and wellness, or refer you to other providers, as needed. As more research dives into the intricacies of the human microbiome, we expect that the findings will help diagnose and treat mental illnesses in the years to come.

Our goal at Talkspace is to provide the most up-to-date, valuable, and objective information on mental health-related topics in order to help readers make informed decisions.

Articles contain trusted third-party sources that are either directly linked to in the text or listed at the bottom to take readers directly to the source.

Share0Tweet0Pin it0

Share0

Tweet0

Pin it0