My patients often start to giggle when I ask about their poop during a consultation. I laugh too — but there’s a reason I ask!
Your digestion can tell me a lot about your health.
And one of the biggest reasons is something called the gut-brain connection.
You see, most people have already experienced the gut–brain connection without realizing it.
You might say things like:
“My stomach drops when I’m nervous.”
“I feel sick to my stomach when I’m stressed.”
“My digestion is worse when my anxiety is high.”
Your gut and brain are constantly talking to each other.
Those phrases aren’t just expressions. They’re actually describing real biology.
Signals travel back and forth between your digestive system and your brain all day long.
Sometimes those signals tell the brain:
“Digestion is calm.”
“Everything is balanced.”
Other times they say:
“Something in the gut is irritated.”
“Inflammation is increasing.”
“The immune system is active.”
And when the brain receives those signals, it can influence how the nervous system responds to stress.
Scientists call this communication system the gut–brain axis.
What Is the Gut–Brain Axis?
The digestive system contains hundreds of millions of neurons that form what’s called the enteric nervous system — a network of nerves that communicates directly with the brain.
The gut–brain axis works through several pathways in the body, including:
• the vagus nerve, which acts like a communication highway between the brain and digestive organs
• immune signals that travel through the bloodstream
• stress hormones that influence both the brain and digestion
• chemicals produced by the gut microbiome
Researchers have also discovered that gut bacteria can influence important brain chemicals.
Certain microbes can affect serotonin and GABA, neurotransmitters involved in mood, relaxation, and sleep.
In other words:
Your brain is not only reacting to your thoughts.
It is also reacting to what is happening in your gut.
Did You Know Most of Your Immune System Lives in Your Gut?
About 70% of your immune system lives in your gut.
That’s one of the reasons I pay so much attention to digestion when we’re talking about symptoms like anxiety.
Inside the digestive tract is a protective lining called the intestinal barrier.
You can think of it like a security gate.
When things are working well, that barrier helps regulate what enters your bloodstream. Nutrients from food can pass through, while things that shouldn’t be there are kept out.
But when the gut microbiome becomes imbalanced or inflammation increases, that barrier can become weakened.
When this happens, substances that normally stay inside the gut may begin to pass into the bloodstream.
That can lead to a few things:
• inflammatory signals increasing
• the immune system becoming more active
• small particles from gut bacteria entering circulation
These bacterial particles are normally contained inside the digestive tract. But when they cross into the bloodstream, the immune system recognizes them as something that shouldn’t be there and responds by increasing immune activity.
Remember — because so much of the immune system lives in the gut, those changes don’t stay isolated to digestion.
When immune activity increases in the gut, signaling molecules travel through the bloodstream and communicate with other systems in the body — including the brain.
The brain’s job is to constantly scan the body for signs of stress or danger.
And the brain is always listening for those signals.
From the brain’s perspective, increased immune activity can mean the body might be dealing with something that needs attention — like inflammation, irritation, or infection.
Think of it like a home security system.
If a motion sensor goes off, the system doesn’t know exactly what’s wrong. It just knows something might be happening, so it becomes more alert.
Your brain works in a similar way.
When immune signals increase, the brain may interpret that as a sign that the body is under stress and shift the nervous system into a more protective state.
That can mean:
• increased alertness
• higher sensitivity to stress
• changes in mood or focus
In other words, the brain begins preparing the body to deal with a potential problem.
And sometimes that protective response can feel like anxiety.
The body is always trying to protect you — it’s just responding to the signals it’s receiving.
Why The Wellness Way Talks About Tryptophan, Serotonin, and Inflammation
This is where things get even more interesting.
One of the key nutrients involved in mood regulation is tryptophan — an amino acid that the body uses to produce serotonin and melatonin.
But when inflammation rises, the body may shift how tryptophan is used.
Instead of primarily supporting serotonin and sleep-regulating pathways, more tryptophan can be diverted into the kynurenine pathway, which produces metabolites involved in immune signaling and inflammation.
This shift can influence:
• mood regulation
• sleep quality
• stress resilience
• brain inflammation
In simple terms, the body may prioritize immune activity instead of mood regulation when inflammation is present.
That’s why conversations about anxiety often include gut health, inflammation, and immune signaling. These systems are interconnected.
Or said another way:
Your body doesn’t process nutrients the same way when it’s inflamed.
And when inflammation is present, the nervous system may become more reactive.
What Does This Mean in Real Life?
All of this science ultimately comes down to something very simple:
Your brain does not exist in isolation.
It is constantly responding to signals from the rest of your body.
Your gut microbes influence immune activity.
Your immune system influences inflammation levels.
Inflammation influences neurotransmitters and stress pathways.
And all of those signals can shape how your nervous system experiences stress.
That’s why gut health and inflammation are not side conversations in anxiety.
They are part of the bigger picture of how the body regulates stress.
What Can You Do to Support the Gut–Brain Connection?
Understanding the gut–brain connection is powerful, but the next question many patients ask is:
What can I actually do about it?
Here are a few places we often start with patients in our clinic.
1. Support Your Nervous System
As a chiropractor, one of the things we focus on is helping the nervous system shift away from a constant fight-or-flight state and back toward a rest-and-digest state.
When the nervous system is calmer, digestion and gut signaling can function more efficiently.
Regular chiropractic adjustments can help support that nervous system balance.
2. Look Deeper at Gut Health
If digestive symptoms or anxiety symptoms persist, it may be helpful to evaluate what is happening in the gut.
In our office we often use stool testing such as the GI Effects test through Genova Diagnostics to evaluate:
• gut bacteria balance
• inflammation markers
• digestion and absorption
• microbial metabolites
This can help identify patterns like dysbiosis or inflammation that may be contributing to symptoms.
3. Identify Food Triggers
Certain foods can trigger immune responses or inflammation for some individuals.
Food sensitivity testing — such as testing through Immuno Laboratories — can help identify foods that may be creating additional stress for the body.
Reducing those triggers may help calm immune signaling.
4. Support the Microbiome
Supporting beneficial gut bacteria may include strategies such as:
• probiotics
• prebiotics
• adequate vitamin D
• nutrient-dense whole foods
A healthy microbiome helps support immune balance and communication between the gut and brain.
5. Prioritize Sleep
Sleep plays a major role in both nervous system regulation and gut health.
Research shows that sleep deprivation can reduce microbiome diversity and increase inflammation in the body.
Consistent sleep helps support both brain and gut health.
6. Work on Stress Requlation
Chronic stress can alter both the nervous system and the gut microbiome.
Practices that support stress regulation — such as movement, time outside, breathing exercises, or nervous system support — can help reduce the overall stress load on the body.
Looking Ahead
In the next blog of this series, we’ll talk about how gut imbalances like dysbiosis and inflammation can be identified through testing — and why that information can help guide a more personalized approach to healing.
Because when we understand what’s happening inside the body, we can start helping the nervous system feel safe again.
Disclaimer: This content is for educational purposes only. It’s not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your Wellness Way clinic or personal physician, especially if currently taking prescription or over-the-counter medications. Pregnant women, in particular, should seek the advice of a physician before trying any herb or supplement listed on this website. Always speak with your individual clinic before adding any medication, herb, or nutritional supplement to your health protocol. Information and statements regarding dietary supplements have not been evaluated by the FDA and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
