Cortisol Is Trending. The Gut-Brain Impact Is Bigger Than You Think

May Is Mental Health Awareness Month—Let’s Talk About Cortisol  

Lately, more people are searching for answers about cortisol. In fact, Google reports that interest in the term “cortisol” has more than doubled in the past year, with trending searches like “how to lower cortisol” and “cortisol triggering foods” rising fast.

It’s no surprise—life feels more stressful than ever, and many are realizing that fatigue, irritability, and sleep struggles may be connected to this one powerful hormone. That’s why May is the perfect time to understand how cortisol affects mental well-being—and what we can do to support a steadier, healthier response.

What Is Cortisol? 

Cortisol is the body’s primary stress hormone, released by the adrenal glands as part of the fight-or-flight response. When there’s a real-time challenge—like a car swerving into your lane—cortisol helps the body react. It sharpens focus, raises blood pressure, and quickly mobilizes energy to help you move through the moment.

This response is helpful in short bursts. But when stress becomes constant—driven by things like sleep disruption, chronic inflammation, or blood sugar swings—cortisol may stay elevated longer than the body is designed to handle. Over time, this can affect physical, emotional, and mental well-being. 

Gut Health and Cortisol Are Closely Linked

One of the most overlooked connections in managing cortisol is gut health. Your gut and brain are in constant communication through the gut-brain axis, and the health of your gut microbiome can influence how much stress your body perceives.

An imbalanced microbiome can influence how the brain perceives stress, increasing the likelihood of signals that keep the body in a heightened state of alert. Over time, this may contribute to elevated cortisol levels and make it harder for the body to settle back into balance. Supporting gut health helps regulate this feedback loop and encourages a steadier response to stress.  

Cortisol and Mental Health: Why It Matters

Cortisol influences many areas tied to emotional well-being, including sleep patterns, energy regulation, and how the brain processes stress. When cortisol remains elevated over time, it can disrupt the natural rhythm of these processes and lead to anxiety, mood swings, and mental and emotional fatigue.

High cortisol affects the brain’s ability to regulate neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine, both of which are important for maintaining emotional balance.  

Over time, the body becomes less responsive to cortisol’s signals, which may lead to a constant state of internal stress—even when no immediate threat is present. These high levels of cortisol can leave people feeling depleted, reactive, or emotionally flat, especially when combined with other challenges like gut disruption and inflammation.

Common Causes of Chronically High Cortisol

Understanding what keeps cortisol elevated can help you take proactive steps to calm the body’s stress response. Some of the most common factors include:

• Ongoing stress without a stress management plan

• Poor sleep quality or irregular sleep patterns

• Blood sugar imbalances 

• Poor nutrition—low-fiber, ultra-processed foods

• Lack of physical activity or overtraining without rest

• Inflammation or chronic gut issues

These patterns are all too common—but fortunately, they can be adjusted with small, supportive habits. 

The Hidden Stressor: Dehydration and Cortisol

Even mild dehydration can increase cortisol levels. When the body doesn’t have enough fluid, it signals stress, which can activate the same hormonal response triggered by mental or emotional pressure.

Over time, not drinking enough water may contribute to elevated cortisol and make it harder for the body to return to a calm state. Dehydration can also worsen symptoms like fatigue, headaches, and brain fog, which are already common with high cortisol.

Staying hydrated helps your body feel safe and supported. Aim for consistent fluid intake throughout the day, especially if you’re consuming caffeine, spending time in the heat, or feeling run down. 

A well-hydrated body is better equipped to manage stress—both inside and out. (Is your water bottle nearby? Have a sip! 🥤😉) 

5 Signs Your Cortisol Might Be High

Cortisol levels can stay high for a long time before the effects become obvious. These signs often build gradually and are easy to miss—especially when life feels busy or demanding.

Keep an eye out for:

✳️ Sleep Disruption: Especially waking up during the night or feeling alert at bedtime.

✳️ Unrelenting Fatigue: Feeling drained even after a full night’s sleep.

✳️ Emotional Reactivity: Quick to frustration, anger, anxiety, or emotional swings.

✳️ Changes in Weight Distribution: Particularly around the belly, even with no changes in routine (diet and exercise).

✳️ Getting Sick More Often: Or needing longer to bounce back from colds or minor illnesses.

If several of these feel familiar, it may be time to check in with your body—and your gut. Cortisol doesn’t operate in isolation, and supporting the systems around it can help bring things back into a more steady rhythm. 

Cortisol and Food

What Foods Can Raise Cortisol?

Food doesn’t just fuel us—it affects our hormones too. Certain ingredients can trigger cortisol spikes, especially when combined with other stressors. Common culprits include:

• Refined sugar and high-fructose corn syrup

• Excess caffeine

• Low-protein, low-fiber meals

• Alcohol

• Processed snack foods with artificial additives or poor nutrient density

These foods don’t cause stress on their own, but they can make the body more reactive under pressure. Prioritizing stability in blood sugar and gut health is key to breaking the cycle.

What Foods Can Help Lower Cortisol?

The good news? There are plenty of foods that help support your body during stressful times. Here are a few nutrient-dense options that help the body feel calm and steady:

Oats: A fiber-rich carb that supports serotonin production

Berries: Full of antioxidants that reduce oxidative stress

Avocado: A source of healthy fats that help with hormone regulation

Pumpkin seeds: Rich in magnesium, a calming mineral

Leafy greens: Packed with B vitamins and anti-inflammatory compounds

Greek yogurt: Supports gut health with probiotics and protein

Consistency matters; making whole, unprocessed, fiber-rich foods part of your regular routine can help bring cortisol back into balance. 

Why Prebiotic Fiber Matters When Cortisol Runs High

When cortisol stays elevated, blood sugar imbalance often follows—creating a cycle of energy crashes, cravings, and stress responses that feed into one another. 

Prebiotic fiber helps interrupt that cycle by slowing the digestion of carbohydrates, which helps maintain more stable blood sugar throughout the day.

It also supports the production of short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs)—compounds that help modulate inflammation and support hormonal regulation across multiple systems, including the stress response.

By improving blood sugar stability and reducing inflammatory triggers, prebiotic fiber helps create a more supportive environment for cortisol regulation. 

A Helping Hand From just better.® Prebiotic Fiber 

At JUST BETTER BRANDS, we always recommend getting as much fiber as possible from whole, unprocessed foods—like fresh produce, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds. 

But the truth is, most people fall short of the recommended 30 grams of fiber per day—especially during busy or stressful seasons. That’s where just better.® prebiotic fiber can help fill the gap and support your daily intake goals.

JBB Tip: For blood sugar support, take two tablespoons of just better.® prebiotic fiber with—or just before—every meal and snack. This timing matters: fiber needs to be in the digestive tract alongside carbohydrates to help slow absorption and support a steadier metabolic response.

Supporting Mental Health Takes Many Forms

Nutrition and cortisol management are just part of the mental health picture. Sometimes the weight of what we’re carrying becomes too much to manage alone. If stress, anxiety, depression, or mood swings start to affect daily life, reaching out to a mental health professional can provide meaningful support.  

There’s strength in knowing when to ask for help—and it’s one of the most powerful steps we can take toward feeling better. Taking care of our mental health isn’t a solo effort, and we don’t have to do it alone. 🫶

Why Cortisol Awareness Pays Off

Understanding how cortisol functions helps us respond to stress with more intention. When we understand how daily stress, gut health, and blood sugar are connected, we can start making choices that support steadiness from the inside out. 

Caring for mental health starts with awareness—and that awareness opens the door to meaningful change. Live… just better.®! 

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