Lowering Stress for Optimum Health Part 2- What is Vagal Tone? - a podcast by Discussions with successful health experts such as Ben Greenfield, Terry Wa

Lowering Stress for Optimum Health Part 2: What is Vagal Tone? Dr. Jason Jones Elizabeth City NC, Chiropractor

The vagus nerve is simply described as the longest nerve in the body which originates as cranial nerve 10 in the brain. It travels down from the brain to the neck and then passes around important organs throughout the body, including the digestive system, pancreas, liver, spleen, lungs, and heart.

The vagus nerve is a key part of your parasympathetic nervous system, which controls the “rest and digest” function, countering the “fight or flight” function of the sympathetic nervous system.

The vagus nerve influences many functions in the body, including digestion, breathing, and heart rate, all of which impact your overall health.

However, one thing you need to pay special attention to is the “tone” of your vagus nerve. The vagal tone is an internal biological process that determines the activities of the vagus nerve.

What is vagal tone?

The vagal tone is key to the activity of your parasympathetic nervous system. It is measured by tracking both your heart rate and your breathing rate. When you breathe in, your heart rate speeds up a little, and when you breathe out, your heart rate slows down a little.

The bigger the difference between your inhalation and exhalation heart rate, the high your vagal tone.

So when you have a higher vagal tone, it means that your body can quickly relax after a period of stress.

What is the implication of a high vagal tone?

High vagal tone helps to improve many body functions, causing:

• Lower blood pressure
• Better blood sugar regulation
• Improved digestion via increased production of digestive enzymes
• Reduced risk of stroke and cardiovascular disease
• Reduced migraines
• Less anxiety
• Better mood
• Higher resilience

One of the interesting functions of the vagus nerve is that it reads your gut microbiome and activates a response to control inflammation based on whether it detects pathogens or non-pathogens. This way, your gut microbiome can have an influence on your stress levels, mood, and overall inflammation.

What is the implication of low vagal tone?

Low vagal tone is found to be associated with depression, cardiovascular conditions and stroke, chronic fatigue syndrome, diabetes, cognitive impairment, and a higher rate of inflammation conditions, including all autoimmune diseases (autoimmune thyroid condition, endometriosis, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and more).

Much research has shown positive feedback between high vagal tone and good overall health. Hence, the more you increase your vagal tone, the more your mental and physical health will improve.

Dr. Mladen Golubic, Medical Director of the Cleveland Clinic, states that “The vagal response reduces stress. It reduces your blood pressure and heart rate. Stimulates digestion, and changes the function of certain parts of the brain, and all those things that happen when we are relaxed.”

However, do you know that studies have shown that vagal tone can be passed on from mother to child? If you are depressed or anxious during pregnancy, you tend to have lower vagal activity, and once you give birth, your child has a higher chance of having low vagal activity, and low serotonin and dopamine levels.

That’s more reason why you should learn how to strengthen your vagal tone naturally.

You can consult Dr. Jason at our chiropractic office at Elizabeth City, NC, to learn about natural ways to stimulate and strengthen your vagus nerves. This will help to improve your mental, physical, and overall well-being.

 

 

 

 

 

Further episodes of Health Made Easy with Dr. Jason Jones

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