Our Intestines - The Brains of Our Midsection
Our intestines – the all-rounders
Over a length of several meters, our intestines digest all of the food that we consume. Our muesli for breakfast, our lunch in the cafeteria, and the birthday cream tart. Yet our intestines can do much more than just taking care of digestion or excretion. They control what gets in, sort things out, and react accordingly. Considering the variety of foods that we consume, this in itself is a great feat. Our intestines also do the work of absorbing pathogens and medications. It is therefore no surprise then that roughly 80 percent of our immune cells are located in our intestines for defense.
Gut decisions
Also, more than 100 million nerve cells are located in our intestines—more than in our spinal cord. The phrase, “making gut decisions,” takes on a very different meaning given this knowledge.
Our second brain or our “gut brain” also affects our temper and mood with this large number of nerve cells. The gut-brain axis allows information to be exchanged regularly between our two “brains.” Take care of your gut by eating foods that are right for you and by doing physical activity. You will be in a better mood and will feel better as a result.
Variety of problems
The wide range of jobs the intestines perform can also lead to a variety of problems. We are all familiar with some of them - bloating, diarrhea, and nausea. Food intolerances (such as lactose intolerance, gluten intolerance, histamine intolerance, and fructose malabsorption), and delayed food allergy can also cause gastrointestinal problems. The ImuPro test made available in Canada exclusively by FITLabs will tell you whether you have a delayed food allergy. The ‘Complete’ version tests 270 foods using only a dried spot blood sample. Administered via a health care practitioner such as a Naturopath, the patient receives a list of all foods that they may eat. Even if they have to give up some foods for a while, there is always a large number of alternatives.