YOUR GUT AFFECTS YOUR HEALTH

Your gut – i.e. your digestive system or your gastrointestinal (GI) system – plays an important role in your health. Gut health affects more than just digestion, it can have tangible effects on your mood, immune system and more.

Do you know: We have brain cells in our large intestines. Your gut is your second brain. Chemicals implicated in depression and happiness such as serotonin, are found in the gut.

And “a huge proportion of your immune system is actually in your GI tract,” says Dan Peterson, assistant professor of pathology at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

Poor gut health (an imbalance of bacteria in your gut) can lead to health ailments like allergies and other autoimmune diseases, anxiety and depression, skin issues (eg: dermatitis, psoriasis, acne, and rosacea), even cancer growth.