We know this well that our life is mind-body-spirit unit. Also, every one of them has a direct connection to each other. What the mind thinks the body feels, what the body does the mind perceives and so on. Whatever your thoughts, conscious or unconscious, they create emotions and are connected to our digestion. For example, you don’t feel like eating when you are sad or you crave for sweet when nervous, you go to the toilet when anxious, and you are constipated when you are in new place.

To understand the important connection of food, digestion and emotions (including feelings, mood and temperaments), a simple explanation is enough. According to Ayurveda after the food has been digested its essence gets transformed in the rasa dhatu. This is further transformed into the rest of dhatus which finally nourishes and makes our body.

In the reasons given for the vitiation of rasavaha strotas (channels carrying nourishment), the main reason is “Chinta” which means worrying or thinking too much. If you worry too much then the rasa (which is the first transformation and which nourishes the whole body) gets disturbed and malforms. This phenomena deprives the body of nourishment and one experiences fatigue even after eating nourishing food!

All our basic feelings like happiness, sorrow, anger, anxiety, fear and love impact our digestion!

On the other hand, the different chronic problems of digestion like constipation, irritable bowel to name a few, affect our mood, emotions and behaviour! For example, people with chronic constipation may have irritability, those with IBS may suffer mood disorders, insomnia, anxiety and other psychiatric conditions.

For both kinds of problems, digestive and emotional, a change in food habits, life style modification, different therapies and medicinal plants are very useful treatments. Your intestine is your second brain. For long-term health, good energy and a balanced mood, your digestive health is very important!