The Gut-Brain and Brain-Gut Connection
More than hundred trillion bacteria that weigh around 4.5 pounds are in your gut- small and large intestines at any time of the day and the night. And they are proven to affect your mood and emotions and stress levels throughout the day. A lot of these bacteria are good for your health, carrying out important tasks for your overall health like improving your immune system and protecting you from diseases. They help with the digestion and fighting the harmful by-products of digestion and not leaving much space for the bad bacteria.
According to a study at UCLA that fed probiotic yogurt to a group of people twice a day for four weeks, non-probiotic dairy product to a second group and their standard diet to the third group. Their brain responses in a brain scanner were measured after this 4-week period. And the results showed that the brain functioning of the probiotic group was much different, both when active and at rest.
Your gut health can even affect your personality, not just your emotions and behavior. In another study with the shy and outgoing mice, first all the bacteria were wiped out with the antibiotics and they were fed the microbiota of the other group. They ended up swapping personalities, the shy became extrovert and the extroverts became shy.
If you feel intestinal pain or nauseated during the stressful times this does not mean these physical conditions are all in your mind. But more like that your brain or psychology influences the physiology and the symptoms, the contractions and the movement on the intestinal tract and worsen the inflammation and make you more exposed to infection. Another research paper suggests that the pain can be perceived more severely by the people with gastrointestinal tract issues as their brains can be more perceptive to the pain signals that come from the intestines.
If you focus on improving your GI condition with psychotherapy to reduce your anxiety, stress and depression rather than the medical treatment you’ll get faster and better results, according to a review of many studies on gut health and brain connection. Many experts believe that the relationship between the brain or depression and the irritable bowel syndrome is like a frustrating, vicious cycle with one of them making the other one worse rather than one causing the other directly. The treatments that help with relieving stress and anxiety can often help your with the gut health too.
For some people the irritable bowel syndrome symptoms can be the reasons for distress that feels just like depression. And they can lose interest and avoid their social activities, worrying what may happen with their diarrhea or tummy pain. They may also be too tired or lazy to take any action like changing their diets to ease the symptoms like diarrhea or constipation. And the whole thing of feeling down and emotional distress can make their bowels worse. Embarrassment, shame, fear, loss of freedom can accompany the depression and IBS. Some antidepressants may help with depression and mood problems and it is best you talk to your doctor whether taking meds might help and which med and how you should take them.
Even if you are not depressed you can get relief from certain antidepressant medications as they block the way how brain processes certain emotions. Gut bacteria may control your satiety as they can partly decide what and how much you eat. According to The American College of Gastroenterology, the two classes of antidepressants can help with the IBS symptoms- tricyclic antidepressants and Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). According to another study by a trusted university source roughly 30% of IBS sufferers also suffer from mild to severe depression, which is the most common psychological disorder experienced by the IBS patients. The GAD- Generalized Anxiety Disorder or excessive and constant worrying is found in about 15% of those with IBS- irritable bowel syndrome.
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