Stress Belly

Do you notice that you get bloated after you eat, no matter what you eat? Do you get more bloated when you’re under stress? Do you gain weight when you’re under stress? Do you notice nausea, gas, abdominal pain, and diarrhea or constipation when you are stressed?

This is what I refer to as stress belly. Those annoying (and uncomfortable) symptoms that increase when your body is under stress. This is not a coincidence – your stress levels directly affect your gut. Chronic stress causes adverse effects on the microbiota (the microorganisms such as bacteria) in your gut.

 

The brain communicates with the gut via the HPA (hypothalamis-pituitary-adrenal) axis and the nervous system. Stress can alter this communication leading to changes in the gut. Chronic stress can lead to:

  • Altered gastrointestinal motility—Serotonin (and other neurotransmitters) plays a role in gut motility.  Changes in gastrointestinal motility are the reason that you may experience diarrhea or constipation under times of stress.

  • Increased intestinal permeability. Increased cortisol levels affect the barrier function of the gut leading to increased permeability. The increased permeability allows bacteria and inflammatory molecules out of the gut and alters the HPA axis which influences brain function. Probiotic supplementation can decrease the amount of inflammatory cells in the gut and suppress stress-induced intestinal permeability.

  • Changes in your gut microbiome, also known as dysbiosis. This dysbiosis, the imbalance of beneficial and harmful bacteria, can lead to digestive symptoms such as gas, bloating, and indigestion, as well as alterations in mood and conditions like SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth).

 

Stress belly is often diagnosed as IBS but without many recommendations on what you can do about it. There are many different ways you can treat this to eliminate your digestive symptoms caused by stress.

What can you do about it? You need to reverse the effects of long-term stress on your gut by replenishing your vitamin and nutrient levels, re-balancing the good bacteria in your gut, and healing your digestive system. You also need to treat the stress, or you’ll end up right back where you started, with stress belly.

Nutrition:

  • Vitamin C helps feed your adrenal glands as well as boosts your immune system.

  • B vitamins. Stress depletes our B-vitamins and so extra B-vitamins will help replenish these vitamins used up by your stressed out adrenal glands. Eating sufficient animal protein, such as eggs, poultry, fish, and red meat can help provide your body with natural sources of B vitamins.

  • Healthy fats help feed your adrenal glands as well as your brain (and your hormones too)

    • Omega 3 fatty acids- such as fish oil

    • Good fats in your diet- eggs, olive oil, avocado, butter, fish

  • Vitamin D activates genes that release neurotransmitters (such as serotonin) to help balance out your stress response

  • Avoid sugar – including sugary foods, starches and refined carbohydrates. Sugar not only feeds bacteria and viruses (as well as yeast and fungus) which can promote gut dysbiosis, but also decreases our immune function and promotes inflammation.

  • Eat probiotics – this includes fermented foods and probiotic supplements.

Heal your gut and replenish it with beneficial bacteria to reverse the dysbiosis caused by long-term stress. A balanced gut will decrease the levels of stress hormones in your body, promote serotonin synthesis and improve depression and anxiety.

Treat the stress. You can’t fix stress belly without addressing the underlying stress. Your adrenal glands are responsible for your body’s stress response. You need to treat the cause of your stress and your adrenal glands in order to eliminate your stress belly.

Stress belly is frustrating and uncomfortable. But it’s not permanent. Do what you can to help eliminate your stress, reverse the effects of it, and make your belly and yourself happy.  

 

 

 

References:

Chaiyavat Chaiyasut and Bhagavathi Sundaram Sivamaruthi (November 5th 2018). Influence of Probiotic Supplementation on Brain Function: Involvement of Gut Microbiome, Inflammation, and Stress Pathway, Gut Microbiota - Brain Axis, Alper Evrensel and Barış Önen Ünsalver, IntechOpen, DOI: 10.5772/intechopen.79511. Available from: https://www.intechopen.com/books/gut-microbiota-brain-axis/influence-of-probiotic-supplementation-on-brain-function-involvement-of-gut-microbiome-inflammation-

D’Mello C, Ronaghan N, Zaheer R, et al. Probiotics improve inflammation-associated sickness behavior by altering communication between the peripheral immune system and the brain. J Neurosci 2015;35:10821-30.

Luis G. Bermúdez-Humarán, Eva Salinas, Genaro G. Ortiz, Luis J. Ramirez-Jirano, J. Alejandro Morales  and Oscar K. Bitzer-Quintero. Review From Probiotics to Psychobiotics: Live Beneficial Bacteria Which Act on the Brain-Gut Axis. Nutrients 2019, 11(4), 890; https://doi.org/10.3390/nu11040890.

Christina Sahni