Discovering What's Going on In There
How Stress and Anxiety negatively affect your digestion and your health.
Have you ever had ‘butterflies’ in your stomach from anxiety or excitement? Or have you had to make a
“gut-wrenching” decision under pressure? Well then you need to know how stress and other events can affect your digestive system.
They call the gut the second brain for a reason. The gut and your brain are constantly in communication.
In fact, there are more neurons (nerve cells) in the gut than in the entire spinal cord, according to the book Neuroscience.
“Stress can affect every part of the digestive system,” says Kenneth Koch, MD, professor of medicine in gastroenterology.
The gut is controlled by the central nervous system which is comprised of the brain and spinal cord. But the gut has its own network of neurons in the lining of the gastrointestinal system! These neurons are known as the Enteric Nervous System. This system of nerves in your gut can influence so many other parts of our entire body. That’s why they call our gut The Second Brain. (Please see the article published in Scientific American).
The enteric nervous system in your gut goes from your esophagus (the tube that takes food from your mouth to your stomach) to your anus, where it all gets eliminated once your body has gleaned the nutrients from it. This system regulates swallowing and controls the release of enzymes to break down our food. It also decides which of what we eat is actually food for our body to utilize, or which is waste to be eliminated. Stress significantly impacts the way your body carries out these important processes.
Here’s what happens when your body is stressed:
There are two divisions of your central nervous system. The Parasympathetic nervous system regulates primarily digestion, healing and repair and predominates when we sleep or relax after a big meal to digest our food. It acts more like the brakes of our body and slows things down so other systems can do their job.
The Sympathetic nervous system is like the accelerator of the body and increases our heartbeat, breathing, and blood pressure whenever there is a real or perceived threat. This is called the “fight-or-flight” response. This system causes a release of stress hormones like cortisol to prepare the body to fight the threat or run from it.
This kind of stress causes physiological changes, like a heightened state of awareness, faster breathing and heart rate, elevated blood pressure, a rise in blood cholesterol (for more energy), and an increase in muscle tension.
When you are stressed, and the fight-or-flight response is activated, your body prepares you to flee or fight for your life. The body can’t tell the difference between a life-threatening situation like a bear chasing you, or your boss threatening to fire you, or even you worrying about your boss firing you! So in either case, it is not concerned about digesting your food. Its priority is to get you out of danger.
Many symptoms can manifest from stress that cause the Sympathetic nervous system to kick in. Your esophagus can go into spasms, you can feel nauseous because digesting food is no longer a priority. Indigestion can occur as the body stops producing stomach acid to digest food and diverts the energy to the muscles for fight or flight. Diarrhea or constipation can also occur as the body’s digestion is compromised because of the stress that is occurring.
If stress becomes more chronic, and your body doesn’t get a chance to recover from a stressful event, this stress can eventually cause a decrease in blood flow and oxygen to the stomach, which can lead to cramping, inflammation and an imbalance of our beneficial gut bacteria (our probiotics).
Chronic stress causes the body to be compromised and more susceptible to digestive diseases like Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), peptic ulcers, and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
It is very important to have stress-relieving measures and find ways to minimize stress and give your body a break. There are many things you can do to help your body stay healthy and happy.
Below are ways to manage stress to give your body a break and help keep your digestion optimal and out of the fight or flight mode.
6 ways to Manage Stress
There are both psychological and physical ways to manage stress. But the same stress relieving technique might not work for everyone.
Here are six options you can try
- 1. Get Regular Exercise
Physical activity relieves tension and stimulates the release of chemicals in your brain called endorphins, which act as natural painkillers. Endorphins improve sleep, which can help relieve stress, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.
“It’s one of the best ways to manage stress and maintain healthy digestion,” Koch says. A study published in 2014 in the journal Cognitive Behavioural Therapy examined the relationship between aerobic exercise and attentional focus during exercise on 33 patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and found that 89 percent of patients reported improvements in PTSD and anxiety sensitivity.
- 4. Yoga
This mind-body practice combines physical poses with breathing techniques and meditation. According to a study published in 2018 in the International Journal of Preventive Medicine, women who engaged in hour-long Hatha yoga classes three times a week for 12 sessions achieved significant reductions in stress, anxiety, and depression. Research also shows that yoga can lower blood pressure and heart rate.
- 2. Consider Psychotherapy
Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a technique that has been proven to help reduce anxiety and stress by helping you learn to replace negative, distorted thoughts with positive ones. A study published in 2017 in the Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology looked at the effectiveness of CBT on quality of life, anxiety, and depression in those with IBD. Patients with IBD who reported low quality of life were randomly assigned a CBT intervention along with standard medical care for three and a half months. When compared with a control group, people with IBD who received CBT reported higher quality of life and lower levels of depression and anxiety.
- 5. Meditation
There are many meditation techniques that can help you focus your mind on an object, activity, or thought? to help you achieve calmness. Although the goal of meditation is not stress reduction, that is a side effect of this ancient practice.
A review published in 2018 in The Lancet Public Health looked at the effects of a mindfulness-based intervention on resilience to stress in college students. Eight weekly Mindfulness Skills for Students (MSS) interventions were randomly administered to students for 75 to 90 minutes, focusing on mindfulness exercises and periods of self-reflection. At the end of the intervention, students in the MSS group reported lower levels of stress.
- 3. Choose Stress-Busting Foods
A review published in May 2017 in the journal Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews found that eating disorders and obesity can be associated with psychological stress. Cortisol, a hormone released by the adrenal glands, also increases appetite. Stress can affect food preferences, too. Studies have shown that “physical or emotional distress increases the intake of food high in fat, sugar, or both,” according to Harvard Medical School.
But there are certain foods that have been shown to reduce anxiety. Salmon contains omega-3 fatty acids, which are natural mood boosters. Almonds are chock full of magnesium, a mineral that helps manage cortisol levels. And oranges and other citrus fruits contain vitamin C, which can lower blood pressure, according to research published in January 2017 in the journal Scientific Reports.
- 6. Develop Time-Management Skills
An important part of stress reduction is self-care. For many, this involves managing your time as effectively as possible. A study published in 2017 in the journal Electronic Physician looked at the relationships between time management, anxiety, and academic motivation in 441 nursing school students using self-reported questionnaires and scales. Students who did a poor job managing their time had higher levels of anxiety and less academic motivation than individuals who were better time managers.