Stress leads to bowel disorders|Gut-brain connections|Gut feel
63Have you ever wondered why you have severe cramps in your stomach when you are stressed? Or why specialists ask you to relax when you have an upset tummy? It should not be mistaken for a psychomatic condition. It is stress which triggers bowel dysfunction.
With an irritable bowel, a person is forced to stay put at home, away from the daily routine. Bloating, abdominal pain, diarrhoea or constipation (sometimes these alternates) could be symptoms of bowel disorder.
Mainly when you are stressed, your gut is getting affected. Gut is referred to as the human body's second brain. Scientists have shown that the brain and gut communicate back and forth via major nerves extending from the base of the brain to the abdomen.
The Gut and brain are closely connected. The gut has numerous nerve cells and direct nerve connections to the brain. With these, they directly influence each other. This probably also explains why you have butterflies in your stomach before any important performance like examination or interview. Or even when you feel extremely tired when you have loose motion or constipation.
Our gut also produces chemicals called benzodiazepines, which is found in anti-anxiety drugs. These chemicals also alleviate pain. In fact, our gut is really our body's anxiety and pain reliever.
The gut and the brain are highly integrated and communicate in a bidirectional way mainly through the ANS and HPA axis. The generation of emotion, stress and associated physiologic changes are the work of the limbic system which is under control of the Gut. Hence, it is very clear that stress leads to bowel disorders.
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