Brain Power with Dr. Eko

Gut-Brain Connection: Nurturing Mental Health from the Inside Out With Dr Maria

• Dr. Hokehe Eko

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Our gut microbiome significantly impacts brain health, cognition, and emotional well-being for both children and adults through what functional medicine physician Dr. Maria describes as our internal "GI Joes."

• Eating diverse plant foods (aim for 30 different types weekly) supports healthy gut bacteria and brain function
• Adequate sleep, especially hours before midnight, allows microbiome restoration and cognitive recovery
• Fermented foods should be consumed daily as a separate essential food category
• Judicious use of antibiotics prevents killing beneficial gut bacteria that can't fully regenerate
• Start with small, sustainable changes rather than attempting complete lifestyle overhauls
• Outdoor time with bare feet on soil exposes you to beneficial microorganisms
• Growing herbs like rosemary provides both gut-healthy ingredients and beneficial soil contact

Connect with Dr. Maria at www.saludrevisited.com or on Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, and her podcast for more information on supporting your family's gut and brain health. She offers free initial consultations to determine how she can best support your health journey.


Listen to the full episode on your favorite podcast platform and check out the video version on our YouTube channel!

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Speaker 1:

Hello everyone, welcome to another episode of Brain Power with Dr Echo, and I have another amazing guest here today. Her name is Dr Maria and she is a family medicine physician. Actually, she's a functional medicine family practice physician, and so I'm so thrilled to have her here today with us and I'm going to have her introduce herself. So welcome to the show, dr Maria.

Speaker 2:

Thank you, dr Eka. Thank you for having me. So, yes, I am a board-certified family physician and also in lifestyle medicine. My practice, which is located in Houston, texas yes, I see patients also virtually besides locally is really concentrated in providing holistic care. So I blend principles of lifestyle medicine, functional medicine as well as integrative medicine into the care of my patients. So I practice a little bit different than the traditional Western healthcare system. So that's what I do and I'm very happy to be here.

Speaker 1:

Yay, welcome. So let's do a deep dive in. And you mentioned that you practice differently. I mean, I'm integrative, like you are, so, and we had talked about how the gut affects the brain, affects emotional well-being, and for you parents, I think that's a really important I mean, I'm a parent too that's a really important topic to discuss because it has wide ranging implications, not just for us, the adults, but for our kids, right, because if we're not good, kids are not good. So Tell us all about it.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so I think that we have in the more recent years because I don't know when you went to medical school in the more recent years, because I don't know when you went to medical school I went to medical school like probably 15 years ago and the gut microbiome and the understanding that we have and we have these microorganisms there's little tiny.

Speaker 2:

I like to call it armies, something that you can have in your gut.

Speaker 2:

The army, the Marines, the Air Force they're all different, they all have a task to do, but our understanding of these little people inside of you and the impact that this had on our health was not the same as what we have today.

Speaker 2:

So today we know that those little people are related to not only things like your risk of obesity, your risk of having diabetes, but today we know, for example, that it changes as women go through all of their like different hormonal cycles.

Speaker 2:

But we also know that we can change the little people that we have so that it can affect our brain in a positive way.

Speaker 2:

And when I say a positive way, well, it can improve what we call cognition, so our capacity to learn, our capacity for memory, our capacity to focus, which I think is very important, especially when we're dealing with little kids that are going to school and in this process of learning, and then it can also really help with the emotional well-being. So even if, for example, you don't have a kid or a child that maybe has something like attention deficit disorder, but it's still improving those little people in their gut, it's still going to have a positive effect on their overall mental well-being. It's going to help them be able to relate better with people and just not only like perform in terms of the grade at school, but also perform in that sense of relationships and being good friends and kids and coming home and being good kiddos. So I think that the more we can understand how we can affect those little GI Joe's, those little people inside of us, we can, in a very from the inside out, then also help our overall health and well-being.

Speaker 1:

I love the way you describe them as GI Joes. I'm going to use that for my kids when I'm talking to them like GI Joes.

Speaker 2:

I think most some kids know that, what that is but no, it's a good way of in and if there is an understanding of like oh, we have the marines and we have the army. Then we can understand what we have different types that do different things. Yeah, and we need, and we need them all absolutely so.

Speaker 1:

Thank you for explaining about the little people. So how, in practical terms, can we improve? How can we help our little people or army go to work for us, like in our god?

Speaker 2:

starting with our god yes, so one of the the ways that I think that is the most important. Yet it might be challenging for parents, it might be challenging with little ones that sometimes can be picky eaters, but it's really their food and I'm not talking specifically about a diet, I am really just talking. If we can get them to eat a variety of fruits and vegetables, that by itself will have a great impact. So we know that a lot of studies have shown that the more plants and the more fiber we consume, the more of a positive effect that that will have in keeping our GI dose healthy and not only keeping them healthy right when they can lift up you know, their weights and do all that they do inside our gut, but we also keep them in the right balance so we won't have too much army and we won't have too much Marines, which sometimes that's also what's happening. And studies have shown that when we consume a diversity of plants so 30 different types of plants per week that will have a positive impact. And when we talk about plants, I'm not only talking about fruits and vegetables. So, as parents think of legumes, beets, nuts, herbs, spices, all of those good things which that can mean that perhaps we need to cook more at home, but then it might also mean that we need to learn, especially with little ones, how we can provide them with those meals in a way that for them it will be fun and will still taste good and they will consume them. So that's, that's one of the ways.

Speaker 2:

The other line is we don't want them to compromise sleep right.

Speaker 2:

So kids need more sleep than adults.

Speaker 2:

We know that, and sometimes, unfortunately, because of school homework, or then they also have, like all of the extracurricular activities, sometimes kids are not getting at least those nine hours per night, and you really want them to be able to get those nine hours, because when your kids go to sleep, then that's one of the times where these little GI Joe's, the army and the Marines are like oh, it's nighttime, now is our time to like work, so we want their bodies to be able to have that rest.

Speaker 2:

And then, going back to the topic of food, if your little one likes fermented foods, I am starting to consider fermented foods like a category of foods that we should all eat at least one serving of a fermented food per day. So not only fruits and vegetables and legumes and grains and all of those other things. But Now, if I have to learn more about the impact of food in our health and I'm not talking from a weight perspective or a physical appearance perspective, I'm really talking from the health, from the inside out I feel that fermented food should be like this category, that we should. Okay, I had my fermented food today and be, like this checkmark.

Speaker 2:

So those are two big ones. The other one and this sometimes can be a little bit more challenging. Really, as a parent, sometimes, if you can hold on on all of those antibiotics, it's actually better. So antibiotics, when used appropriately, they're not bad. We need them when they're necessary, but a lot of the times, as parents, you want your kids to get better faster, quicker.

Speaker 2:

You immediately are going to an urgent care or calling a telemedicine practice, or even through your primary care doctor, are going to an urgent care or calling a telemedicine practice, or even you know through your primary care doctor you're hitting for those antibiotics and when we take an antibiotic that is not needed, those antibiotics kills your DIJOs and what studies have shown is that it's going to kill more GI dose than what your body's able to produce. So think about it this way you have 100 GI dose. You take the antibiotics. The antibiotics kill 75 of the GI dose. Now you only have 25. And your body yes dos. Now you only have 25 and your body yes, and then recuperate some of those ga dose and maybe it goes from 25 to 30, but you still love 70 of them.

Speaker 2:

So one of the things I think that for parents to keep mindful is knowing the majority of the germs that kids spread. They tend to be viral and if we can print their GI deal, that by itself will help them with all of these viruses. But then also thinking so, what are the other things that I can do when they're sick to help them feel better, and knowing that it will take some time for their bodies to recuperate. But sometimes giving them that week is actually better than jumping to the antibiotics with their first throat, and so you know the wise use of antibiotics. I think that is also very powerful in the pediatric population as a way to keep their gut microbiome healthy.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, wonderful. So thank you for all that you've explained. And can this also be applied to adults as well, because we're mostly sleeping?

Speaker 2:

Oh yes, absolutely, Absolutely, oh yes, absolutely Absolutely. You know, the eating more plants, the sleeping, reducing your use of antibiotics. That is something that, for all human beings, is going to help them with their microbiome.

Speaker 1:

I was hoping you would say that all human beings, all human beings, need it. Yes, and definitely for us. For we parents, right, the sleep is critical because our brains, the organ itself, needs the sleep for it to function well, and so when we don't give it what it needs, then it doesn't function well. And so, yeah, I'm glad that you pointed that out. So for the parents who says, okay, this sounds like a lot like where do I begin? The overwhelmed parent who is tired and doesn't know where to begin with making changes in how they eat and their sleep, where should they begin?

Speaker 2:

So I think that the place to begin especially if you're like I don't know where to to begin or I'm just overwhelmed with like life it's think what would be the easiest.

Speaker 2:

Let's go with the easiest not necessarily perfection. And sometimes when I tell my patients this and they go like what? And when they ask me like what is specific type of exercise should I do, and I'm like the one that you're going to do, it doesn't matter what it is, I just want me to move. So I think that the same thing comes in this area, so it can be with something as simple as for you or for your kid is going to be very easy to just start eating one serving of fruit and one, one additional serving of fruit per day, because maybe that is what's going to be easy and simple. And once you have that, that just becomes easier. And then, as things improve, then you'll have more of that energy and you'll start to notice those changes in your body and then you want to do more.

Speaker 2:

It might be that you are like well, I don't think that I can do another hour of sleep, right? You look at your schedule and realistically, but maybe realistically, you can start by adding 15 minutes and you really want to add the 15 minutes before midnight, right. So we know also that studies have shown that hours of sleep before midnight, your, your body, sees it as like double the amount of hours is the best way that I can explain it. And maybe you cannot add another hour. But maybe you realize, well, we can really go to bed 50 minutes early. Maybe we don't have to watch, I don't know, three hours or two hours of TV at night time, maybe we can all leave our phones outside the room and then that way nobody is tempted to be on their phone.

Speaker 2:

So I think that, looking into where you are in life, where your family is, your family's central, your family's culture, the you know the reality of the environment in which you live in, and knowing that you do not have to do everything at the same time, but that you can start small and just implement one thing at a time, another small step might be like well, especially at this time of the year that we know that all of those head posts and test posts start popping around, it might be a small step, as I'm going to have like a first aid kit at home, so immediately once everybody starts to feel sick. Well, I can start them on honey, aloe vera, echinacea, and you can have those things available which we know that that will make it easier than having to start by. Oh my God, I need to go to the pharmacy Because you just have it right there. So I say I always hope to be impatient where they are. So let's see where you can start and let's help you start where you are ready to start.

Speaker 1:

I like it Start where you are ready to start. That's really complicated. Same thing goes for your kids. Start where you are. If everybody does it as a family, that's often the best way to get people on track. Just start one goal, set one goal for your whole family, for kids, for adults and work on it. Then add the next goal. So I think that's really solid advice.

Speaker 1:

And another one I like to add is add nighttime journal so you can empty out that head or all your thoughts onto the paper and leave it there as much as possible, and so that that way you're better able to sleep and in the morning you can think about I mean, in the morning you can think through the things that you have on your paper, right? So it gives you at least it helps, it gives you a record of the things that you think are important, as opposed to laying awake and thinking about them all night. So, yeah, thank you for sharing all of that. So, um, what's one last brain health tip that you want to share for both parents and children, just a way for them to boost their gut, their brain health and especially their emotional health, because we we're facing a lot of epidemic of of mental health concerns going on, especially with our kids I mean definitely our adults as well. So what's one last tip you have for our listeners?

Speaker 2:

So I would say, going back to plants, think of it, not only eating the plants, but then perhaps also going outside, taking your shoes off, putting your bare feet on the ground, touching the grass, playing with the dirt and maybe, if you have that capacity, planting something with your kids at home. And we know that that by itself will help the gut microbiome. We know that one of the reasons that the human gut microbiome sometimes changes is because we're all the time in the hygiene, antibacterial life, which again is like antibiotics. There's this kind of like a fine balance where, yes, you want to maintain some cleanness and hygiene and then, at the same time, you also want to give your body the capacity to get exposed to all of these other good micro microorganisms that are in the world. At the same time, you'll get to be able to spend time outdoors, spend time with your kiddos, teach them about nature. That by itself will foster a good relationship.

Speaker 2:

And if you can, when you're planting, put your own herbs, the herbs that you like to use to cook. What we know is that local herbs just as local honey, so that it is produced where you live that by itself has much greater impact on your gut microbiome. So again, if you have the capacity, the space, the land and you want to put rosemary is my favorite and if you want to put some rosemaryemary, then go ahead and do so and take your tits with you and let everybody get nice and dirty just for a couple of hours, everything will be okay I love it, I love, I love rosemary and it's pretty easy to to grow, super easy yeah yes, yeah, some of the herbs take a little bit more of like a green sun, but, um again, we don't have to do it all or be perfect.

Speaker 2:

It's just starting where we can right?

Speaker 1:

yep, that way you can. So can you tell our listeners where they can find me?

Speaker 2:

my website is wwwsaludrevisited and salute like calls in spanish, so s-a-l-u-d-r-e-v-i-s-i-c-e-dcom. And they can also find me on social media, both on Instagram, on Facebook. I also have a podcast that they can find on Apple Podcasts or wherever they listen to podcasts, and on YouTube. So they have lots of ways to stay in touch and if they want to work with me, then going to my website, that would be the best thing, because I do offer a free initial consultation to see how I can be of best service to them.

Speaker 1:

Wonderful, so you heard it. So please go check her out, and thank you so much for listening. I hope you learned as much as I did. It was fun talking with you, dr Maria, thank you for coming on and remember parents. Just start where you are and do what you know you're going to do. That's it. That's the summary of this entire talk. And step outside too, so we will see you on the next episode. Take care and have a wonderful day.