Wondering if Stress is Causing your Gut Issues? Here are 3 Ways it Might be
It’s likely that you’ve heard something along the lines of “too much stress is not great for you.”
If there ever was a truer statement 🤠
While certain stress, in acute circumstances, can actually be GOOD for us and our bodies (there’s actually a term for this, it’s called “eustress”).
When stress becomes chronic — TOO MUCH — for our system, this is where it can cause problems for us.
… and our guts!
One of the first things I talk to my clients about is what ~STRESS~ looks like for them.
How prevalent it is in their life, what tools they have in they toolbox to manage it… what TYPES of stress may be influencing their life.
Remember, stress isn’t just the perceived/emotional/psychological stressors (though they’re definitely some of the most common), but also things like under eating, inflammation, under and over exercising, poor sleep, blood sugar dysregulation, and more.
We start there, because of the wide-reaching effects that chronic stress has on our health and wellness
Chronic stress leaves your body susceptible to gut imbalances, digestive symptoms, and extra-intestinal symptoms (symptoms outside of the GI tract)
Here are a few ways stress can specifically impact your gut health:
negatively impact our gut-associated immunity
contribute to leaky gut (aka intestinal permeability)
lower stomach acid (plus all of the downstream impacts of this!)
Let’s explore each of these a little further:
Chronic Stress, the Immune System and your Gut
Just beyond our single-cell-thick gut barrier, lies a MAJOR part of our immune system. You might’ve heard this stat before, but upwards of 70-80% of our immune system actually resides in the gut.
That’s significant!
Our intestinal tract is a physical and chemical barrier between the outside world, and the careful inner workings of our system (that our body has to work really hard to protect). Hence the need for so much of our immunity to be available to us here.
A big big part of the immune system within our gut lining/mucosa is something called “Secretory IgA (Immunoglobulin A)” — it’s actually a marker we can test for on the GI MAP to give us an idea of what the immune system is up to.
IMAGE FROM: https://www.diagnosticsolutionslab.com/blog/understanding-siga-gi-map-key-defender-immune-arsenal
This Secretory IgA (SIgA) is the first line of defence in the gut against all sort of unwanted invaders. Think of SIgA like the bouncer at a club — only letting in those who are allowed, rejecting those who aren’t.
Stress SERIOUSLY impacts and suppresses SIgA, which leaves our system more susceptible to unwanted microbes, toxins, pollutants and chemicals, food antigens, etc., which can drive GI symptoms, as well as symptoms outside the gut (such as food sensitivities, skin issues, brain fog, fatigue, joint and muscle pain, and more).
The important takeaway here?
ADDRESSING STRESS = INCREDIBLY IMPORTANT FOR GUT HEALING!!
Actively reducing stress, building tools into your toolbox to manage inevitable stressors, and supporting this gut-associated immunity is incredibly important for gut healing.
In order to protect us against pathogens, toxins, antigens, chemicals, etc. — in order to support us during the healing process (especially if we’re doing eradication protocols and stuff) — our immune system needs to be in tip top shape!
Aside from my obvious recommendation to make working on your stress a top priority 😆 here are some other things you can do to support the immune system in your gut:
Foods like oysters, pumpkin seeds, white button mushrooms, walnuts, small fish (sardines, anchovies), citrus, etc.
Nutrients/supplements like collagen, gelatin, L-glutamine, quercetin, colostrum
Immunoglobulins (these can be found in supplement form!)
Probiotics (containing lactobacillus species, saccharomyces boulardii)
Chronic Stress, Low Stomach Acid and it’s Downstream Impacts
Aside from seriously impacting our immune system, stress depletes stomach acid.
Stomach acid is a “digestive juice” produced by the cells that line our stomach. It’s SUPER acidic 🔋
Our stomach acid is meant to protect us from any bag bugs we ingest via food and drink, start the digestion of proteins we consume, and signals to the rest of our digestive system that it’s time to kick into action.
Stress suppresses our body’s ability to make and secrete stomach acid (when our body is under stress, it’s not super concerned with digestion 🙃)
And CHRONIC stress specifically, is where we can see more downstream impacts of our stomach acid being continuously depleted. It has a domino-like effect on the rest of our digestion.
Low stomach acid levels can lead to:
poor protein digestion (and any further impacts of this!)
vulnerability to any “bad bugs” or parasites we may ingest through food, drink, etc.
poor digestive function in general (as an acidic stomach environment is necessary to signal to the rest of our digestion in the small intestine to do its work!)
imbalances in gut bacteria (low stomach acid levels can actually allow microbes from our mouth to relocate elsewhere in our GI tract, which can be problematic!)
Long term low stomach acid output can be really problematic for both our gut, and overall health.
Managing and reducing stress is a really important part of helping to reestablish stomach acid levels.
If you suspect you have low stomach acid, besides working on the stress piece, here are a few other things you may want to consider:
consuming the nutrients our body requires to PRODUCE stomach acid in the first place (like sodium, zinc, chloride, B vitamins, etc.)
prioritize eating mindfully: chew your food really well, take a few deep breaths before you dig in to your meal, sit down and eat your meal without distractions when possible (like your phone, email inbox, TV, etc.)
incorporate digestive bitters or apple cider vinegar to help stimulate/support stomach acid levels
avoid rushing through meals and eating on the go!!
Long-term, low stomach acid levels will keep our bodies vulnerable to microbial imbalances, poor digestion and therefore poor nutrient absorption (which can lead to deficiencies; it’s common to see things like low iron and B12 levels due to low stomach acid), and altered digestive function.
Make this a priority for yourself!
Chronic Stress and Leaky Gut
Another way that stress impacts our digestion and gut health is its ability to drive something called “leaky gut.”
Our gut lining (in the intestines) is only ONE cell thick. Isn’t that crazy!!??
This lining acts as a barrier between the “outer and inner” worlds:
OUTER WORLD: what’s floating around in our guts
INNER WORLD: our bloodstream & all that it’s interconnected to
The cells that make up this lining are meant to be snuggled up right next to each other. Stress basically creates spaces between these cells, making the lining “leaky.”
This means that stuff we don’t want floating on into our bloodstream, now has access to it.
It can cause a whole lot of issues throughout our whole system — putting our immune system on high-alert, having to address all the stuff that now has access to our bloodstream (and shouldn’t).
These are some of the things leaky gut can contribute to:
skin issues like acne, eczema, psoriasis, dermatitis, rashes, and more
brain fog, memory and focus issues, fatigue
muscle and joint aches and pains
inflammation (throughout your body), and the downstream impacts of this
hair loss
autoimmune conditions
While this list is non-exhaustive, hopefully it shows just how far and wide our gut health can reach as it relates to our health! Which is why you’ll often hear people talk about the symptoms and conditions mentioned above, and suggest you look into your gut health as a means of getting to the bottom of them 🤝
Stress isn’t the only thing that can contribute to leakiness of our gut lining, things like: infections, bad bugs, medications (especially things like NSAIDS, birth control, antibiotics), food antigens, etc. can also contribute to it.
Reducing our stress (in all its forms of course!), will definitely help create an environment in our gut that’ll help our gut lining repair itself.
Needless to say after all of this — stress is an incredibly important factor to address. Truly for our overall health, but specifically for our gut health, as well.
If you need support with both addressing stressors (especially things like blood sugar management, nutrition, navigating a movement routine, sleep, etc.), AND digestive symptoms… I can help!
Here’s How we can Work Together:
GUT GROUNDWORK: a foundational 1:1 program, designed to help you build a solid foundation for thriving gut health, AND start to strategically address your specific digestive symptoms and imbalances (such as IBS, bloating, gas, acid reflux, indigestion, food sensitivities, skin issues, fatigue, and more). This program helps you establish the non-negotiables for good gut health. You can learn more about Gut Groundwork here.
GUT RESTORE METHOD: If you’re looking for go-all-in deep-dive support that includes a personalized gut healing plan and access to things like the functional labs I mentioned above, the Gut Restore Method might be a great fit for you. This is my flagship, high-touch 5 month 1:1 program where we’ll take an investigative, root-cause approach to get to the bottom of your symptoms. You can learn more about the Gut Restore Method here.
