Finally, I want to address serotonin and a healthy gut. Depression and mood disorders may also be a consequence of poor gut function. It's not commonly known that 80 to 90% of our serotonin is actually synthesized in the gut. And in fact, surrounding our gut are approximately 100 million neurons, which is more than is contained in either our spinal cord, or our peripheral nervous system, and serotonin and found in our gut, contributes to our mood and our well being. In fact, just as with the brain, our enteric nervous system also uses all the neurotransmitters. The fact that serotonin is found in the gut may mean that low or high serotonin levels will result in changes in our overall health, not just our mental health.

Likewise, certain medications Such as a CSR is, the result in more serotonin may cause irritable bowel syndrome. Similarly, limiting gutsy return has been suggested to play a part in counteracting osteoporosis for example. So the field of neuro gastroenterology is a growing field. But this illustrates that the body is a web and good health requires all aspects of the web to function in balance. good gut health will be addressed in another lecture.