You might wonder what sleep and your gut have to do with each other? Well, have you ever heard about the Brain-Gut Connection?<\/strong><\/p>\n
Everything in your body is linked, and your gut has a huge influence on your health. I think we’ve established this already?<\/p>\n
If you are new to following me, then you might not know that I’ve been dealing with poor health and, gut-health in particular, for about 14 years. I’m now on the road to recovery and continuing to unveil & discover more as to why I’ve been feeling & acting a certain way for years, due to the destroyed natural flora in my microbiome by doing much more testing and working together with dedicated gut-health specialists.<\/p>\n
You can read more about that here..<\/a><\/p>\n
Your gut is not only responsible for the breakdown and absorption of food, but\u00a0everything<\/strong>, really. Incredibly, your gut has neural tissue and neurotransmitters in the gut-lining-walls, that make and release hormones such as serotonin (happy hormone). Your gut microbiome is just as fascinating: the colony of bacteria cells that live in your colon actually outnumber the entirety of your human cells by 10 times.<\/p>\n
Your gut and brain communicate in two main ways:<\/p>\n
As you can see, the gut-brain-sleep connection<\/strong> goes both ways. If you have a few days of bad sleep it will ultimately start to impact your gut-health and, if continuous, spread to your overall health. Likewise, if you’re dealing with poor gut-health you might find that your sleep is lacking as well. This can be the start of a never-ending cycle that will only continue to worsen unless you become aware of it and take action.<\/p>\n
What to eat:\u00a0<\/strong>Walnuts & almonds, green leafy vegetables, fish & seafood, variety of good fats, bone broth, Vitamin D supplement
\nWhat to avoid:\u00a0<\/strong>refined sugars, caffeine, dark chocolate (because of the caffeine), heavy & greasy food, alcohol.<\/p>\n
In order for us to produce melatonin, we have to produce serotonin which is an important building-block in melatonin itself. And as we’ve learnt, serotonin is the ‘feel-good’ hormone that is also produced in the gut. It’s all linked.<\/p>\n
As humans, we work on an internal body-clock. This clock or righteously,\u00a0Circadian Rhythm<\/strong>, is what determines our sleep, wake-up times, when we eat and even our cognitive skills (memory, orientation, attention etc.).<\/p>\n
Interestingly, research is now beginning to show that\u00a0our microbiome has a cycle of its own<\/u><\/strong>, which is generally synced up with our circadian rhythms. Disruptions in our own rhythm, in turn, affect the rhythm of our microbiome. This can impact the balance of our microbial friends and cause gut disturbances.<\/p>\n
What to do:<\/strong><\/p>\n
– Shut off your TV & Phone <\/strong>at least an hour before bed. The light from the screen of your computer, tablet or phone is blue spectrum light, and it\u2019s particularly dangerous because it tells the brain to stop producing melatonin.<\/p>\n
– Create a peaceful bedroom<\/strong> where you can relax and rewind. Keep phones out of the bedroom if you’re one of those who have a hard time letting it go, and sleep with only light blinds so that the sun can naturally wake you up as it rises.<\/p>\n
– Use the help of lavender<\/strong> – either fresh or as an aromatic oil – to make you feel relaxed. Or have a warm tonic of some relaxing Ashwaghanda<\/strong> <\/a>or Holy Basil (adaptogens) to help you de-stress before bedtime. Chamomile-tea will do the trick too.<\/p>\n
Chances are you’re a bit of a stress-head, but then again, who isn’t in this day & age we live in? It’s sometimes hard to get it all done, and as emotional beings, we take a lot of stresses home with us.<\/p>\n
What to do:<\/strong><\/p>\n
– Have a magnesium bath & use magnesium gel<\/a><\/strong> to help you relax. Magnesium is absorbed much more efficiently through the skin than taking it orally, so combining a magnesium bath + a magnesium spray afterward on your gut can really do wonders for a good sleep.<\/p>\n
– Have an evening-meditation, breathing exercise or stretch<\/a>.\u00a0<\/strong>Sitting in stillness and\/or stretching your body lightly before bedtime can help reduce stress and bring your heart-rate down enormously. Incorporating a few yin-poses before bedtime can even help signal to your brain that it’s time to hit the ZzZz-button.<\/p>\n
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