Five Resources on Vagus Nerve Stimulation

The Role of the Vagus Nerve

The vagus nerve, or the tenth cranial verve, is the longest cranial nerve. In Latin, the word “vagus” means wandering, an appropriate way to describe the path of this nerve.

It runs from the brain stem to the transverse colon. Along the way, it innervates the larynx, esophagus, lungs, trachea, heart, and most of the digestive tract. The brain and gut feed-back and feed-forward loops are linked by the vagus nerve.

The long, convoluted pathway means the vagus is the main nerve of the parasympathetic nervous system, often called the rest and digest system. This is the autonomic system that helps the body conserve energy by slowing the heart rate (rest).

The vagus nerve modulates digestion through the migrating motor complex and relaxes the ileocecal valve and other sphincter muscles in the gut (digest).

The messages the vagus nerve transmits to the brain from the gut microbiome also impact the hypothalamus-pituitary axis, which in turn controls the neuroendocrine system, mood, and the immune response.

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