Digestion – Impakt Health

How Inflammation Impacts Physical, Mental, and Social Health

Written by Josh on January 11, 2021. Posted in Digestion, Immune & Body Defense, Nutrition, Weight Management. Leave a Comment

Inflammation has become one of the most feared and misunderstood aspects of health. Any conversation about the human body should be one that is full of nuance – and discussions aimed at fleshing out whether inflammation is whole-heartedly good, or bad, is an exercise in futility.

Inflammation is a normal, healthy part of our immune system’s response to injury, pain, or stress. Some classic examples of helpful, productive inflammation are the swelling and redness you experience after spraining an ankle, the fever you have to endure when you are battling an illness or infection, and other short-term responses that are meant to protect various cells and tissues. In one way or another, acute inflammation is designed to protect you – you can’t live without it. When immune cells start to overreact, or get activated inappropriately (as is the case with autoimmune disorders) however, the helpful can turn detrimental very quickly.

Chronic inflammation can be caused by a variety of factors, as you will read about later on, but there are many reasons why you should seek to avoid having it run amuck and unchecked. Having a persistent, unnecessary inflammatory response increases your risk for many effects such as cancer, heart disease, depression, Alzheimer’s, and many more chronic illnesses that are notoriously difficult to manage and live with. Essentially, this incredibly nuanced topic can be summarized as: Acute inflammation is both helpful, and necessary for survival. But chronic inflammation is precisely the opposite.

We are going to cover the various and profound impacts that chronic inflammation can have on your physical, mental, and social health. Doing so will allow us to fully illustrate just how much of a concern this issue is for our body and mind, and just how much it can interrupt overall wellness. Of course, we will also provide you with some actionable steps that you can start implementing today to begin mending, or preventing the damage that unchecked chronic inflammation can have on your physical health, mental well-being, relationships, and more.

Effects of Inflammation on the Body

Rampant and constant inflammation can cause more than just a few issues in our bodies. In fact, most chronic conditions such as asthma, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity, arthritis, and many more are linked to inflammation and the destructive effects it can have on cells, tissues, and even the very structure of DNA.

There are a few areas of the body that seem to be particularly affected by the continuous presence of inflammatory molecules. Your brain, and the similarly complex gastrointestinal (GI) tract are both especially impacted by the excessive presence of the various immune cells, chemical messengers, and proteins that are on the frontline of your immune system. The effect it can have on the brain is at the root of many of the detrimental behavioral and social influences chronic inflammation can have. The effect it can have on your GI tract however, is an excellent example to show just how complex the immune system and it’s inflammatory responses can be.

It may surprise you to know it, but most of your body’s immune cells are located in your GI tract. This makes sense though, because there is a constant exposure happening from the foods and beverages you bring in from the outside world. The inside of your GI tract can really be thought of as being outside of the body, and everything that passes through it must be deemed safe or not safe to enter the body. Luckily, our immune system usually ignores the countless beneficial bacteria that live all over inside there. Also, while ignoring all of the usually “good” bacteria that have taken to living mostly inside of your large intestine, our immune system also has to be able to identify foreign invaders, help neutralize them if possible, as well as sound the alarm and mount an appropriate attack if they escape the GI tract and get inside the body. The ubiquity of bacteria inside our GI tract, and the constant warfare the immune cells there must be under, makes it pretty easy to see why there are so many inflammatory conditions of the gut. Conditions like irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, and Crohn’s disease are all debilitating examples of how chronic inflammation can cause significant and persistent issues inside of you. The inflammation in your gut has the ability to spread throughout your body and brain.

Systemic, chronic inflammation is also implicated in:

Obesity: Obese people have consistently higher levels of systemic inflammation. This leads to insulin resistance (type 2 diabetes), dysregulation of hormones that relate to hunger, and a reduced metabolic rate – making it increasingly more difficult to lose weight when they try to.
Bone loss: The perpetual process of bone remodeling is effectively interrupted by chronic inflammation – leading to bone loss and corresponding conditions.
Joint problems: Joints are especially degraded by chronic inflammation and conditions like rheumatoid arthritis and psoriatic arthritis are both directly linked to the unchecked presence of it.
Heart disease, cancer, skin problems, asthma, and the list goes on…

The effects that systemic, chronic inflammation can have on the body are no joke. We will of course provide you with some action items to focus on to help empower you to prevent this from occurring – but to gain a much deeper understanding of the complex entity that is your immune system, take a look at our in-depth blog on the topic here.

Effects of Inflammation on the Brain

Chronic inflammation’s greatest threat to our health is due to the systemic effects it can have on the body. Your brain and body are nearly inseparable – except through an ever-vigilant, yet fallible border between the two. This barrier is known as the blood brain barrier, and we owe our lives to this thin membrane made of specialized tissues and immune cells. Unfortunately though, it isn’t impossible for stuff to sneak by and make its way to the brain. This is precisely the case with the cytokines and various other inflammatory molecules produced by your body.

Once these inflammatory molecules make it into the brain, there is the potential for an unnecessary immune response to occur. Microglia (brain immune cells) are activated, and just like with joints and other tissues, brain tissue is damaged by the inflammation that ensues. This cascading response is specifically why multiple, severe mental illnesses are associated with increased inflammation. Neuroinflammation is especially dire because of all of the body’s processes that are controlled by the brain (so…basically everything). According to a study published in the Journal of Neuroinflammation, chronic inflammation in the brain is associated with:

Depression/major depressive disorder
Neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s
Bipolar disorder
Schizophrenia
Sleep disorders
anxiety

If it wasn’t already, it should be pretty clear by now that many states of diseases, are linked to chronic inflammation. What most people don’t yet understand though, is how chronic inflammation can affect more than just our physical, and mental health – it can impact our relationships with others and social health overall!

Effects of Inflammation on Relationships

Human beings are social creatures. This logically stems from our evolution in groups that worked together to collectively find food, shelter, and survival.

Enter: Chronic inflammation.

Chronic inflammation is known to impact social interactions – a phenomena known as sickness behavior. Inflammation-induced, sickness behavior is primarily characterized by social withdrawal or loss of interest in social activities. In a systematic review published by Mona Moieni, Ph.D. and Naomi I. Eisenberger, Ph.D., investigating the social effects of inflammation, it was also noted that it also tended to cause following effects:

Social disconnection.
Social anhedonia (inability to feel pleasure).
Increased sensitivity to both positive and negative social stimuli.
Heightened sensitivity to social rejection, and threatful situations.

These behaviors are believed to be adaptive, and our desire to avoid others might have actually been a good thing. It would have kept us from socially interacting with others, and potentially infecting vulnerable members of our tribe. Our response to these varied social stimuli whilst under the throes of chronic inflammation can depend entirely upon the context of the situation as well as your perception of it. But your response is likely going to be innate and instinctual. It is easy to see just how easily chronic inflammation can disrupt your ability to live your life and enjoy healthy social relationships. Now, let’s start exploring how to reduce inflammation through diet, exercise, and lifestyle habits.

How to Reduce Inflammation

Reducing inflammation can be easily accomplished by making some basic adjustments to your diet, exercise, and wellness routines.

Many of these options are free, or nearly so – requiring only that you commit to the changes and make them a part of your lifestyle for good. One of the changes that can have the largest impact on your levels of chronic inflammation is what you choose to put on your plate.

Diet

The foods that you do or don’t eat can have a massive influence over whether or not you are able to overcome chronic inflammation and avoid the multitude of ill effects which we have already mentioned. Keeping in mind that a high percentage of your immune cells reside within or around the GI tract, it is clear how this relationship between diet and inflammation can be established. Avoiding foods that are heavily processed, those that contain high amounts of fat and sugar, and foods that you have an intolerance to (these can be huge triggers for autoimmune conditions) will allow you to essentially stop “feeding the fire” that is your chronic inflammatory response. We know that gut inflammation can travel throughout the body, and avoiding foods that are inflammatory for you is one key aspect of managing your diet. Another aspect of significantly impacting your inflammation through the diet is by including foods that have a recognized and established anti-inflammatory effects.

Some anti-inflammatory foods include:

Leafy greens (plenty of phytonutrients and magnesium to help squelch inflammation).
Cold-water, fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, anchovies, sardines, and herring are all chock-full of marine Omega 3 fatty acids).
Nuts (especially walnuts which are brimming with ALA).
Berries, and other fruits like oranges (full of antioxidants and other beneficial compounds).

When you boil it all down, it is clear that eating to reduce inflammation is essentially synonymous with eating for overall health and longevity. Eat a diverse diet full of whole, natural foods. Avoid processed foods, refined carbohydrates, and rancid or trans-saturated fats. Even after taking these steps, you may need to supplement with various nutrients that just aren’t very easy to get from the diet. Vitamin D, for instance, is uniquely difficult to get from the diet and you may need to keep a bottle of it in your cabinet at home. This powerful vitamin/hormone likely won’t be the only thing you will want to supplement with, however.

Take Supplements

Dietary supplements are meant to be utilized to augment an already sound diet and lifestyle.

That being said, it is becoming increasingly difficult to get all of the nutrients you need from food alone – even if you are sticking to a well-rounded diet full of whole foods. There is an endless list of the supplements on the internet claiming to reduce inflammation, squelch free radicals, and lead you to better health – one expensive bottle at a time. Yet, most of these fall short when placed up against rigorous scientific analysis. Fortunately for us as consumers, these dilligent scientists did a lot of the hard work for us.

If you are seeking to reduce chronic inflammation, and need some help from the supplement realm, take a look at proven options like:

Fish oil or other sources of Omega 3 fatty acids
Circumin (turmeric)
Ginger
Resveratrol
Spirulina
Magnesium
Cannabidiol (CBD)
Body Protection Compound 157 (BPC-157)

It is important to point out here that non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDs) like tylenol or ibuprofen are not on this list. NSAIDs are incredibly effective at managing acute inflammation, but their frequent use for attempting to handle chronic inflammation (usually in conjunction with corticosteroids) can be highly destructive and harmful to the human body. In contrast, BPC-157, which stimulates the growth and repair of injured tissues throughout the body, is emerging in the health and wellness sphere as a clinical alternative to the antiquated usage of NSAIDs and steroids that still remain (currently) as the standard of treatment for chronic inflammation and pain. As you might have guessed, the connection between chronic inflammation and the human body goes much deeper than just your diet, and which supplements you choose to take. To remain healthy and with appropriate levels of inflammation for the long-haul, you probably need to move!

Exercise

Exercise and inflammation are deeply intertwined. Inflammation is by nature an immune response. And the cells, resources, and waste associated with the immune system are transported in the lymphatic system. Unlike your circulatory system, your lymphatic system does not have a pump. This means that bodily movement and muscular contractions are required to push your lymphatic fluid around – keeping what can be thought of as your own internal sewer system, moving freely.

Exercise has another implication in chronic inflammation, and that is that it can allow you to achieve or maintain a healthy body weight. It is no secret that high levels of body fat are directly linked to high levels of systemic inflammation. Simply increasing your daily activity, and participating in a structured resistance training protocol can do wonders for weight loss and reduce levels of chronic inflammation as a result. Exercise can be overdone however, which would ultimately lead to you doing more harm than good when it comes to the levels of inflammation you are experiencing. If you want to make the most of your exercise approach, take a look at our article titled “Your 3 Keys to Post-Quarantine Fitness Success” – where we lay out a clear and concise explanation of what actually matters for you to make significant changes both in and outside of the gym. The importance of not over-doing it with exercise in a misguided attempt at creating healthy changes cannot be overemphasized. In fact, the stress from excessively exercising can and does easily contribute to the total burden of stress on your body – which, unsurprisingly can influence inflammation.

Manage Stress

Stress of any kind can be beneficial for us in small, intermittent doses. A perfect example of this is how lifting weights can help build muscle, make us stronger, and make us healthier. Taken too far however, this stress can quickly become negative.

In the case of psychological stress, chronic inflammation can come as a result of living in a stressful environment, working at a stressful job, dealing with financial distress, or just simply neglecting to manage the mounting burden placed upon you. The intersection between psychological stress and physical disease or dysfunction seems to hinge on the hormone cortisol. Our bodies release the stress hormone cortisol in response to, you guessed it, stress. Having too high of cortisol, for too long can have lasting and negative implications on your body, brain, and overall health. Luckily, as you may have already surmised, much of what you can do to manage stress is easy, and free.

Some great tips for reducing stress are:

Meditation or another mindfulness practice
Get out in nature
Working out
Yoga
Start an intentional breathwork practice
Keep a gratitude journal

You may find another activity or hobby that works for you to reduce stress – that’s great, do it often. What matters is that you are consciously engaging in some consistent practice to proactively deal with stress before it can rear its ugly head and manifest some unwanted physical, social, and mental health effects. Even cheaper than these stress reduction techniques, is one that you likely already know the importance of, even if you don’t currently appreciate it.

Sleep

By now, if you aren’t aware of just how important sleep is, then you must have been living under a rock for quite some time. Sleep is, and likely always will be, our number one resource for developing and maintaining health at nearly every level. Sleep is crucial if you want to manage stress, lose body fat, build muscle, manage your appetite, and much more.

Mechanistically, sleep is the time when your body rests, recovers, and prepares for another day. Your circadian rhythm is the metronome by which nearly every bodily function aligns itself, and living in a way that disrupts this natural ebb and flow can lead to a whole host of disease and dysfunction – not the least of which is uncontrolled, chronic inflammation. If you aren’t sleeping well, there isn’t much else that you can do to significantly and sustainably improve your health.

Get enough good, quality sleep, every night!

Chronic inflammation is a growing concern in our society with real consequences if you don’t take steps to control it. But there are steps that you can take to protect yourself, and many of them are free of cost. Chronic inflammation typically goes unseen and unaddressed until it has culminated in disease or dysfunction that cannot be ignored. Before you reach this state, put a plan in place and stick to it!

The Connection Between Gut Health and Mental Health

Written by Josh on December 2, 2020. Posted in Digestion, Immune & Body Defense, Wellness. Leave a Comment

Your brain and your gut have a unique relationship that makes them inseparable from one another. They are bound to one another, physically, and biochemically – to a degree that science is only just beginning to appreciate. The sum of these connections and interactions is referred to as the gut-brain axis (or GBA) – though the name doesn’t quite fully illustrate just how deeply important the strength of this bond is for us to live healthy, and happy lives.

As a people we seem to have intuitively known this connection existed – even if we weren’t able to fully comprehend its full complexity and importance. Phrases like “gut feeling”, or getting “butterflies” in your stomach when you are nervous exist for a reason. They suggest that our inherent wisdom had long ago established the existence of a link between the brain and the gut. Now the science clearly shows that the link is real. Its infrastructure includes aspects of the nervous system (the gut is now often referred to as the “second brain”), as well as countless bacteria and microorganisms (we need them!), and more. If you are craving a deep dive into the research to learn the intricacies the gut-brain axis, we recommend this article published in the Annals of Gastroenterology, which explores every aspect of the connection between our mind, gut, and health.

Research articles can be dense and redundant at times however. So, we have taken the time here to explain what exactly is the gut-brain axis, and how it pertains to you in relevant, relatable, and actionable chunks. This article will go over what makes up the GBA, how the gut and brain interact, the extent of gut bacteria’s role in the GBA, and we will wrap things up with some actionable steps to protect, or even improve the capability and capacity of this connection to enhance your health and wellness overall.

There is much more required to create lasting balance and health, and you can read our approach to tackling this daunting and perpetual task here. Before we start explaining how to improve it, it is best we begin by detailing just exactly how there is a connection in the first place.

How the Gut and Brain Are Connected

Whether you know it or not, your health and vitality rely upon a delicate, yet strong synergy between your brain, your gut, and the estimated 100 trillion microbes that are living inside your digestive tract at any given moment.

This recently discovered, bidirectional relationship between your enteric nervous system (ENS), and central nervous system (CNS) involves crosstalk between your endocrine system, immune system, and obviously, your nervous system. Explaining every component and their specific roles in the GBA can get very complicated, very quickly. Luckily, there are some major players that you can focus on to get a decent understanding of how it all works, and how you can make steps to improve your own GBA.

The Vagus Nerve

If there were a highway running straight from your brain to your gut, it would be your vagus nerve.

The vagus nerve is the primary nerve leading to and from your digestive tract. It is also the main component of your parasympathetic nervous system – often referred to as the “rest and digest” side of things.

There have been many studies demonstrating the relevance of the vagus nerve for communication between the gut, microbes, and the brain. One study concluded that a more complete understanding of the functioning of the vagus nerve may lead to new nutritional and microbial interventions for mood disorders. This hypothesis is supported by the fact 80% of the nerve fibers that comprise your vagus nerve are headed to your gut from your brain, and the remaining 20% are leading back to your brain from your gut. That means there is a direct line of communication from the 500 million neurons in your enteric nervous system and your brain. An understanding of this fact makes it much easier to comprehend just how two seemingly separate parts of the body (your brain and gut) are able to work in synergy with one another – when everything is going right that is. So if the vagus nerve is the highway that connects your brain and your gut – neurotransmitters can be thought of as the cars that drive on it.

Neurotransmitters

By now everyone has at least heard of neurotransmitters. They are tiny chemical messengers that have an enormous influence on both our psychology and our physiology.

And though we tend to more closely associate neurotransmitters with structures like the brain and spinal cord, there are more than just a few reasons why we may need to rethink that notion just a bit.

There are 5 times as many neurons (these cells use neurotransmitters to communicate) in your enteric nervous system as there are in your central nervous system. That fact alone means we better start thinking of our gut as our “second brain” – as many scientists are already doing. But there is another reason neurotransmitters may be even more of a “gut thing” than a “brain thing”, and that is that the microbes living in your gut make neurotransmitters and other molecules that your body uses everyday.

95% of the serotonin in your body is produced in your cells in your gut, and this process appears to be stimulated and regulated by specific kinds of bacteria according to this study published in the journal Cell. This powerful neurotransmitter is heavily involved in sleep, your circadian rhythm, and many aspects of mental health.

Additionally, the neurotransmitters GABA and dopamine, both of which are needed for overall health and a properly functioning brain, are created as byproducts by certain kinds of gut bacteria. These two facts alone seem to make it a foregone conclusion that the health of your gut, and the microbes within it, can have a much further reach than we ever thought possible.

Gut Microbes

The conversation about gut microbiome and just how interconnected with the rest of our body it is, has been happening for well over a decade now.

Relative to other health-related topics though, this is very very new – and also very uncertain. The Human Microbiome Project, started back in 2007, is a much needed initiative dedicated to discovering and understanding the diverse array of microbes that live on, and in us.

Researchers have learned a lot thus far about how the gut microbiome in particular may impact your physical and mental health. Most of the research has been done in rodents so far, but the totality of evidence suggests that an imbalance or dysbiosis amongst gut microbes is associated with allergies, autoimmune disorders, metabolic disorders, and many neuropsychiatric conditions. This detrimental effect is either contributed to or compounded by intestinal hyperpermeability, or “leaky gut syndrome” which is becoming increasingly common in modern societies.

The name leaky gut illustrates precisely the malfunction that is occurring within the intestinal tract and the issue can lead to increased levels of systemic inflammation – increasing the likelihood of countless issues you can read about here. When you are experiencing leaky gut syndrome, you are far more likely to experience an inappropriate immune response to your beneficial gut bacteria, as well as the undigested food particles that find their way into your bloodstream.

The impact that the health of your gut, and the microbes in it can have on your mental health is based on two pillars. The sufficient production of neurotransmitters and other signalling molecules that takes place there, and the ability for inflammation in the gut to cause systemic issues including depression, anxiety, and more. Clearly, our mental health is highly dependent on having a healthy, and balanced microbiome within our digestive tract.

Gut Bacteria and Mental Health

We have a tremendous ability (and perhaps responsibility) to influence our health through our diet and lifestyle – and we can influence the health of our gut bacteria in exactly the same way. One of the more popular methods to alter or improve our microbiome is through the use of probiotics – but they may not always be the answer.

Probiotic supplementation has been all abuzz in recent years. But it is likely that most people aren’t even sure what is actually in the capsule they are taking. Probiotics are actual live microorganisms, and supplementing with certain kinds of them has been shown to hold the potential for a ton of beneficial effects. It isn’t an exact science yet, however. And it is difficult to know what bacterial strain to use, how much of it, what combinations work best, etc. Basically there is still a lot left to figure out. Luckily, researchers are hard at work figuring it out for us, and it seems that more and more data comes out every day.

Besides supplementing with probiotics in a capsule, you can just as easily get some beneficial microorganisms from food like:

Yogurt
Kefir
Natto (fermented soy)
Kombucha
Sauerkraut and other fermented veggies

In a study published in the prestigious journal Nutrition, it was found that individuals with major depressive disorder can have observable, positive changes after 8 weeks of supplementing with specific probiotics. They also had notable improvements in markers of inflammation, endogenous antioxidant activity, and more signs that point to enhanced health.

Prebiotics are a little less cool, yet no less beneficial. Prebiotics are compounds that are typically found in the parts of plants we can’t actually digest ourselves – but our gut bacteria love it. Examples of prebiotic foods include:

Legumes, beans, peas
Oats
Bananas, berries, and other fruits
Asparagus, leafy greens, and other veggies
Alliums like garlic, onions, leeks

You’ll notice that none of these foods are processed or in a package. This backs up our own admitted bias towards whole, natural foods – we’ve even posted more than one article about the topic of whole foods and fiber intake. Likely resulting from the downstream effects of it feeding our beneficial microbes, this study determined that prebiotic intake has the ability to both reduce stress, and improve attention placed on positive compared to negative stimuli. Based on these studies, it seems pretty clear that getting both probiotics and prebiotics in your diet or through supplementation can be one of the more important things you do for your gut health and mental health. Your work doesn’t end here though, there is much more that you can however to improve your gut-brain connection.

How to Improve Your Gut-Brain Connection

Many of the diet and lifestyle principles for creating health and improving longevity must owe at least part of their power to the effects they have on your gut and digestive health. These are just some of the many proven strategies to enhance or strengthen your gut-brain axis – but you may have to experiment and do some research of your own to find what works for you. If that is your goal, it is probably best to focus first and foremost on what you are putting on your plate and in your mouth.

Diet

As we just explained, a diet based on whole foods will take care of most of the nutritional requirements for a healthy gut-brain axis. This is because you will find nutrients like protein, fiber (both kinds that each have unique benefits for gut health), and micronutrients in whole foods that you simply don’t get from processed and packaged foods.

More specifically, look to incorporate foods that are:

High in omega 3’s (they have been shown to improve good bacteria and they are crucial for the health of our brains)
Fermented (the fermentation process creates probiotics)
High in both soluble fiber, and insoluble fiber (both of which are needed for a healthy gut)
Rich with polyphenols (anti-inflammation/antioxidant compounds)
Good sources of the amino acid tryptophan (required for serotonin production)

You are going to need to experiment and find foods that work best for you and your digestion. This is important because individual variances in dietary requirements can vary widely. Also, you may have an intolerance to certain foods, or have an altered need for certain nutrients at certain times. Above all else, it is important to get a wide variety of protein sources, fat sources, fiber sources, and maybe include some fermented foods at least somewhat often to get some good probiotics. Many people in modern society fall short of fulfilling these dietary requirements for a healthy gut strictly from food however.

Vitamins and Supplements

Which supplements to take to help improve the health of your gut-brain axis is going to vary from person to person.

Many of the vitamins, minerals, and other supplements you can take to improve your health are the same ones that you should likely be paying attention to already. For instance, the following minerals are crucial for a healthy gut:

Zinc
Magnesium
Selenium
Iron
Vitamin D

Vitamin C

All of these are vital for overall health and play various roles in the gut specifically – varying from reducing inflammation to repairing your gut lining. This further enforces the notion that eating a diet based on whole, natural foods is an excellent course of action to begin improving gut health.

Perhaps the most important aspect of maintaining a healthy GBA is the lining of your gut itself. This relatively thin membrane has the paramount role of deciding what comes in and what doesn’t. Hence the increasingly common “leaky gut syndrome”, and its associated disease states, are simply caused by the gut lining letting in stuff that it shouldn’t – for whatever reason. Proven supplements like glutamine, deglycyrrhizinated licorice, and collagen peptides all work to improve the lining of your gut so it can better control what actually makes it through and into our bloodstream – but an extremely interesting peptide called BPC-157 seems to currently reign supreme at the job of restoring a healthy gut lining. BPC-157 (body protection compound 157) is a gastric peptide with an amazingly safe track record, and a growing body of research behind it. One research article exploring existing research on BPC-157 postulated that because it has been so effective at treating certain gastrointestinal issues that it may soon be used strategically to ameliorate some of their associated mental health issues.

Talk To Your Doctor

There really is a ton that you can do on your own to improve the health of your gut, brain, and the microbes that live in it. But in some instances, working with a medical professional will almost certainly be necessary and beneficial. Conditions like Crohn’s disease, irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, and more can be more than just a little serious and should be handled by someone with the proper training and experience. That being said, in some ways Western medicine has done quite a bit of harm to our guts.

Your microbiome is a living organism – one that works with you to keep you healthy. But that also means that the antibiotics (the opposite of a probiotic by every definition) can and often do decimate the microbes in your gut. Though they are entirely necessary at times, antibiotics have been shown to consistently and significantly alter the gut microbiome – negatively. Either by reducing the overall number, or eliminating entire species altogether, antibiotics can wreak havoc on our microbes, and the gut-brain axis as well.

Consider Alternative Treatments

Slightly more fringe treatments like fecal transplants or coffee enemas are usually not common dinner table talk. But with gut issues becoming increasingly common,it is important to mention some alternative approaches to creating a strong gut-brain connection. If you are trying to further reduce gut inflammation, improve associated mental health issues, and enhance your overall gut health, take a look at alternative options like:

Fecal transplants (think of it as a good bacteria transplant)
Coffee enemas (stimulates bile production in the liver)
Colonics (these will really clean you out)

None of these treatments are likely to significantly improve the connection between your brain and your gut unless you are doing the most important things for overall health.

Get enough sleep, every night
Manage your stress
Eat a diet full of actual nutrients
Move!

What Are the Eight Dimensions of Wellness?

Written by Josh on December 2, 2020. Posted in Age Management, Athletic Performance, Digestion, Exercise, Immune & Body Defense, Nutrition, Stress & Anxiety, Weight Management, Wellness. Leave a Comment

As modern Americans, we tend to share an extremely limited ideal of what real health actually means.

The pursuit of the inextricable duo of health and wellness requires much more than simply avoiding illness or disease – it demands exploration and development across multiple dimensions of the human experience.

Western society by and large has been conditioned to look at things in reductionist terms. Black and white, good or bad, healthy or sick. But the World Health Organization, seen by many as one of the primary authorities on human health, has developed their own standards (they go as far as to call it their constitution) for what they believe comprises actual wellness – and it covers far more than just avoiding disease of dysfunction. They believe that real health requires a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and that governments worldwide have a responsibility to provide the right atmosphere, resources, and opportunities for each and every one of their citizens to realize their full potential.

To achieve a state of physical, mental, and social well-being, attention must be paid to each and every dimension that contributes to creating this state. As it turns out, there seems to be either entirely unique, and yet interconnected dimensions that collectively contribute to overall wellness. These dimensions are physical, emotional, social, intellectual, environmental, financial, spiritual, and occupational wellness. None of these can create a sense of overall wellness alone – they all feed into one another to achieve balance and harmony. Each must be cultivated and nurtured over time.

As human beings we are extremely adaptable, and we can survive without fulfilling many, or even most of these dimensions – but we won’t thrive. This disparity is precisely why we have written this article – to illuminate each of these dimensions as well as to provide you with a few actionable steps for each to help you begin to curate and maintain more thorough health and wellness habits and practices into your daily life. Each dimension may have more or less importance than others, depending upon who you are and where you are at on your health and wellness journey, but the very nature of these unique aspects is that they are all deeply and fully interconnected with each other.

Physical Wellness

Something that we need to recognize about our modern lifestyles is that they just aren’t very conducive to good physical health. We sit far too much and move far too little. We are overfed but undernourished. We are fully displaced from our ancestral ancestors in these ways. But our internal biology is still basically the same! It is no wonder we are experiencing an astronomical increase in chronic disease and dysfunction. So once we acknowledge this context, the necessity for prioritizing better sleep, more movement, and a more whole-foods based diet becomes increasingly apparent.

There are an endless number of ways that we can improve our physical health. But the good news is that there are a few key points to focus on that will get you most of the way there. Prioritize the following aspects for physical wellness:

Move, alot.
Eat food with actual nutritional value.
Sleep, well.

There is, of course, much nuance that applies to each of those. For example, how much movement, and what kinds are appropriate for each individual might vary a bit – but generally these three statements apply to each of us to some degree.

You may need to look deeper into each of these points to determine how they specifically apply to you. Moving more is something that most modern humans can benefit from – it should be no surprise to hear that. Finding what kinds of movement you enjoy and can do consistently is a good place to start. And tracking your daily steps appears to be one of the most effective strategies for losing weight or maintaining a healthy weight for long periods of time. Once daily activity is one of your non-negotiables, perhaps the logical next step is to begin resistance training. Lifting weights has been linked to a whole host of beneficial effects, some of which will last a lifetime.

Eating food with actual nutritional value is crucial for many reasons. You need vitamins for enzymes to work and cells to function properly. Some minerals are utilized by your immune system to get toxins out of your body. Your brain needs fatty acids and beneficial plant compounds to thrive. Specific amino acids are required for certain tissues, hormones, and neurotransmitters to be built. Whole, natural foods and the wide variety of nutrients they contain are an enormous part of how we can maintain our physical health. You can also utilize supplementation to procure certain nutrients that are difficult to get from the diet.

It also might be beneficial to verify that your gut is in proper working order. With the rise in chronic inflammation and gut-related dysfunction, consider strategies with proven gut-healing properties like fasting, certain diets, drinking bone broth, collagen, BPC-157, colostrum, or zinc may just do the trick.

Sleeping well means more than just being in bed for 8 hours a night – though that would be a big step in the right direction for most people. To make sure we are getting the most out of having a free healing/restoration mode, we need to put in actual effort to protect the quality of our sleep as well. Reducing light exposure at night, and waking up at the same time everyday seem to be the two biggest requirements to entrain your circadian rhythm and guarantee you are going to enjoy the countless benefits that sleep provides us.

Emotional wellness

It is tough to say if the world is becoming more or less stressful for the people living in it. Life has become easier for most people, but it has also become more demanding, busy, and distracting at the same time.

We are (virtually) connected with more people than ever before – with the COVID lockdown only increasing the digital nature of these relationships. But most of us aren’t exactly designed to be as isolated as our modern society is, especially as we have been for the last year or so. Humans evolved with social interaction and dynamic relationships at the core of our how we coexist and grow with one another. These modern shifts in the human experience bring with them an increased need for finding coping strategies that are, at the very least, not destructive. This is what emotional wellness means to those of us living in modern society., and we can look towards some basic principles of wellness to help kickstart the development of emotional wellness. If you need to improve this dimension, start doing the following:

Reduce stress.
Learn to simply acknowledge and cope with emotions – good and bad.
Give your brain an edge.
Manage inflammation to improve emotional resilience.

The general stress response is an extremely beneficial part of life – chronic stress on the other hand, couldn’t be less beneficial for our long term health. There are countless psychological and physiological reasons why stress is bad for us, but most everyone is aware of these by now. It is more important that we direct attention towards stress management practices that will help ameliorate some of the harmful effects of chronic stress. Practicing meditation or another mindfulness approach, get enough sleep, engage in breathing exercises often, do some yoga, and move enough everyday. These stress management techniques will often have the added benefit of helping you on a fundamental level to deal with all kinds of emotions.

Social Wellness

The relationships we have with other people can have an unbelievably deep impact on our overall sense of well-being.

If you wish to develop a sense of connection, belonging, and rock-solid support system that you can count on no matter what, forging relationships is a big part of where you should focus your energy.

This dimension often goes overlooked because we live in a very work-focused culture. We all know we should spend time with family and friends, but that can always wait – or so we seem to think. Social wellness is absolutely crucial to building emotional resilience as well (though it is entirely unique from the emotional wellness dimension) and it allows us to better communicate with the people around us. Here are just a few ways that you can start to build up your sense of social wellness:

First, take time to reflect on yourself and your unique social needs. What aspects of your current social life do you actually enjoy? What parts do you wish you could improve upon?
Make an effort to keep in touch with supportive friends and family – especially during times of increased isolation such as the COVID-19 pandemic.
Become a better listener – practice!
Join a club or organization with like-minded people.

Intellectual Wellness

Your brain is like a muscle – it needs to work in order to thrive. This is the essence and basis of developing intellectual wellness. We are inherently curious creatures, and acknowledging that fact allows us to find ways to satisfy this drive in productive and creative ways.

Curating a state of intellectual wellness will likely be lifelong pursuit – as is the case with all other dimensions. Yet, we tend to stop seeking intellectual development as we age. We are never too old to benefit from engaging in creative and mentally stimulating activities. It is never too late to expand your knowledge or skills, and share it with your friends, family, or community.

Every dimension of wellness will take work to develop, and intellectual wellness is no different – it will take effort and focus to create balance. What is most important of all however, is that you remain open-minded and receptive to new situations. If you aren’t open in this way, no amount of work will manifest intellectual wellness in your life. Some more useful tips to begin curating intellectual wellness within your own life include:

Be more mindful and listen. If you aren’t actively listening, fully present, and engaged, you won’t fully receive the information being given.
Find a hobby that allows you to learn, develop skills, and grow your capabilities.
Traveling to experience other countries and cultures will change your perspectives and allow you to grow intellectually.
Find a way to be creative. This can be fulfilled by a hobby, or even a career (which we will discuss again later). Remember, we are creative beings – express yourself.

Environmental Wellness

Nobody would argue that the environment around us can’t have a profound impact on the way that you experience life. Environmental wellness is about recognizing this potential for your surroundings to either enhance or degrade your life, and taking action to redesign them to benefit you, and those around you.

Environmental wellness is really quite a broad term. It can refer to that which is in close proximity to you like your home, bedroom, office space, cubicle, etc. – or it can be expanded to the world at large. The concept is all the same, though. We must be inspired and intentional about living a lifestyle that is respectful of our surrounding and practice habits that promote a healthy environment. Some more tips to help develop a more complete sense of environmental wellness include:

Do your part to conserve energy, recycle, and limit your footprint on the world.
Volunteer with, or donate to organizations dedicated to improving the environment.
Appreciate and understand our earth’s finite resources.
Spend time in nature by camping, hiking, or just generally experiencing the natural beauty of our dwindling natural resources.

Spiritual Wellness

The realization of the profound importance behind cultivating spiritual wellness escapes more people than perhaps any other dimension. It may be because this dimension is shrouded by an intersection of religious beliefs and convictions – but it shouldn’t be.

Spiritual wellness can, and often does, have absolutely nothing to do with organized religious practices. Though traditional religious practices can fulfill the need for developing spiritual wellness, and often do so extremely well, having this somewhat limited perception of what this dimension means can perhaps dissuade people from cultivating it in the first place.

At its fundamental core, spiritual wellness is about finding meaning and purpose in life, developing your own personal morals and beliefs, and exploring your inner self. This exploration and development can allow you to create balance, become more resilient to obstacles and setbacks, and find a more comprehensive appreciation for the human experience.

As we said, organized religion can play a major role in developing this dimension, but spiritual wellness doesn’t have to exclusively come from this avenue. What is most important for developing wellness in this dimension is the practice and exploration of your inner self. To start cultivating your own sense of spiritual wellness, try doing the following:

Take time to be alone, and think about your inner self.
Reflect and explore life changing events. Consider your perceptions of each situation, whether they are productive, and whether or not they are congruent with reality.
Practice meditation or engage in another mindfulness approach.
Actively practice acceptance of situations.
Remain curious as you age. Explore new topics and ideas that interest you.
Consider traditional religious faiths and find one that you align most with.

Occupational Wellness

Many of us work to earn a paycheck, so we can do what we enjoy on the weekends with the ones we love. But this may not be enough. Not enough of us derive actual satisfaction and fulfillment from our work. Developing occupation wellness in our lives requires us to acknowledge this fact and inspires us to work towards finding a profession that satisfies this itch.

Our occupation can be more than just a paycheck. Some of us may find our calling in life almost by accident. Maybe you’ve always wanted to be a nurse, and no other occupation will allow you to be fulfilled in the same way. Perhaps a career in law enforcement or firefighting will enrich you each and every day – and you’ve known that was your path for as long as you can remember. For some of us however, it can take much more time. The occupation that helps you derive a sense of meaning and purpose in life may be something you haven’t even considered yet. This is why it is absolutely essential to keep trying, and keep searching. More tips to enhance your sense of occupational wellness are:

Take an honest assessment of yourself and your occupational needs. What kinds of tasks do you enjoy? Which would you rather never do again?
Consider both paid and volunteer opportunities that interest you. (remember you may find a path you had never even considered)
Actively practice communication and proper conflict management with your coworkers. Perhaps better work relationships can help create a greater sense of fulfillment in the job you already have.
Set career goals for yourself and constantly work towards improving and accomplishing these goals.

Financial Wellness

Though the financial and occupational wellness dimensions seem quite similar, they are quite different in reality. Financial wellness focuses on developing a sense of satisfaction and security with current and future financial situations – whereas the occupational wellness dimension is a bit more existential in nature.

Financial stressors are one of the more common pitfalls of modern life for many people. We aren’t commonly taught how to manage our finances by tracking expenses, budgeting, or becoming financially disciplined in general. Setting both short and long term financial goals is a great first step towards developing wellness in this dimension, but to take it further than that, consider trying:

Actively work to analyze finances to identify problems before they occur.
Maintain organized records of your finances.
Plan ahead. Set budgets, and stick to a plan to reach your goals.
Take classes to better understand your financial situations and learn to create discipline.

8 Dimensions of Wellness

By now it must be abundantly clear that each of these eight dimensions of wellness are entirely connected and dependent on one another to reach their full potential – and for you to reach yours as well.

Each of these dimensions will take work to develop and maintain, but that isn’t to say that the process won’t be enjoyable. Keep in mind that every bit of progress you make will help to balance your wellness overall and create a sense of congruence within different aspects of your life.