The ear, nose, and throat system manages daily digestion activities independently from the central nervous system. It signals feelings of hunger or fullness through its nerve cells, alongside the complex ecosystem of microbes in the digestive tract. Our digestive organs have their own nervous system called the enteric nervous system, often referred to as the second brain, containing over 100 million nerve endings capable of controlling various digestive processes. It also shares a network of neural pathways with the brain to facilitate communication between the brain and stomach. Notably, 95% of serotonin—the “happiness hormone”—is found in the stomach and continuously communicates with the brain to control intestinal movement and function through chemical messengers that transmit signals between the brain and nervous system. This explains why you might hear your stomach growl when you see a steak or a piece of chocolate.
Instinctive emotions transmit their signals from the brain to the digestive tract via two-way neural pathways. This fully explains what happens during feelings of stress and anxiety. These instinctive emotions travel to the brain through these two-way routes, which then send signals to the stomach. The stomach responds with reactions such as bloating, cramps, nausea, various stomach aches, or sudden urges to use the restroom. For example, this often happens when facing an unusual situation like speaking in front of a crowd or feeling embarrassed.
A deep understanding of the complex relationship between your brain and gut helps treat many intestinal and digestive disorders such as irritable bowel syndrome, bowel disturbances, and multiple bloating problems. So how can you control this relationship to your advantage? Doctors continuously answer this question as science pursues more comprehensive patient treatments by choosing non-drug therapies for digestive diseases. Psychological treatments that directly affect digestion can be used, such as hypnosis and cognitive-behavioral therapy, both aiming to improve communication between the brain of the mind and the brain of the gut. This results in calming symptoms in the body. It has been proven that psychological therapy has a soothing effect on the digestive tract, directly influencing intestinal motility, stomach secretions, and sensitivity to abdominal pain. Studies have also confirmed these psychological treatments’ ability to help patients with ulcerative colitis. In conclusion, you can control the complex brain-gut relationship by regulating stress responses and restructuring the brain to adjust unwanted pain signals from the digestive tract.
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