We often discount when we fall off the curb, bump our head getting into the car, or feel those muscle spasms that appear and then go away quickly. But multiply those incidents by your age and you will come up with a number well into the thousands, a number that is the amount of minor trauma your body has taken and still kept ticking. Minor to major distortions of the body’s joints lead to disruptions of the nervous system. The nervous system is what allows your brain to make the decisions of your body a reality. Posture changes, tight muscles, ringing ears and so on are all signs that your body is not aging gracefully but is instead losing its battle.

Your gut and brain are the same tissue for the first 45 days after conception. Your brain splits off and creates the nervous system; your gut creates the enteric nervous system. The enteric nervous system makes 90% of the chemicals your brain uses. As a result, your brain’s ability to make decisions is influenced by the food you put in your mouth.

As the adage reads, garbage in = garbage out.

There are more and more chemicals being used in our foods, lotions, cleaning products, soaps and so on. These chemicals influence our hunger and affect what we like and dislike with smells. Unfortunately, this is done by altering our hormonal system, which can lead to moodiness, weight gain, difficulty in concentration, and heightened emotions.

Your environment affects your mental and physical health. Understanding your environment can illuminate strategies toward general well-being.