IBS Targets the Anxious and Driven
Reported March 1, 2007
(Ivanhoe Newswire) — Anxious? Driven? Then you may be at risk for a painful bowel condition causing everything from stomach pain to constipation and diarrhea.
A new study reveals stressed-out people who don’t know when to quit are more likely to develop irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) after a bout of gastroenteritis caused by a bacterial infection.
Researchers in England studied 620 people with proven infections but no previous history of IBS who underwent follow-ups three months and six months later. Forty-nine of the original participants were diagnosed with IBS at both follow-ups, with affected individuals significantly more likely to report high levels of stress, anxiety and psychosomatic symptoms. These people were also more likely to keep going, despite increasing symptoms. Women were about twice as likely as men to have developed IBS.
The authors write these findings point to what they call the “cognitive-behavioral” model of IBS, a theory suggesting the condition may be triggered by bacterial infection but persists due to psychological and behavioral characteristics.
“Future research should focus on how these risk factors lead to symptoms in IBS so that we can get a better understanding of the interaction between biological and psychological factors,” they write.
Health officials estimate IBS affects between 10 percent and 15 percent of adults living in Western industrialized nations.
SOURCE: Gut, published online Feb. 25, 2007
