Stress is the body's response to dangerous situations, illnesses, trauma, pain, and emotional issues. Suppose you face unreasonable deadlines, a debilitating health issue, an accident, or any other issue causing you to feel stressed out and burnt out. In that case, it may be affecting your gastrointestinal health.
Often, people continue to experience digestive difficulties even after the significant stress event that first caused them. Studies have shown that stress can cause or worsen the symptoms of several digestive issues, including peptic ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome, inflammatory bowel disease, and gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
The brain gut connection
If you have ever decided based on your "gut feeling" or experienced "butterflies" when you were nervous, you can understand the brain-gut connection. Inside your digestive system is the enteric nervous system. This system has two layers of over 100 million nerve cells that line the entire gastrointestinal tract – from your esophagus to your rectum.
The enteric nervous system, or ENS, controls digestion by releasing enzymes, helps with nutrient absorption, and is even involved in elimination. When you are under chronic stress, the connection between your brain and this nervous system can be altered.
How does stress affect your digestive health?
Chronic stress can alter the makeup of the microflora in your intestines. When this delicate balance is disrupted, it can cause a host of issues, including inflammation, yeast infections, constipation, diarrhea, bloating, and gas. Stress can alter your gastrointestinal secretions and increase intestinal permeability. Increased intestinal permeability is sometimes referred to as leaky gut syndrome. A leaky gut allows partially digested food particles to leave the GI tract and enter the bloodstream.
When you experience stress, your body releases hormones like cortisol, adrenaline, and norepinephrine. Each of these hormones must be kept in balance. If they become imbalanced, they can interfere with your body's ability to make hormones and neurotransmitters, negatively impacting digestion.
When you are under stress, the body releases stress hormones to prepare your body for action. The body begins shutting down non-vital functions to provide you with increased energy so that you can react quickly to any perceived dangers. Your heart rate and respiration increase, your muscles tense so you can spring to action, and your digestion slows.
When digestion slows, the body does not receive as much oxygenated blood, which leads to decreased metabolism. Furthermore, enzyme production decreases, and the body cannot absorb nutrients as well as it previously could, leading to even further digestive issues.
What can you do to improve your digestion?
You may be wondering if there is anything you can do to improve your digestion when you are under chronic stress. The answer is yes. You can do several things to enhance digestion and relieve many of your digestive woes naturally. Let’s check out the top seven ways to improve your gut health naturally.
Exercise – One of the most effective ways to reduce your stress levels and improve your digestion is to ensure you are getting enough physical activity. It is recommended that healthy adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity exercise each week.
When you exercise, your body releases endorphins. Endorphins are feel-good chemicals that help improve your mood and lower your stress. Regular exercise also speeds digestion, enhances energy levels, decreases inflammation, and detoxifies the body.
Stress reduction—Relaxation therapy, such as yoga, biofeedback, journaling, hypnosis, meditation, and prayer, can help improve digestion by lowering the stress response. The stress response is a group of physiological and psychological changes that occur when the body perceives a threat or is experiencing chronic stress.
The National Institutes of Health reports that the relaxation response experienced during relaxation therapy helps to improve IBS symptoms, including flatulence, constipation, belching, bloating, and diarrhea. The study concluded that Benson's Relaxation Response Meditation was a viable treatment option for irritable bowel syndrome.
Dietary modifications–
Foods that are hard to digest can further impact your digestive system. Foods like junk food and processed food are high in fat, sugars, and nitrates. These unhealthy food items increase inflammation in the gut, reduce digestion, and cause a host of digestive ailments.
Opting for whole foods that feed the body the nutrients needed to remain healthy, such as fresh fruits and vegetables, can improve digestive health. However, if you suffer from food sensitivities, such as dairy products, gluten, soy, or corn, you may experience decreased digestion and inflammation; therefore, it is recommended that you avoid these foods altogether.
Probiotics – Probiotics are healthy bacteria that help to rebalance the digestive tract. When your gastrointestinal tract is overrun with harmful bacteria and dangerous pathogens, you can experience many digestive difficulties.
A high-quality probiotic supplement can help decimate unhealthy bacteria and repopulate the beneficial bacteria that aid digestion and nutrient absorption. To maximize its effectiveness, ensure that the supplement provides several strains of bacteria.
In addition to probiotic supplementation, eating fermented foods like yogurt, kefir, and sauerkraut can increase the number of beneficial bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract, thus improving digestion.
Supplementation—A high-quality supplement will help relieve digestive discomfort, decrease inflammation throughout the body, and provide the gastrointestinal tract and the brain with the nutrients needed to deal with and overcome the effects of stress on digestion.
Look for a high-quality supplement that supports the hypothalamus, pituitary gland, and adrenal glands. This supplement will help normalize stress and improve the body's response to stress, thereby improving digestion.
Sleep—Getting enough sleep helps reduce stress and improve the bacteria in your gut. You should get seven to nine hours of sleep each night. A good night's sleep can relieve your digestive woes naturally.
Good sleep hygiene can help you fall asleep faster, get better sleep, and sleep longer. It involves using your bedroom only for sleep, lowering the lights throughout your house at least an hour before bedtime, turning off any blue light-emitting electronics (televisions, cellphones, tablets, and computers) a couple of hours before bedtime, and going to bed at the same time each night.
Prioritize—One of the main reasons Americans experience stress is that they are too busy to enjoy life. Learning to care for yourself should be your top priority.
Learning to prioritize your time and say no when asked to take on additional tasks can help reduce stress levels and naturally heal your gut. Take time to appreciate your life. Laugh often and spend time with those you love. Doing these things will lower your stress level and improve your health.
Although you cannot eliminate stress, there are many ways to relieve it. Learn to prioritize your time, get enough sleep, take a high-quality supplement, eat a healthy diet, take probiotics, and get the recommended amount of exercise to lower the effects of stress on your gastrointestinal system.
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by Kiran Belani in Nutrition
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