Gut / Brain Health

Gut / Brain Health

For decades, our understanding of the digestive system was based on the machine model of the entire body. We ate, chewed and swallowed our food, then the stomach broke it down with mechanical grinding forces assisted by concentrated hydrochloric acid. Then the body dumped the homogenized food paste into the small intestine, which absorbed calories and nutrients and sent the undigested food into the large intestine.

This metaphor was easy to grasp. But as it turns out, this model is overly simplistic. While medicine continues to view the digestive system as being largely independent of the brain, we now know that these two organs are intricately connected with each other. They are much more delicate, complex, and powerful than we once assumed.

Recent studies suggest that in close interactions with its resident microbes, the gut can influence our basic emotions, our pain sensitivity, our social interactions, and even guide many of our decisions. And not just those decisions about our food preferences and meal sizes! How? That’s because 90% of the serotonin, “the happiness of neurotransmitter” in your body, is produced by the bacteria composition in your gut. Then there’s the “vagus nerve,” through which the bacteria in your gut is in constant communication with the brain which plays a key role in certain disease in our bodies and mind. It’s an incredible dynamic of how your choice of foods can impact your thinking process as well! That’s why the gut has been called the “second brain.”

The food you eat impacts your gut microbes. There is substantial scientific evidence showing significant health benefits from eating diets that are high in plant food and low in animal derived components, especially fat.

The Health Reformer, October 1, 1871 {HL162.4} says, “The stomach has a controlling power upon the health of the entire body. The brain nerves are in strong sympathy with the stomach.”

The Bible tells us in 1 Thessalonians 5:23 NKJV, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ”.

So boost your brain power today by eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Look unto Jesus, the source of healing. He has power to create and recreate. God offers that healing through His Word.

May you be blessed by abundant health in this year of 2022.

Yin Schaff, Health Ministries Coordinator