Do you ever consider how your gut health affects your emotional well-being? It may not be an obvious connection, but according to Nutritional Therapist Dana Chapman, our gut microbiome plays a crucial role in our mental health.

The bacteria in our gut are responsible for producing happy hormones, so if there is inflammation in the gut, it can lead to low mood and anxiety.

Tune in to the fascinating conversation with Dana to learn:

• How does the gut-brain connection impact our overall happiness and mental well-being?
• What are some key dietary factors that can positively influence gut health?
• What lifestyle practices or habits, aside from diet, can we adopt to promote a harmonious gut-brain relationship and achieve greater happiness and mental resilience?

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Klaudia Mitura: Hello, happiness seekers. Welcome to the happiness challenge podcast. I'm Klaudia Mitura and I'm on a mission to explore the best happiness habits that science has to offer. Like so many others, the pandemic cut me off from my family and work. So I decided to use my training as a psychologist to discover what science can tell us about the art of happiness.

What I found set me on the path to joy. And now I'm ready to share my journey with you. Each month I'm publishing three linked episodes where I'm speaking to a leading expert, putting their tips to the test and sharing my findings and feelings. From mindfulness to exercise and random acts of kindness, I'll be shining a light on the simple happiness habits that can bring more joy to our lives.

So join me as I embark on my challenge and together, we can become more successful, resilient, and happy.

Hello, happiness seekers, welcome to this month's happiness challenge, where I'll be exploring how the gut brain health contributes to our happier living. Helping me with this topic is Dana Chapman, Nutritional Therapist. Therapist. Dana is going to explain how our gut brain health works and how it helps us to achieve vibrant wellbeing today and in the future.

Welcome, Dana.

Dana Chapman: Thank you so much, Klaudia. I'm so pleased to be here.

Klaudia Mitura: Dana, I think that the most mind-blowing fact that I have learned about joy and happiness, is about the fact that Our bacteria in our gut are involved in production of the brain feel good chemicals necessary for us to experience more joy in life.

It's almost like happy gut, much more joyful life. So I realized that I don't actually understand much about that gut brain connection. So my first question to you is, how does the gut brain connection impact our overall happiness and wellbeing.

Dana Chapman: Hmm. It is a very big topic and one that is very vogue at the moment is about helping support that gut health.

But the place I always start to explain this is how the gut and the brain are actually connected. So in utero, actually the gut and the brain separate from the same cell. And they are then ever connected by what we call the vagus nerve. So the vagus nerve connects from the base of the brain. It wanders throughout the body and attaches to the gut as well as other organs along the way.

So there's this constant communication from the brain to the gut, but also from the gut to the brain. And actually, 80 percent of signals go from the gut to the brain. Only 20 percent of signals go from the brain to the gut. And we know, like you said, that lots of our happy hormones are made in the gut.

So things like serotonin, which is our happy hormone, is made in the gut. Things like dopamine, which is that reward centre, is made in the gut. Things like GABA, which is our anti-anxiety neurotransmitter, again is made in the gut. So it's actually the gut microbiome, so the bugs or the bacteria within your gut, communicating to the brain and letting it know that all is well, that we are happy, here's some signals, here's some neurotransmitters for you to take up and to feel happy as well.

So there's that way. Inflammation is often implicated, especially in things like depression and anxiety. And again, the gut has got a very big role to play in that inflammatory response and the immune system. So a number of ways that the gut and the brain are actually connected and how the gut then can influence our mental health and happiness.

Klaudia Mitura: I must say this for me. It's just fascinating because when we think about happiness, I don't think so. We put gut on our list, isn't it?

Dana Chapman: No. And I think society doesn't think that either. So I specialize in mental health within nutritional therapy. But lots of my clients come to me and talk to me about gut health, not about their mental health, because I think if something is going wrong with the gut, you can associate that a lot more, like I will come to you, please fix my gut, not please can you fix my mental health, but work on my gut.

I think society is still quite far from thinking that actually I can control my emotions and my mental health through supporting my gut health. So you're not alone.

Klaudia Mitura: Yes, absolutely. So, wow, such an important connection that we still have to learn how to make. So knowing that, what are some key dietary factors that positively influence gut health and in turn can help us to improve that emotional and mental health?

Dana Chapman: So a number of things, I think a lot has been spoken about diversity of the diet. Lots has been spoken about fibre and all of those things are important. So the gut is made up of a hundred trillion bacterial cells, where it's bacteria, fungi, and yeasts make up that hundred trillion. And we know that good mental health comes from having lots of different families of bacteria within the gut.

So we call that diversity. We need lots of different families within the gut to help promote that good mental health. Diversity in the gut microbiome comes from diversity in the diet. So we want to be eating at least 30 different plant foods in a week to help ensure that we are giving different bacteria different food to feed off of. So that diversity is a very key one. The other thing that's very important for the gut microbiome is fibre. So the gut microbiome also needs fuel to survive, and that fuel for the gut microbiome is two things. It's fibre, And it's colour. So what we call polyphenols in those darkly rich coloured fruit and vegetables like blueberries and beetroot are full of what we call polyphenols and those feed the gut microbiome as does fibre.

And our diets these days are just so poor in fibre because we're not getting the amount of protein that we need. Fruits and vegetables that we should, fibre can also come from things like beans and lentils, nuts and seeds, all of those sorts of areas are supportive. So I always say diversity, colour and fibre is really going to help support your gut to then improve your mental health.

Klaudia Mitura: Thank you, Dana. And I think that's a great summary of so much advice that is out there about what we should eat or what we should not eat. But those three principles I think we can all implement in our diet. Is there anything specific that undermines that gut health.

So of course, everything opposite to what you just said, but are there any specific lifestyle practices or habits that may negatively influence the gut health that we could watch out for?

Dana Chapman: Yeah, absolutely. And the thing that comes to mind is stress. Unfortunately, we are all We are all stressed these days, and we don't take time out to recover from that stress.

But we know that stress impacts the gut microbiome in a negative way. It also impacts how the gut actually functions. So when we are stressed, our resources go to the periphery to allow us to run away or flee from danger. And those resources come from the digestive system. So that digestive system actually shuts down, which can cause foods to then not be absorbed properly.

And if you're not absorbing nutrients from the food that you're eating, then you don't have the nutrients to support things like neurotransmitter production, those happy hormones. So stress, we know impacts both the gut and impacts our mental health. Okay. in very, very specific ways.

Klaudia Mitura: Okay. So when we are thinking about that rest sometimes as part of, oh, no, I don't have time to rest because there's so many things that has to be accomplished.

It's also thinking, well, you know, my body needs it from such a point of view as my gut brain connection needs that. So I think that's fascinated in itself.

Dana Chapman: Absolutely. And we know that people are just far too stressed these days. But we're not taking, you know, we're eating on the run as well.

If you're eating on the run, you're not going to be digesting your food, which can have a negative impact on your gut microbiome, and it can have a negative impact on the nutrient status of your body.

Klaudia Mitura: Brilliant. So I know I need to look after my diet and apply those three principles that you've presented.

I know that. I need to be recovering and resting so that stress doesn't impact my digestive system and let it recover through those periods of challenges and intensity. Anything else I can be doing for that healthy gut brain connection?

Dana Chapman: Good questions. We've spoken about getting out in nature, actually. So getting out in nature has been shown to improve the diversity of the gut microbiome. But getting out in nature also means, especially if you're doing it during the daytime, you're getting daylight exposure on your eyes, which is going to help improve your sleep.

And we know that sleep has a negative or positive impact on the gut microbiome as well. Getting out in nature is going to help reduce your stress. So research has shown just by being in a green space, stress levels are reduced. So I suppose that would be the one other element that I would throw out there, trying to get out in nature, in some greenery, around some soil, which is where all the microbes actually live.

Klaudia Mitura: Okay. Definitely more time in nature and hopefully then we can pair it up with that recovery and rest rather than just go, go, go, go. As sometimes that happens in our life. If I would like to start improving that gut brain connection, What's my starting point? What is the most kind of practical quick tip I can implement right now so that my listeners can try that out.

And as you know, as part of the podcast, I can try it out as well to see how that impacts my overall wellbeing.

Dana Chapman: Mm hmm. What we're not doing these days that I often very highly recommend is to introduce fermented foods in the diet. So be that a kefir with breakfast, be that a kimchi or a sauerkraut alongside your lunch, be that using something like a miso paste in your dinner or cooking something like tempeh.

We're just not getting enough fermented foods in our diet these days and these fermented foods can help change the gut microbial balance in our guts. But the other thing that you could potentially try, I'll give you two more. One would be doing some breath work before you eat.

So doing breathwork before you eat. And all I mean is you're trying to shift yourself from stress fight and flight mode into rest, digest, and repair mode. So you're sympathetic into your parasympathetic. And it doesn't need to be five minutes. It can be two minutes before you eat, breathing in for a count of four and out for a count of six, or simply doubling the exhale to the inhale.

So if you can only inhale for three, exhale for six. Do that for two minutes before you eat so that you know when you do eat your digestive system is primed for that rest, digest and repair. And the other one Would be to try singing or humming. So because of the amount of stress that we're in these days, the vagus nerve, which is what connects the gut, and the brain can get stuck in that always on mode, as in I'm always in fight and flight mode, and it almost forgets how to be in that rest, digest and repair.

And things like singing or humming, because the vagus nerve goes behind the vocal chords, that singing and that humming gently vibrates against the vagus nerve and helps it gain what we call vagal tone. I mean, you've got vagal tone, your body then knows when it should be reacting to stress and when it shouldn't be reacting to stress.

So you could try singing and humming as well.

Klaudia Mitura: Oh God, I'm very surprised by the advice of singing and humming. You know, the breathwork, I kind of straight away saw the connection, you know, okay, fermented food, yeah, that makes sense. Singing and humming for my gut health. I mean, I'm a terrible singer, so I'm not sure how this is going to go, but I will definitely give it a go.

But as you said, this idea of, mindful eating, isn't it? And just really paying attention. And I know from my own experience that if I rush my food, I don't feel as good. If I actually sit down and pay attention to it and eat slowly, mindfully, but also in that peaceful way, rather than thinking, What next? What next? And kind of on the go.

Dana, fantastic advice. So many practical advice for myself and my listeners to try. So thank you so much. I have a last question as part of this podcast. I always love to ask my guests, what makes you happy?

Dana Chapman: Very good question. My work. I honestly, I'm one of those incredibly fortunate people who absolutely loves what they do.

I love being able to help people, being able to explain to them why they are feeling a certain way and how to stop feeling that way if they don't want to feel that way anymore. So, I am truly fortunate to work in an area that I absolutely love, but I also love getting outside in nature, I really enjoy running. It makes me very happy and it's something that I make time to do every week.

Klaudia Mitura: Great. So that's lots of that exercise, time in nature looking after your gut, which is, as you said, so important. Where listeners could find out more about you and your work then.

Dana Chapman: Thank you so much. My website is dc-nutrition.co.Uk. I am mostly on LinkedIn as a social media platform. So just Dana Chapman on LinkedIn and then on Instagram, I am DC Nutrition limited.

Klaudia Mitura: Brilliant. Thank you so much, Dana, again, for coming to the show and sharing all of those fascinating insights about gut brain connection and how truly we need to pay more attention to that to make us happy.

Thank you so much.

Dana Chapman: Thank you so much for having me on.