mind - gut connection

[Tone]

Hi, I have a question. Is there really a mind gut connectioin?

Here is why I ask -

On weekdays, I have an early morning bm and then one during the day or as soon as I get home - kind of a losse movement.

On weeekends, I have a bm when I wake up but that's it for the day and it's usually formed better.

Make any sense?

[pippip]

Mine changes on the weekend as well. I wonder if maybe it has something to do with getting out of your normal routine such as waking up later or not going to work. I know changes in routine can cause changes in bm or do you eat differently on the weekend?

[marc]

There is a definite mind gut connection. Before I had a colonoscopy in April 2006, I met first with the colon rectal surgeon who
performed it. He said there is a definite connection. Everything turned out fine with my scope. I used to get diarrhea sometimes,
but since I have been taking a high quality omega 3 (Res-Q 1250) I have had a better stomach.

[samaritan]

There is a proven link between the stomach/bowels and mind.  hence, 'nervous stomach', aldo when I get in any way anxious my bowels seem to be hit first with either diahorrea or constipation, I have IBS too which seems very common among anxiety sufferers.

There is so much serotonin found in the stomach as well as in the brain, I am sure Dune can explain this slightly better than me.

[Folkwire]

Yeah. Painless loose stool happens to me all the time too. Partly because of IBS, partly because of nerves, and partly because, well, my diet sucks.

[tiredandworried]

I guess you are somewhat lucky if you have any  normalcy to your bowel movements at all. Mine can come out of  the blue at any strange time  ......... day or night or  even in the middle of the night i will wake up with stomach cramps and have to go! For maybe a few months they will get normal and then BOOM i am back to the cramps. loose movements whenever it feels like coming!! so annoying!!!! i def think it happens when we get more stressed out though

[Dune]

lol Samaritan...well in rising to the challenge here's my take.

They often say we have 2 brains - gut (enteric nervous system - ENS) and head (cranial brain - CNS).

The gut has its own nervous system which is mainly under autonomic (involuntary) control. Did you know the gut has as many neurons as the spinal cord? During evolution our stomach developed from a nervous control much before our brains...after all, an animal has to eat to survive. And evolution ensured that the ENS is independent of the brain. And in humans, during fetal development our early nervous system splits into 2 - brain and enteric/gut. These are loosely connected by vagus nerves - which I've talked about before going haywire during anxiety causing IBS problems and heart palpitations, but more of this later.

So the ENS manages the GI tract without help of our cranial brain. It regulates the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and colon by mixing food with digestive enzymes and pushing food along the tract (peristalsis). It also helps control the absorption of nutrients into the bloodstream and protects the body against harmful bacteria and toxins that may enter with food. The autonomic nature of the ENS has great advantages - its near the stomach region so can respond quickly and it means we dont need a thick cable of nerves linking it to our cranial brains.

Structurally the ENS is quite similar to the CNS. They use the same structures of sensory and motor neurons as well as the same neurotransmitters, including acetylcholine, norepinephrine/adrenalin, dopamine, and serotonin. We really do have 2 brains.

And because the neurotransmitters of the brain are also present in the bowels, drugs designed for one tend to affect the other. So for example, many of us who take SSRIs designed to increase serotonin levels in the brain also initially experience GI problems like diarrhea or constipation stimulated by serotonin in the ENS. You can also see why that if you have anxiety, you get an imbalance of adrenalin, serotonin, etc, which affects our normal gut function (and our brains!). Hence we get IBS-like symptoms like cramping, gases, pain, diarrhea or constipation (or alternating), etc.

The brain-gut connection via the vagus nerve creates a complex relationship between the 2 nervous systems. A working vagus nerve sends a steady stream of messages between the brain and the gut, with the number of messages going to the brain from the gut outnumbering those from the gut to the brain. For example, the ENS informs the brain of the danger of infected food by inducing nausea or abdominal pain. My personal feeling is that anxiety causes this nerve connection to malfunction so our bowel movements are affected.

Through the vagus nerve, the ENS plays a major role in protecting the body from external threats. In normal circumstances, the ENS moves food down the GI tract in a rhythmic, organised fashion, but it reacts differently if it receives a stress signal from the brain. The response varies depending on the individual system, but ENS may shut down the digestive system or empty it through excretion or vomit. The brain in the gut thus intelligently prepares the body for fight or flight, easier on an empty stomach. So again you can see how anxiety disorder can affect our stomach.

Also, when the gut receives a signal of danger from the brain, it helps protect the body by triggering our immune system. Special cells in the lining of the small intestine and colon release histamine, which causes an inflammatory response to attract immune cells from the blood stream into the area. In this way, the ENS can protect the body from animal attack, stab wounds, or other penetrants that threaten it with infectious material from the outside. Therefore, too much infromation from the brain, e.g. lots more signals during anxiety, causes too much triggering of the inflammatory response which triggers IBS, IBD or Crohn's. So our sensitive balance is easily disrupted.

So how do we know we're full? Why does food make us sleepy? Well alot of food contains tryptophan, an amino acid which is a natural sedative and a pre-cursor of serotonin and dopamine. So as neurochemicals in the gut increase after food, this causes sleepiness and calmness through the CNS (as they share this type of neurotransmitter) via a negative feedback loop. Eating also releases dopamine which is picked up by the brain and causes a sense of contentment. Re: bowel movements, during the weekends you will be more relaxed, less adrenalin, so the gut will move more slowly - making a better formed stool.

I hope I've given an insight into how complex the gut is being independent and controlling many bodily functions whilst also being intricately linked to our brain via the vagal nerve system.

Our bodies are so finely tuned, so many systems are independent yet depend on each other - its easy to see how drugs, stress, anxiety, disease or even sustained poor diet can create complete chaos inside us!!

[Dune]

lol...that one hit the Billboard 100 didnt it.