The Gut

The gut it the cornerstone of health! The gut has many different functions.

• Digests food
• Absorbs and assimilates fuel and nutrients from food to cell
• Responsible for 25% of detoxification
• Elimination
• Keeping anything that should not be in the body out of the body and keeping everything that is good for body inside the body.
• Manages trillions of bugs - the good and the bad
• Repairs and maintains its cell integrity and mucous membranes (replaces itself every 3-5 days)
• Houses 60-70% of our immune system GALT
• Creates neurotransmitters, runs its own nervous system and sends communication back to the brain.

"When our behavior changes in a certain way, the brain sends a message to our gut that changes our gut bacteria causing low grade inflammation and possibly GI distress. Also when our gut bacteria changes, it can lead to behavioral changes."  -Digestive Wellness, Elizabeth Lipski, Ph.D, CCN, CHN

Here are some common "brain affecting gut function" scenarios.

• Anxiety = diarrhea, ulcers
• Nervous = "butterflies in the belly"
• Closed, reserved, suspicious (Anal-retentive) = constipation
• Unvented anger = gallbladder issues