Digestive Problems
Digestive wellness is crucial to overall health. Our ability to breakdown and absorb nutrients from food affects every single process in the body.
- Indigestion, reflux and ulcers - Stress triggers fluctuations in stomach acid levels and muscle spasm that can cause acidic gas to travel the incorrect way. This sort of disturbance can irritate the bacterial balance and pH of the digestive system, making ulcers more likely.
- IBS, abdominal bloating and pain - Stress and anxiety has clearly been shown to increase IBS symptoms and can affect anyone at any age (1). Up to 1 in 5 people in the UK develop IBS symptoms at some point in their lives and symptoms are twice more common in women than men. Around half of sufferers can relate the start of their symptoms to a stressful episode in their lives (2).
- Diarrhoea and constipation - Feelings of stress can alter how you breathe, leading to a reduction in CO2 and subsequently constriction of the muscles around the intestines. This can initiate constipation often followed by loose bowels when these muscles spasms reduce. Dietary factors can also play a part.
- IBD (Irritable Bowel Disease) - It is now well established that stress plays a part in IBD's (Crohn's disease and Colitis) and that decreasing levels of stress can reduce relapses and lead to long-term remission (3).
Your treatment plan
After a thorough medical history and examination procedure treatment needs to address the underlying causes and any exacerbating factors.
Acupuncture
Certain acupuncture points have been shown to affect areas of the brain that are known to reduce sensitivity to pain and stress, as well as promoting relaxation and deactivating the ‘analytical’ brain, which is responsible for anxiety (4).
Massage
A combination of bodywork such as tui na, acupressure, massage, reflexology, relaxation, breathing and mindful awareness exercises are also a core strategy that has proven helpful for many people.
Other Lifestyle factors - Creating restful sleep patterns, making sure you have the right diet, nutrients and nourishing eating habits are also key, as well as addressing any emotional issues that may be involved.
British Acupuncture Research Fact Sheets - For further information please take a look at the related issues section on the right hand-side of the screen.
- The ties that bind: perceived social support, stress, and IBS in severely affected patients J. Lackner et al. Neurogastroenterology & Motility, Volume 22, Issue 8, pages 893–900, August 2010.
- http://www.patient.co.uk/health/Irritable-Bowel-Syndrome.htm
- Shu S, Li TM, Fang FF, He HL, Zhou QH, Gu W, Zhou S. Relieving pre-exam anxiety syndrome with wrist-ankle acupuncture: a randomized controlled trial. Zhong Xi Yi Jie He Xue Bao. 2011 Jun;9(6):605-10 2.
- Wu MT et al. Central nervous pathway for acupuncture stimulation: localization of processing with functional MR imaging of the brain-- preliminary experience. Radiology 1999; 212: 133-41.