IBD and Your 2 Brains: How IBD is Not a One Trick Pony

With more than 70,000 new diagnoses every year, Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is growing in the United States, as well as worldwide in both children and adults. More than 1.6 million Americans have been diagnosed with IBD. So what is inflammatory bowel disease? IBD is an inflammation in the digestive tract that is caused by a dysregulated immune response in the gut microflora. The two types of IBD are Ulcerative Colitis, which is found in just the colonic mucosa; while Crohn’s Disease can be found in any portion of the digestive tract from the patient’s mouth to the anus. The diagnosis of IBD increases the risk of colorectal cancer by about 35%, as well as the increased risk of developing fistulas, abscesses, and even a colostomy.

2 Brains and how stress is integral for IBD

While the cause of IBD is not completely known, a recent study did find that stress impacts and can cause a flare to occur. This means that not only does it matter how you process your emotions, but the neurotransmitters that are primarily made in your gut can have a big effect on the possibility of a flare for those that have IBD.

It is often said that the gut is the body’s “2nd brain”. This is because so much is housed and created in the gut. For instance, did you know that about 90% of your body’s serotonin is made and secreted by your gut? Much of your melatonin is made in the gut as well. These are just a few examples of the neurotransmitters that are made in your gut. Not to mention that about 70% of your immune system is housed within your small intestines. It goes to prove how important it is to take care of your gut and its microbiome.

The gut microbiome contains more than 100 trillion microbes within it. Those microbes play an integral part of your health. If there is a dysbiosis within the gut, it can cause any number of issues. Recently, a study showed that the microbes in the gut can actually talk to your brain through the vagus nerve and send signals for what they are hungry for and craving. It can affect your mood, memory, and even your cognition. The name for this 2-brain conversation is called the Microbiota Gut-Brain Axis (MGB).

Plus, when you take into account that the hypothalamus is responsible for the process of signaling hunger, thirst, and also for the body’s stress response, or as it is commonly referred to as the “fight or flight” mode. That leads us into the HPA-Axis, or the Hypothalamus-Pituitary-Adrenal Axis.

HPA-Axis and how that affects IBD

As I mentioned earlier, a recent study concluded that stressors on the body can cause an IBD patient to flare. How does this happen? Well, the HPA-Axis has something to do with that. This is the axis that is responsible for the “fight or flight” response in your body. However, it doesn’t just stop with that. This area of the brain also controls metabolism, immune responses, and other various operations of your autonomic nervous system. The axis isn’t completely located in the brain, as you can see your adrenals are involved as well. They release the various hormones that the pituitary gland signals to be released.

It’s of no wonder that when a large stress is introduced to an IBD patient that it can trigger a flare: look at all of what the hypothalamus controls as it pertains to hunger, thirst, etc., while adding on top of that the stress response it is also a huge part of. In short, working on stress management is something every IBD patient should be doing as part of their treatment protocol.

Lifestyle Change and IBD

As someone who is healing and now thriving from making lifestyle changes with IBD, I can tell you at first, the change isn’t always easy; however, it is so worth it. Everyone is different so the tips below are more general, and I suggest speaking with a Functional Medicine Doctor to devise a treatment plan that will work best for your unique situation. Once that protocol is mapped out, you can always contact a health coach to help you get started and maintain consistency while you begin your health journey.

Here are some tips that anyone with Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis can work on as part of their lifestyle change:

1. Change your Nutrition: This is critical for anyone who has IBD. Changing your gut microbiome, healing your gut mucosal lining, and promoting nutritional sustenance will go a long way in your healing and recovery from a flare. Remember, we have more than 100 trillion microbes in our gut. If they get in dysbiosis, the bad bacteria will take over and through your system into chaos. Healing your gut and balancing those microbes to a homeostasis should be a top priority to help you get on the path to healthier living. An Elimination Diet is a great tool to use to bring back that homeostasis and healing your gut.

   1. If an Elimination Diet isn’t something you care to do, removing toxic seed oils (canola, soybean, vegetable, peanut, grapeseed, safflower, sunflower) as well as refined sugar are two great starts to healing your gut. A third one would be to remove gluten as well. Many of us don’t realize we have a sensitivity to gluten until it is removed from our diet.

2. Stress Management: This is huge for an IBD warrior. You have to take time to figure out what works best for you to relieve your daily stress. Perhaps it’s a walk in nature, or sitting outside listening to birds. Maybe you like to do kick-boxing with a bag, or breathwork with Tai Chi. There are many forms of stress management, but as we are unique, you need to find one that works best for you.

3. Restful Sleep: Sleep is when our body restores and repairs itself. It’s important to get restful sleep at night to make sure your body has adequate time to repair and heal different areas. Try to get at least 7-9 hours of sleep. For women, you will probably want a bit more.

4. Don’t allow your diagnosis to become your reality: You are a person, not a diagnosis. And while this blog is directed to people with IBD, I want to stress that you are not defined by the diagnosis of IBD. You define who you are. And you can take control of your health.

   Lastly, NO ONE knows your body better than you do. You live in it every day. Be in control of how you want it to feel and operate. Your body wants to heal and it wants to be in homeostasis. All you have to do is give it the right conditions for it to do it in. You’ve got this!