The gut microbiome – comprised of several trillion bacteria living in the digestive tract, is gaining recognition as a contributing factor to diseases not only of the GI system, but cardiovascular, immune, and neurological. Researcher from the Foundation for Integrated Medicine reports on the relationship between the proteins produced by intestinal bacteria and the human central nervous system. There are various mechanisms through which the microbiome can influence the brain: by stimulating and over-stimulating the immune system, producing neurotoxic agents, releasing hormones or neurotransmitters identical to those made by the human body, or through direct neuronal stimulation that sends signals to the brain. “Through these varied mechanisms, gut microbes shape the architecture of sleep and stress reactivity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis. They influence memory, mood, and cognition and are clinically and therapeutically relevant to a range of disorders, including alcoholism, chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, and restless legs syndrome. Their role in multiple sclerosis and the neurologic manifestations of celiac disease is being studied. “Nutritional tools for altering the gut microbiome therapeutically include changes in diet, and probiotics.”
-Journal of Medicinal Food.
Dr. Keith & Laurie Nemec’s comments on “The Intestine – Brain Connection”:
You have 10 times as many organisms living in your gut compared to cells in your entire body. To say it another way- you are outnumbered 10:1. That is not a problem if the 10 are beneficial health producing bacteria or flora in the intestinal tract but if the 10 are pathogenic bacteria then ill health will always follow. In this research it was found that the intestinal issues affect the brain tissue directly. The primary way the pathogenic bacteria negatively impact your brain and nervous system is through INFLAMMATION. This is why it is critical to have a healthy digestive tract if you want to have a healthy brain, mind, cognitive function, memory and proper balanced emotional responses.
What can you do to balance your digestive tract and thus balance your brain?
- Eat more living and raw plant foods like seeds, nuts, avocados, olives and olive oil along with all raw vegetables and fruits to include the most important is the avocado but also you can enjoy tomato (yes it is a fruit), lemons and limes. Make sure you avoid sweet fruit because the sugar will cause an overgrowth of candida in the digestive tract and cause not only a weakened immune system but and inflammatory nervous system and brain.
- Take probiotics daily- we recommend 1-3 caps three times per day. This is the beneficial bacteria that you are “planting” into the soil of your gut.
- Eat raw garlic- this is God’s food which is medicine. Raw garlic (start with 1 clove and work your way up) not only kills pathogenic bacteria, viruses, parasites, candida and cancer cells but it grows the good bacteria. This is a smart bomb designed by God.
- Take digestive enzymes with each and every meal- enzymes help you fully digest the food so it does not set off an immune reaction which will then set off and inflammatory cascade that ends with either autoimmune disease or eventual cancer. This is easy just take 3-6 digestive enzymes with each meal and you are covered.
