April is National Stress Awareness Month—and while most of us are familiar with the usual causes of stress (work, relationships, finances), there’s one surprising culprit that often gets overlooked: your gut. It turns out the phrase “trust your gut” might be more literal than we ever realized. The gut-brain connection and stress are more deeply linked than most people realize. Let’s explore how your gut health plays a powerful role in your mental and emotional well-being—and why supporting your digestion could be one of the smartest ways to boost your mood, energy, and resilience.
Want to nerd out a little more? Here’s a great overview from Johns Hopkins on the brain-gut connection.
What Is the Gut-Brain Connection?
Your gut and brain are constantly communicating through a complex network of nerves, hormones, and chemical messengers. This system is known as the gut-brain axis, and it plays a huge role in how we process and respond to stress.
The vagus nerve is one of the key players—it sends messages both ways: from your brain to your gut and from your gut to your brain. That’s why your gut is sometimes called the “second brain.”
In fact, your digestive system has its own nervous system (called the enteric nervous system) that can function independently. It also produces key neurotransmitters like serotonin, dopamine, and GABA, all of which affect mood and emotional regulation.
How Gut Health Affects Mood, Anxiety, and Stress
Did you know that 90–95% of your serotonin—the “feel good” chemical—is made in your gut, not your brain?
That’s why the gut-brain connection and stress go hand in hand. When your gut microbiome is off balance, it can disrupt neurotransmitter production and increase inflammation—leading to:
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Anxiety or depression
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Brain fog
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Trouble sleeping
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Low stress resilience
And the relationship goes both ways: chronic stress harms gut health by slowing digestion, weakening the gut lining, and reducing microbial diversity. It’s a feedback loop that keeps stress alive.
Here’s a helpful breakdown from Dr. Axe on mood, microbes, and your mental state.
Signs Your Gut Might Be Fueling Your Stress
You’re managing your schedule, practicing self-care… but still feeling off? Your gut might be trying to tell you something. Watch for these signs:
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Frequent bloating, gas, or irregular bowel movements
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Mood swings or irritability
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Fatigue, especially after meals
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Cravings for sugar or refined carbs
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Weakened immunity or frequent colds
These are all signs your gut-brain connection and stress response may be out of sync.
How to Support the Gut-Brain Connection
Thankfully, there are simple but powerful steps you can take to restore balance:
1. Eat for Your Microbiome
- Load up on fiber—especially prebiotic-rich foods like garlic, onions, and green bananas. These feed the good bacteria in your gut.
- Incorporate fermented foods such as yogurt, kimchi, sauerkraut, and kefir to introduce beneficial probiotics.
- Minimize processed sugars and avoid inflammatory oils like seed and vegetable oils, which can disrupt gut balance.
- Eat the rainbow. A colorful plate = a diverse gut. Different pigments in fruits and veggies provide a variety of vitamins, antioxidants, and nutrients that fuel microbial diversity.
If you’re new to how digestion works or want to better understand what impacts gut health, check out this guide from Dr. Axe on how your digestive system works.
2. Calm the Nervous System
- Practice gentle movement or walking in nature
- Build in stillness: breathing, prayer, or journaling
- Prioritize consistent, deep sleep
These habits can help regulate the gut-brain connection and stress response.
3. Take Targeted Probiotic Support
Not all probiotics are created equal. Some strains can actively influence the gut-brain connection—and this is where psychobiotics come in.
Featured Support: Zenbiome Cope
If you’re looking for targeted support, Zenbiome Cope is one of our go-tos.
Why we love it:
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Contains the studied strain Bifidobacterium longum 1714™
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Supports emotional balance and calm focus
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Enhances resilience to everyday stress
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Includes vitamin B6 and L-theanine for added support
Pairing it with magnesium or a B-complex can offer even more support.
If you’ve been working hard to manage stress through mindset shifts, productivity tools, or even medication—but haven’t addressed gut health—you might be missing a key piece of the puzzle.
Your gut and brain are a team. When one is out of balance, the other feels it.
But the reverse is also true: when you support your gut, you support your mental health, too.
Ready to Feel the Difference?
We carry several high-quality probiotics online and in-store, including:
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Zenbiome Cope – Our top pick for gut-brain support
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Seed – A daily synbiotic for whole-body health (carries in-store only)
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Golden Provisions Probiotic – A broad-spectrum option for daily maintenance
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And other curated formulas available in-store