As you may know, research has shown that your mental health is greatly influenced by your gut health. With that in mind, scientists wondered if there was a way to treat mental health through the gut. As a result, the seed of nutritional psychiatry was planted.

What is Nutritional Psychiatry?

Unofficially, nutritional psychiatry refers to medical treatments that involve improving gut health in an effort to improve mental health. For instance, early studies have found that probiotics serve as an effective alternative to antidepressant drugs in treating depression and anxiety.

Good bugs benefit your brain!

More recently, researchers explored the effects of fermented foods on mental health. Of course, fermented foods promote the growth of good bacteria in your intestines. However, fermentation in general also produces phytochemicals and flavonoids that your body needs to maintain a beneficial microbiome. Moreover, well-balanced gut flora have been shown to fight inflammation and oxidative stress, which represent two major challenges to brain health. In order words, consuming fermented foods and other gut health-promoting foods can improve brain health both directly and indirectly.

Do you have the guts to boost your mental health?

Fortunately, there are a lot of ways you can improve your mental health through your gut health. Just check out these steps:

• Learn more about how gut health affects brain health
• Get to know your microbiome
• Find a probiotic that is right for you
• Research natural remedies for overcoming depression
• ‘Ask a Naturopath’ for a personal consultation to determine the status of your gut and mental health or
• Join Mr Vitamins Naturopath Janne Ramsay as she takes you through an informative and fun presentation on the basics of healthy digestion