Stress Stomach Pain Conditions May Lead To Chronic Health Diseases
Healthful Vitality | 10/13/2021 | By NP Contributor | Stress Stomach Pain
When a person is acutely stressed and needs to make complex decisions, one may rely on gut feelings. Moreover, modern studies show a clear and two-sided link between the gut and the brain. Thus, experts now call it the gut-brain axis.
It also means that in chronically stressed individuals, the gut function is also altered. But, on the other hand, an altered gut function may affect mood and make someone prone to stress.
Studies show that all responses to stress can be broadly divided into emotional and somatic (physical or changes in the body). Thus, gut pain is one such bodily response.
Stress and stomach pain
A continuous high level of stress increases the production of gastric acid. It may also alter gut immunity. It has widespread effects on gut health, causing distress. Thus, high gastric acid production leads to a greater risk of gastritis and even ulcers formation, both of these conditions may cause stomach pain.
But that is not all. Higher sympathetic nervous system activity may lead to spasms in the gastrointestinal tract, causing stomach pain. It may even cause poor digestion, bloating, and diarrhea. Thus, in many cases, this stomach pain may be short, in others prolonged.
Stress and risk of functional gastrointestinal disorders
It is not rare for a person living with high stress to come to the doctor with complaints of stomach pain, diarrhea, constipation, poor sleep, and fatigue. In many such cases, doctors would find it difficult to diagnose the condition. It is because most usual lab tests and imaging tests would show normal results.
In functional gastric disorders like irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), the gastric function is considerably altered. Yet, in many cases, most lab indicators may be normal. Only on prolonged stress, some changes start happening, like malnutrition syndrome. Stress is no doubt one of the significant reasons for chronic and repeated stomach pain.
Most people living with stress would have some gastrointestinal issues. However, in many cases, symptoms could be pretty vague. For example, it could be frequent episodes of pain, diarrhea altering with constipation. In such difficult to understand conditions, medicines targeting the gastrointestinal tract will not help well without stress management.
Stress and leaky gut syndrome
In recent years leaky gut syndrome has received greater attention from doctors. It is a condition in which intestinal permeability is altered due to local inflammation and perhaps due to changes in gut flora.
A leaky gut causes higher levels of toxins in the blood, changes in bowel movements, frequent spasms, and stomach pains. Even worse, a leaky gut can make stress worse; it may even cause depression.
It creates a vicious circle. A high level of chronic stress causing gut distress, and increasing gut distress leads to emotional disorders. If this circle is not broken, a person may develop chronic gastrointestinal diseases, metabolic disorders, and mental health issues. To conclude, acute stomach pain is frequent in stress. However, more threatening is the chronic stress and related gastrointestinal changes. These conditions may lead to chronic health diseases, causing frequent bouts of stomach pain.
Related: Sources of External Stressors