Originally published on nyweekly.com.

Gut health is becoming a much more widely discussed topic in the world of fitness and beyond. However, there are still many people out there who don’t know just how important a healthy gut microbiome is to not only their physical health but also their mental health. In this article, fitness expert Eugene Pallisco describes the connection between your gut and your mind and offers advice on how to use that connection to your advantage.

The Connection Between Gut Health, Nutrition, and Mental Well-Being

Have you ever had a feeling in your stomach when you’re scared, anxious, or even excited? It may seem strange that your thoughts and feelings impact your gut, but in reality, this should be expected, considering your stomach has about 500 million of the same neurons found in your brain.

Ongoing research seems to consistently indicate that mental health is far more dependent on both nutrition and gut health than most people realize. In fact, some of the issues previously ascribed to the mind may more accurately be issues stemming from the gut.  

According to psychologist Dr. Andrea Nazarenko, “Many people think of depression and anxiety as a chemical imbalance in the brain, but these chemicals are created in the gut.” If you’re experiencing mental health struggles and can’t seem to find an effective treatment that works for you, then you may want to consider your gut health.

Promoting a Healthy Gut and a Healthy Min

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Learning that there may be ways to improve mental health by improving gut health is pretty exciting, but there’s a bit more to know before you can get out there and see if the approach works for you.

What Makes a Healthy Gut

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Interestingly enough, a “healthy gut” has a thriving world of bacteria inside it. These are considered “good” bacteria because they actually work with your body to help you digest food and absorb nutrients. Without a healthy balance of these bacteria in your gut, you can wind up with all kinds of gastrointestinal distress and issues that extend well beyond the stomach.

Foods That Promote a Healthy Gu

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There are two kinds of foods that can help improve your gut health: prebiotics and probiotics. Prebiotic foods are things that your gut bacteria like to eat. Probiotic foods have good gut bacteria right there in them.

Prebiotic Food

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Here are just a few great prebiotic foods to add to your diet:

• Garlic
• Onions
• Bananas
• Mushrooms
• Chickpeas
• Wheat bread
• Oats
• Watermelon
• Apples

You can also add some wheat pasta, red kidney beans, and grapefruit to your diet if you’re looking for more prebiotics.

Probiotic Food

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These foods will help add to your supply of good gut bacteria and improve your gut health:

• Yogurt
• Sourdough bread
• Aged cheese
• Sauerkraut
• Kombucha

Dairy products, in general, are typically great probiotic foods. Just always make sure to consider the other nutritional content of any item you add to your diet.

About Eugene Pallisco

Eugene Pallisco is a fitness expert and licensed trainer based in Dallas, Texas. He helps clients achieve their fitness goals through high-intensity or long-distance cardio, weightlifting, sports training, and nutrition education.