Knowledge Centre

Your gut and brain are always talking.

The "gut–brain axis" is shorthand for a two-way communication network made up of nerves, hormones, immune signals and lipid messengers. Satiety lives right in the middle of it.

The vagus nerve

The vagus nerve is the main highway between the gut and the brainstem. When you eat, mechanical stretch and chemical signals travel up the vagus to say, in effect, "food has arrived, start winding down."

Hormonal signals

Hormones like CCK, PYY, GLP-1 and leptin all shape how quickly and clearly satiety registers. This is why real food, eaten slowly, feels different from a quick snack.

Where OEA fits

OEA is one of several endogenous lipid messengers produced in the upper small intestine after eating. It is described in the literature as part of the post-meal signalling that supports the everyday sense of having eaten enough.