Huberman Lab
Huberman Lab
Scicomm Media
Control Your Vagus Nerve to Improve Mood, Alertness & Neuroplasticity
1 hour 52 minutes Posted Jun 23, 2025 at 8:00 am.
Vagus Nerve
Sponsors: LMNT & Joovv
Cranial Nerves, Inputs (Afferents) & Outputs (Efferents), Sensory & Motor
Vagus Nerve & Sensory Pathways, Body & Brain
Sensory Information, Chemical & Mechanical Information
Sympathetic & Parasympathetic Nervous Systems, Vagus Nerve, Tool: Calming & Auricular (Ear) Sensation
Sponsors: AG1 & ROKA
Vagus Nerve Motor Outputs
Autoregulation, Improving Heart Rate Variability (HRV) Tools: HR Deceleration
Aging, Declining HRV, Health, Activity, Tool
Tool: Exercise, Increase Alertness for Cognitive & Physical Activity, Motivation
Sponsor: Function
Adult Neuroplasticity & Learning, Acetylcholine, Alpha GPC Nicotine
Tools: High-Intensity Exercise, Increase Alertness, Focus & Learning; Sleep
Serotonin, Gut, Brain & Mood, Depression & SSRIs
Serotonin, Improve Mood & Gut Health, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), Tools: Low-Sugar Fermented Foods, Tryptophan
Mood, Depression, Gut Health & Vagal Signaling, Probiotics
Calming Down via Vagus Nerve, Tool: Neck Peri-Arterial Vagus Stretch
Tools: Calming Down, Humming, Extended Exhales
Recap
Zero-Cost Support, YouTube, Spotify & Apple Follow & Reviews, Sponsors, YouTube Feedback, Protocols Book, Social Media, Neural Network Newsletter
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Show notes
In this episode I explain how your vagus nerve—an extensive neural pathway linking your brain and body in both directions—powerfully regulates your mood, digestion, alertness and even certain food cravings, and I explain how you can activate certain vagus nerve pathways to improve your heart rate variability (HRV), a key marker of health and longevity. I also explain how to control vagal pathways to enhance your focus and alertness to improve learning and neuroplasticity. And I explain how your vagus nerve controls levels of serotonin in both your gut and brain, impacting your mood and emotional resilience and how to keep that pathway robust.
Read the episode show notes at hubermanlab.com.
Thank you to our sponsors
AG1: https://drinkag1.com/huberman
LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/huberman
Joovv: https://joovv.com/huberman
ROKA: https://roka.com/huberman
Function: https://functionhealth.com/huberman
Timestamps
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