Have you ever had “butterflies in your stomach” or noticed that certain situations can upset your stomach? The digestive system is sensitive to emotion. Stress responses are led by the sympathetic nervous system, while many parts of digestion are led by the parasympathetic nervous system. When we are stressed, digestion is downregulated and leads to a variety of issues in the gastrointestinal system. The body will focus its energy on trying to manage a stress response versus digestion.
Which parts of digestion are affected by stress?
Digestion only happens in a parasympathetic, or relaxed nervous system state. When we are stressed, it affects saliva production, stomach acid (hydrochloric acid) is decreased or sometimes increased, optimal pH in the stomach is affected, the ability of the valves and sphincters in the stomach to open and close is affected, as well as peristalsis and gut motility as these are all considered parasympathetic managed activities.1
Every day small stresses matter too
Not only major life changes such as changing jobs or moving can impair digestion, but also minor daily stressors like rushing through traffic or meeting job deadlines. The body perceives stress even if it is not a true fight or flight situation. If the brain views a situation as stressful it will shut down processes that don’t appear to be essential and worry about what’s present in the stomach later.
Digestive symptoms associated with stress
- Indigestion and heartburn
- Nausea
- Stomach ache
- Bloating
- Constipation
- Diarrhea
What’s more, chronic stress is associated with reduced diversity in the microbiome and increased intestinal permeability.2 Intestinal permeability can lead to sensitivities or allergic reactions to certain foods, and make your gut more hospitable to pathogenic infections, parasites, yeast, and bacterial overgrowth.
Strategies for better digestion
Without a doubt, it’s important that we make getting into a parasympathetic state with our nervous system a priority in order to prepare our bodies for optimal digestion. Many important functions of digestion are dependent on the parasympathetic nervous system. The good news is that there is a lot we can do to support getting our nervous systems into parasympathetic mode.
Here are some strategies to help you do that
- Make eating a meal its own event, not a side event to other activities. When we multitask during eating our brains perceive this as a stressor. We end up rushing through meals that don’t allow our bodies to release proper digestive juices for the breakdown of food. Make sure to prioritize sitting down and removing distractions, such as your cell phone and laptop.
- Take 5 to 10 deep breaths before starting a meal. This can quickly move our bodies into a less stressed state and promote relaxation. Check out this short video for more information about the physiological sigh.
- Take time to smell your food and savor it. This helps you increase your focus on your meal and slow down.
- Give thanks for your food. Taking time to be grateful and giving thanks for your food can help you to slow down and enjoy it more. Gratitude also helps produce feelings of well-being.3
- Listen to relaxing music during meals. Music has been shown to help regulate mood and emotions.4
- Move daily. We don’t need to engage in hard-core workouts to experience the great benefits of exercise. Low to moderate exercise has been found to support increased beneficial gut bacteria, increased diversity in the gut microbiome, and lower inflammation.5 Walking, Pilates, resistance training, and biking are just some examples that can provide great benefits in stress reduction. Finding an activity you enjoy is the best way to benefit though!
The digestive system works behind the scenes for you
The gastrointestinal system is an amazing orchestra of organs working together to break down and absorb the nutrients from your food. Every cell in your body depends on the digestive system to supply it with the nutrients it needs for function.
In summary, when it comes to digestion, stress has a profound effect on it. It can lead to uncomfortable symptoms and conditions. While we cannot remove stress completely from our lives, there are many things we can do to support less stress in our lives and support healthy, robust digestion. I’d love for you to share in the comments below what you have found to be helpful for decreasing stress and supporting digestion.
References
- Nutritional Therapy Association. Sleep, Stress and Movement. [PDF file]. 2020. P 54.
- Foster, J. A., Rinaman, L., & Cryan, J. F. (2017). Stress & the gut-brain axis: Regulation by the microbiome. Neurobiology of Stress, 7, 124-136.
- Sansone, R. A., & Sansone, L. A. (2010). Gratitude and well being: the benefits of appreciation. Psychiatry (Edgmont (Pa. : Township)), 7(11), 18–22.
- Aalbers, S., Fusar-Poli, L., Freeman, R. E., Spreen, M., Ket, J. C., Vink, A. C., Maratos, A., Crawford, M., Chen, X. J., & Gold, C. (2017). Music therapy for depression. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, 11(11), CD004517.
- Monda, V., Villano, I., Messina, A., Valenzano, A., Esposito, T., Moscatelli, F., Viggiano, A., Cibelli, G., Chieffi, S., Monda, M., & Messina, G. (2017). Exercise Modifies the Gut Microbiota with Positive Health Effects. Oxidative medicine and cellular longevity, 2017, 3831972.
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