Gut Feelings: How Concussions Affect Your Digestion | E35

Life After Impact: The Concussion Recovery Podcast

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Have you ever wondered why your digestion seems to have gone haywire after a concussion? You're not alone, and there's a neurological explanation behind those new food sensitivities and stomach troubles.
The brain-gut connection is far more profound than most of us realize. Through the vagus nerve—a critical communication pathway—your brain and digestive system maintain constant dialogue. When a concussion disrupts this delicate system, the consequences ripple throughout your entire digestive process. Your vagal nerve signaling weakens, stomach acid production falters, and gut motility becomes irregular. What's particularly fascinating is how brain inflammation can directly alter your gut microbiome, creating a cascade of digestive symptoms that seem disconnected from your head injury.
The mechanisms behind this connection are multifaceted. First, concussions often trigger autonomic nervous system imbalances that shift your body into fight-or-flight mode, diverting blood away from digestion. Second, inflammatory messengers produced in your injured brain enter circulation and increase gut permeability. Third, the protective barriers in both your brain and gut begin to leak in tandem, allowing harmful substances to cross where they shouldn't. Finally, the stress hormones and sleep disruption that follow concussions further compromise your digestive health by thinning the gut lining and disrupting your microbiome.
If you've developed mysterious food sensitivities, especially to gluten, dairy, or histamine-rich foods, understanding these connections is crucial. Standard elimination diets might not work as expected because many foods cross-react with gluten, including oats, corn, and rice. Additionally, the glyphosate residue in non-organic grains may be exacerbating your symptoms, which explains why some people can tolerate bread in Europe but not at home. Healing requires patience—sometimes 3-6 months rather than just weeks—and a comprehensive approach that addresses both brain and gut simultaneously. By supporting your digestive health, you're also creating the optimal environment for your brain to recover, turning a vicious cycle of inflammation into a virtuous cycle of healing.

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Medical disclaimer: this video or podcast is for general informational purposes only, and does not constitute the practice of medicine or other professional healthcare services, including the giving of medical advice. No doctor patient relationship is formed. The use of this information and materials included is at the user's own risk. The content of this video or podcast is not intended to be a substitute for medical advice diagnosis or treatment. Consumers of this information should seek the advice of a medical professional for any and all health related issues.

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1. Podcast Introduction (00:00:00)

2. Concussions and Digestive Dysfunction (00:01:55)

3. Brain-Gut Communication Pathways (00:05:37)

4. Food Elimination Diets Explained (00:09:23)

5. Glyphosate's Hidden Impact (00:14:59)

6. Key Takeaways and Conclusion (00:24:08)