GABA for gut and brain

GABA, an important chemical manufactured by the gut bacteria, is an amino acid that serves as a neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. It’s the main chemical messenger in your brain that calms down nerve activity by inhibiting transmissions and normalizing brain waves. In other words, GABA returns the nervous system to a more stable state so you can weather stress better. In 2012, researchers at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital identified a strain of bifidobacteria that secretes large amounts of GABA, suggesting that it may play a role in preventing or treating not just brain disorders but inflammatory bowel disorders such as Crohn’s disease. Because GABA mutes neuronal activity, it keeps in check anxiety- anxiety, of course, being a common trigger to gastrointestinal (GI) disorders rooted in inflammation.

Glutamate, yet another vital neurotransmitter that is produce by the gut bacteria, is involved in most aspects of normal brain function, including cognition, learning, and memory. It’s abundant in a healthy brain. A slew of neurological challenges, from anxiety and behavior deficits to depression and Alzheimer’s disease, have been attributed to a lack of GABA and glutamate.

One of the most important takeaways from the new research on the connection between microbes and brain health is that “disruption” isn’t just about having a misbalance microbiome, in which the thugs outnumber and trample on the good guys, triggering inflammation and robbing the body of vital materials produced by those good guys. In millions of people today, the gut is largely disrupted by increased intestinal permeability, which fuels a continuous state of low-grade inflammation.

More on leaky gut…

But for now… how do you increase GABA levels safely without medical drugs? Eat foods containing higher levels of glutamic acid which can help for GABA in the brain.

Foods high in Glutamic Acid

Almonds (10.3g)
Banana (220 mg)
Broccoli (749 mg)
Lentils (2.8 g)
Oats, whole grain (7.4 g)
Oranges, citrus fruits (210 mg)
Potato (830 mg)
Rice Bran (3.7 g)
Spinach (680 mg)
Walnuts (5.4 g)
Whole wheat, whole grain (8.6 g)