subject: Part 2: GI Disorders and Stress [print this page] Part 2: GI Disorders and Stress Part 2: GI Disorders and Stress
Controlling your body's response to stress can greatly reduce gastrointestinal disturbances. Removing stressors from your life is a great first step, but our fast-paced, highly demanding lifestyles don't always allow us to remove stressors completely. Reducing stress levels using relaxation techniques and behavioral modification is a great way to nip stress in the bud. Changing how you react to stressors is very helpful in reducing stress levels long-term.
There are also certain vitamins that help your body to better handle stress. It's not just that taking vitamins can make you healthier, but they also relieve stress by regulating the physical responses that your body has to stress. Each vitamin works in a different way, so here we are going to discuss how each one may benefit you. Getting on a proper vitamin and supplement routine and working with your health care professional, you can get GI disorders, stress and anxiety under control, eliminating the need to take medications that simply mask the symptoms without treating the problem.
Vitamins A, B, C and E are considered the "stress relief" vitamins. They work by relieving gastrointestinal disturbances, antioxidants, or hormone regulators, which are beneficial in relieving stress or discomfort and preventing the body from overreacting to stressful situations. GI disorders can also lead to certain vitamin deficiencies, leading to bigger problems down the line.
When your body is stressed, it makes inflammatory cytokines to inflame your system in an effort to protect organs from stress hormones. An excess of inflammatory cytokines is associated with inflammatory GI disorders, such as irritable bowel syndrome. This is thought to lead to vitamin D deficiency and osteoporosis. Anyone who experiences GI problems should be evaluated for vitamin deficiency. Stress itself can eat up your body's vitamin stores, so even if you're not deficient when you're tested, you could quickly become that way if you continue to experience stress.
Vitamin A is considered a "stress relief" vitamin for a couple of reasons. One, it aids in cell metabolism, increasing the efficiency in which your cells process hormone signals. Vitamin A can help you to return to a normal state more quickly after a stressful event while clearing out excess inflammatory cytokines that are contributing to pain. This is how it actually helps to relieve symptoms of intestinal distress.
B complex vitamins, including niacin and pantothenic acid, help to control stress in a number of ways. The most important action of vitamin B is how it helps the body to deal with stress. It not only aids in cell metabolism, like vitamin A, but also is a necessary nutrient for creating serotonin. Serotonin is primarily found in the intestinal tract and aiding its production with B vitamins helps to correct many GI problems. Serotonin directly affects and regulates mood, appetite, sleep and muscle contraction.
B vitamins work synergistically with vitamin C and E to control production of the stress hormones adrenalin and cortisol. Vitamins C and E also flush out the dangerous free radicals that are produced by the oxidative stress that occurs when adrenalin and cortisol are released. Vitamin C and B vitamins synthesize hormones like dopamine and adrenaline. Dopamine synthesis is necessary for the brain to "run smoothly" in a balanced manner. Without enough, the brain stays in a "fight or flight" mode which leads to additional stress, inflammation and, subsequently, GI and mental disorders. The best vitamin C, vitamin C powder, is recommended for people with GI disorders because its acid has been neutralized and is much easier on a sensitive digestive system than other forms of vitamin C.
