Take Care of your Gut-Brain Connection

by Blayne Soriano, Level 2 Crossfit Coach and Crossfit Kids Coach

When I took my nutrition courses, gut health was talked about so deeply, and there are a few things that stuck out to me.

One being that your stomach is your second brain (enteric nervous system) — meaning what hits your stomach first goes to your brain.

Studies at the Johns Hopkins Center for Neurogastroenterology show that the second brain controls digestion and communicates with our bigger brain.

This can have a negative outcome, for instance, when the smaller brain sends signals by way of irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, diarrhea, bloating, pain and stomach upset that a person is experiencing anxiety, depression or other mood changes.

Nowadays we have so many processed food options (think things that come packaged) that grabbing easy cheap food is so accessible. But it’s not a good thing.

We really want to stick closest to the natural sources of food as possible. Ask yourself how far removed is an Oreo that claims to be made with a cream filled center from a cow? My guess: Pretty far.

Your stomach has a really important job, and so your job is to feed yourself nutritional food. Think about it, whatever you put in is what you will get out.

For gut health, my advice is to eat as many vegetables as possible along with healthy things like meats, fruits, nuts and seeds!

Keep it simple.