June 21, 2024 From Medscape
The phrase “having butterflies in the stomach” is more than just a figure of speech. Recent research by Giuseppina Porciello, PhD, Salvatore Maria Aglioti, MD, and their collaborators has provided objective evidence that our emotions correlate with changes in gastric physiology. Their study, published on June 4 in eLife, was conducted by the Department of Psychology at the Sapienza University of Rome, IRCCS-Fondazione Santa Lucia in Rome, and the IIT Center for Life Nano- and Neuro-Science in Rome, Italy.
The Brain-Gut Connection
The communication between the digestive system and the central nervous system (CNS) is well established, often referred to as the brain-gut axis. It’s known that emotions, whether positive or negative, can evoke physical sensations, including in the stomach. However, until now, there has been a lack of direct evidence linking emotions to changes in gastric physiology.
Investigating the Phenomenon
“The body is both the subject and the object of perception,” explains Porciello. “When, for example, we are hungry, we feel hungry because our stomach is letting us know. But do these signals serve only for survival, or do they also contribute to higher-level processes?” To explore this, the researchers used SmartPills, ingestible capsules that measure pH, temperature, and pressure within the gastrointestinal environment and transmit data via Bluetooth.
Measuring Emotional Impact
The study involved 30 participants who watched various video clips designed to elicit different emotions such as disgust, fear, happiness, and sadness. The researchers monitored the participants using electrogastrography, ECG, and eyelid beats. The data revealed significant variations in stomach acidity correlated with the participants’ emotional states.
Porciello described the data, stating that “the more the subjects, especially when they saw disgusting videos, reported feelings of disgust or fear, the higher the pH. Conversely, a less acidic pH was associated with feelings of greater happiness.” This demonstrates that emotional experiences and gastric environment are directly correlated, although the exact cause-effect relationship remains unclear.
Implications for Health
Understanding the relationship between emotions and gastric activity has broader implications. For instance, neuropsychological conditions like autism are closely linked to digestive system disorders. Similarly, conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome often coincide with higher incidences of depression.
Further studies with larger and more diverse samples are necessary to clarify the underlying mechanisms. Additional research will also explore how brain activity correlates with gastric responses, aiming to map how emotions travel between the brain and the stomach.
This pioneering research highlights the profound connection between our emotions and physical sensations in the stomach. As Porciello suggests, “We are now recording, in addition to gastric activity, brain activity with electroencephalography.” These insights pave the way for a deeper understanding of the brain-gut axis and its impact on both mental and physical health.
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