Jess Spendlove is a leading Performance Dietitian, Holistic High-Performance Coach and Speaker acclaimed for guiding thousands of athletes and corporate trailblazers to their peak potential. Her adolescent struggles with under-fuelling catalysed her distinguished career.
Mental health, a cornerstone of entrepreneur performance, is increasingly under the spotlight in boardrooms across the globe. In the fast-paced world of corporate leadership, where entrepreneurs are at the helm of strategic decision-making and complex problem-solving, maintaining mental equilibrium is crucial. While it's universally acknowledged that high-powered roles come with their unique challenges, strategies to bolster mental resilience are indispensable. Beyond the traditional interventions, a growing body of evidence underscores the significance of our microbiome's role in mental well-being. Here’s how fine-tuning this important internal ecosystem can elevate your cognitive agility, mental fortitude, and overall entrepreneur performance.
What is the gut microbiome?
Your gut microbiome is an internal ecosystem consisting of trillions of microorganisms, including bacteria, fungi, and viruses, that are found in your digestive tract. They’re both helpful and potentially harmful, playing a pivotal role in your health. A healthy, diverse microbiome helps digestion, immunity, metabolism, and even mood. But when the integrity of your gut health is disturbed by things like illness, poor dietary choices, alcohol, toxins, stress or certain medications, your overall well-being can be impacted.
Gut microbiome and mental health
Being on top of your mental game is essential for being an effective leader, entrepreneur or high-performing professional. Research has found a significant connection between gut health and mental well-being through a fascinating bi-directional communication network – the gut-brain axis. When your brain senses trouble, it sends warning signals to the gut, which is why you feel butterflies when you’re nervous or nausea when you’re worried via the vagus nerve. The gut, which is sometimes called the “second brain”, produces hormones and neurotransmitters that send signals to your brain. These include serotonin and dopamine, which are key to regulating mood.
There is a growing field of research looking at how different compositions of microbiome are linked to depression – a 2022 study published in Nature found a link between 13 kinds of microbiota with depressive symptoms. Dietary changes linked to better gut health can also help prevent and treat mental health conditions – a major Australian trial found that eating a Mediterranean diet helped treat depression.
What you can do for better gut health
There are several dietary habits that can foster better gut health.
Up the fiber-rich foods
Fiber is the meal of choice for gut microbiome. A diet rich in diverse fibre sources — like whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes — supports a healthy and diverse microbiome.
Researchers at The Microsetta Initiative found that eating 30 different plant foods per week had significantly more diverse microbiomes, compared to those eating 10 or fewer.
Include probiotics and prebiotics
Probiotics are beneficial bacteria that can enhance your gut microbiome, and they’re found in fermented foods like yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut and kimchi. Prebiotics are a type of dietary fibre that your beneficial gut bacteria feed off, and they’re found in foods like garlic, onions, asparagus, and bananas. A 2015 study found prebiotic consumption can lower cortisol levels (responsible for your stress response) in humans.
Avoid ultra-processed food
A 2021 study published in Nutrients found that consumption of ultra-processed foods like packaged snacks, instant soups and industrially-produced cakes, cookies, pizza and hamburgers, could affect gut microbiota diversity.
Increase your polyphenol intake
In addition to their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, polyphenols can change the composition of your gut microbiome. Research suggests they may have neuroprotective effects and benefits for cognitive performance. They’re found in fruits, vegetables, grains, green tea, cacao, coffee and olive oil, so stock up.
Add in omega-3 fats
Omega-3s found in fatty fish like salmon and sardines, as well as flaxseed, walnuts, soybeans and chia seeds, can increase the good bacteria in your gut.
Other ways to improve your gut health:
Ensure regular exercise
Physical activity is known to promote the diversity and abundance of the gut microbiome. Prioritising regular exercise not only helps your gut but has proven benefits for mood and mental health – a 2020 systematic review of meta-analyses found exercise can help prevent depression.
Manage your stress
As an entrepreneur, it’s natural you’ll find yourself in periods of high stress, but effectively managing its effect on your physical and mental health is important. Chronic stress can upset your gut's equilibrium given the gut-brain connection, and stress management techniques such as meditation, mindfulness, journaling, and cognitive behavioural therapy can help.
Prioritize sleep
Disruptions to your sleep schedule can affect your gut health. The gut microbiome in humans exhibits circadian fluctuations in its structure and function. When our sleep-wake cycle is disrupted, it can also disrupt the circadian rhythm of the circadian rhythm of the gut microbiome. It's important to standardise both the quality and quantity of our sleep and maintain a consistent sleep-wake time. There are also nutrition strategies you can leverage to get a better night’s sleep which you can read about here.
For entrepreneurs and founders, peak performance transcends sheer intellect — it's intimately connected to optimal health and mental clarity. Prioritising gut health can significantly boost cognitive agility and resilience, essential for overcoming the relentless challenges of entrepreneurship. In a fiercely competitive landscape, maintaining a healthy gut provides a distinct advantage, ensuring enduring success in your ventures. A high-performing entrepreneur demands a high-performing body and mind; investing in your gut health is a strategic move to enhance your leadership capabilities and potential.
Are you an entrepreneurial Overachiever, an All-or-Nothing Visionary, or a Ticking Time Bomb in the high-stakes world of business? Take a step towards mastering your high-performance lifestyle by completing the High-Performance Profile Quiz.
Tailored for entrepreneurs like you, this quiz will help you understand how your current habits impact your business success and personal wellbeing. Discover your unique profile today and unlock the right strategies to take to achieve peak performance and sustained success.
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Jessica Spendlove, Performance Dietitian, Coach and Speaker
Jess Spendlove is a leading Performance Dietitian, Holistic High-Performance Coach and Speaker acclaimed for guiding thousands of athletes and corporate trailblazers to their peak potential. Her adolescent struggles with under-fuelling catalysed her distinguished career. Jess’s expertise transcends reaching the top; she equips high-achieving individuals to stay there. Her strategies have supported success stories from professional footballers to CEOs, Olympic champions, and the Australian Defence Force's School of Special Operations. Her expertise in optimising performance is second to none. Whether an elite athlete, founder, established entrepreneur or corporate powerhouse, Jess is the guiding force behind achieving excellence.
