Inflammation and gut health play a continuous game of tag. Increased inflammation can cause an overreaction in the body that affects the balance of bacteria in your gut, and decreases the integrity of your gastrointestinal lining. Certain diseases of the gut, environmental toxins or certain foods we eat also increase inflammation. To give your gut a boost and help the body to reduce inflammation, here’s a few tips:
- Diet. Eating foods filled with pre/probiotics will help boost supportive microorganisms in your gut. You may even consider adding some fermented foods into the mix.
- Practice stress management techniques. Many of us are all too familiar with having a ‘knot in our stomachs’ when something is upsetting, anxiety invoking, or stressful. Your vagus nerve runs straight from your gastrointestinal system right to your brain. Having too much stress actually inhibits the vagus nerve from doing its job to properly regulate your digestive system. Let yourself rest, de-stress, and digest!
- Stay active. Your microbiome is actually positively affected when you workout. Regular exercise keeps undesirable bacteria from overgrowing. Just 20 minutes of exercise will reduce inflammation in the body, and stimulate pathways that increase your immune system too!
