How Stress Affects Food Digestion

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'Stress’- though this six letter word takes little moment to pronounce but it takes havoc on your health. In today’s life, if someone claims that his/her life is stress-free, then there is no one luckier than them. From student life, stress begins and this won’t leave you till the end of your life. Study pressure, career, relationship, jobs, health issues, family matters- the reasons of stress are countless. And therefore, the effects of being stressed out are numerous.

When you get stressed, the stress hormone (Cortisol) increases. This affects your body and has dangerous effects. From increasing your blood sugar level to blood pressure, stress is the culprit behind everything. Did you know how stress affects food digestion? Yes, you know how food affects digestion process. If you have junk foods or too many oily and spicy foods, your digestion procedure will surely get affected. But what to do if stress causes gut problem?

Also Read: Best Anxiety And Stress-Fighting Foods

Now, it is quite difficult to remove the reasons of stress from your life. But you can certainly keep it under control by following simple things. Sleep at least 6-7 hours a day. Have healthy foods and follow a routine of meditation. You know how food affects digestion process. Read on to know more about how stress affects food digestion-

1. Stress Disturbs Nervous System- Now, how that can affect your digestive system? Actually, the central nervous system of human body controls the process of digestion. If you are so much stressed out, then the central nervous system stops blood flow and cause muscles contraction, needed for digestion.

2. Stress Weaken Digestive Metabolism- While you’re stressed, your body works of 'fight or flight’ mode. That means it perceives that you’re under attack and decrease blood circulation throughout body. So, if you’re eating stressfully, it affects your metabolism and makes you week. This is how food affects digestion process.

3. Stress Affects Gut Peristalsis- How stress affects food digestion? After eating, foods stay in digestive system for certain time. The body gets nutrients from it and the rest becomes waste. If you eat while you’re stressed, the digestion process stops working. This causes constipation which is also the reason of bloating, obesity, gas, stomach pain and obesity.

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4. Heartburn Also Happens- According to medical studies, heartburn is one of the common problems among people. While you stress too much about something, the sphincter closes the esophagus to move from stomach to spasm. Thus, stomach acid stores in esophagus and causes heartburn. This is how stress affects food digestion.

5. Stress Hampers Immunity of Your Gut- You may not know that around 70% of your body immunity is stored in your gut. It is also the house of good and bad bacteria. Good bacteria keeps your body and brain function on the go. While you’re stressed out, the chemical reaction destroys these good bacteria and makes your immunity system weak.

Hopefully you get ideas about how stress affects food digestion. It is true that get rid of stress is not easy, but you can try at least. If you keep your stress under control, you can keep lots of physical and mental ailments at the bay.

Disclaimer: The information provided in this article is for general informational and educational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or a qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.