Yes that rhymed ;)
So as we all know, it is finals time! While looking around in Pharmacy Times I came across an except that wanted to share, since it relates to any and all students out there! In Pharmacy times there is an excerpt that claims that "Students with IBS symptoms have higher stress levels". The article mentions that College students with IBS symptoms experience higher levels of "mental strain and chronic stress" than their peers without IBS symptoms. After class discussions I wouldn't doubt that individuals with IBS experience higher levels of stress on a daily basis, but I also believe our body works in mysterious ways, and I wouldn't be surprised if around finals time as stress levels are extremely high that IBS symptoms begin to appear in even those individuals who have not been formally diagnosed with the disorder.
For this experiment researchers recruited 176 German university students with IBS-like symptoms, and 181 students without (only 2 had reported being formally diagnosed by a physician). The gathered information from each participant through studies, that asked them questions about their stress levels, and their answers were analyzed and scaled based on chronic stress and IBS symptoms.
They found that IBS-like symptoms were higher in students who experienced higher levels of chronic stress. As i'm sure many of us have realized that 1.5+ weeks of late nights, early mornings, no sleep, greasy food, snacks (peanut m&m's are a must), having a job, and a lack of exercise can certainly feel like a gigantic heavy load of chronic stress. In the study they also found that there was a positive correlation between IBS symptoms and stress levels. Just a reminder these IBS symptoms can include: abdominal pain, bloating, cramping, diarrhea and/or constipation etc. Stress factors that tended to increase these IBS symptoms were: anxiety, work over load, social tension, and job dissatisfaction.
Another aspect I felt was key that they mentioned in this study that the main difference in between students with IBS symptoms who were under the care of a physician vs. those who did not, was that students who frequented doctors typically had more severe symptoms but otherwise, there were no difference in the stress levels. So if your belly starts to ache while you're spending all your free time in the library, or at Coffee Exchange, or wherever you choose to frequent, it may be a sign that your body is handling increased levels of stress. So maybe, take a deep breath, relax, take a mini break and try Karens sudoku puzzle!
Good Luck with Finals!! May the curve be ever in your favor!
Students with IBS Symptoms Have Higher Stress Levels. Pharmacy Times [serial online]. July 2013;79(7):62. Available from: Academic Search Complete, Ipswich, MA. Accessed December 9, 2013.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/irritable-bowel-syndrome/DS00106/DSECTION=symptoms
Great report Nafisah, definitely relating to this right about now. :/ I'm sure that Finals stress will not only be affecting our bodies and brains, but just about EVERYTHING! I think we're going to develop much more other like symptoms than just IBS ones. Things we can do to lower our stress levels would be take use of those stress balls that are given to us from the tables that set up at the mall throughout the semester and take them with you when studying at the library. Also, have you guys heard about the Campus health program we have here on campus? They're the Stressbusters, they are student volunteers that are trained to provide free backrubs and wellness resources around the campus. Or why not just take a walk around the campus and enjoy our beautiful school. Thanks for your recommendation Nafisah and Good Luck on your finals! :)
ReplyDeleteThis article couldn't be anymore fitting than right now! I mean it totally makes sense that we would experience IBS-like symptoms during such stressful times. Plus we seem more prone to get sick during this time considering the fact of, like you said, lack of sleep/rest and just downright inability to adequately take care of ourselves like we normally would just to make sure to end the semester strong. I think I'll probably look into that Stressbusters that Karen just mentioned!
ReplyDeleteThis is a perfect end of semester blog Nafisah! I usually pick up a bad cold around this time of year because of the weather and stress. Hopefully this year is different since I’ve been taking better care of myself. Exercise, sleep, and healthy food is the perfect way to keep yourself together during finals week. Good luck everyone!
ReplyDeleteAlso, this is the first time I’ve heard of the Stressbusters too. I might have to try one of their free backrubs. ☺
This post was great. I work in a pharmacy and at lunch I read a lot of Pharmacy Times although I may have skipped this article. Finals is definitely a stressful time and good luck to everyone on your finals!
ReplyDeleteAs soon as I saw this post, I immediately saw this in my head: http://www.kulfoto.com/funny-pictures/22689/happy-exams-may-the-curve-be-ever-in-your-favor
ReplyDeleteand once I had reached the end of the post, I felt as though you deserved a high-five. Chronic stress is something to be concerned about because it can cause the symptoms of IBS to surface and when they do, it may be a more severe case.
I've never considered myself to be a super stressed out person. My mom can always tell when I'm feeling particularly stressed even though I don't usually. How do moms do it?! Anyway, staying aware of your body and how you're feeling in stressful situations is definitely important, especially at the end of the semester when there is so much to focus on. Be mindful! Do some yoga! And for sure take advantage of those back rubs :)
ReplyDeleteGreat now on top of grades I have to worry about stressing myself into IBD, thanks Nafisah. Just kidding, it was a great post and really relevant to all of us. Though one question though....do the students that develop IBD like symptoms during finals week continue to have them afterwords when the stress is relieved, that would be rather unfortunate and troubling if it did not.
ReplyDeleteThat's a good point that Jeff makes, will the symptoms of IBS continue after finals, or will they eventually go away. Usually as a student, I am not stressed until a test is coming up or during finals week. I wonder if the IBS symptoms found in the students in this study were discovered during finals week or before a test.
ReplyDeleteGreat article Nafisah, perfect timing for it!! I must agree with everything you have mentioned. Sadly, I experience every stress factor you have listed. It seems as though my family and I always stress out more than we need to. Due to stress, both my parents had the chicken pox virus released in the form of shingles. To make matters worse, every week we seem to learn how stress plays a role with the particular disease being discussed. I try to run more or do yoga when I feel like I’m under a lot of stress. To also add on to Juliet’s post, I usually get sick around this time of the semester also. Our immune systems are weaker and we are just so tired from all the late night study sessions.
ReplyDeleteOkay everybody, no need to panic. I feel like at this point, most of us have been through a few years (at least) of stressful midterms and stressful finals weeks. That being said, I've never really thought about it like this... As Nafisah points out, finals weeks pretty much make you eat (tasty) terrible snacks packed full of sugar and fats to get us through those marathon study sessions. I always attributed that lowly-finals feeling to my diet becoming even poorer from lack of time or will to cook a healthy meal. Guess I'll have to think about this finals week slightly different before!
ReplyDeleteAlso, I think it is really cool that this study was done in Germany. Who knows what sort of results we could have seen in the United States- could they be less significant because our diets (on average) are much greasier and promoting of inflammatory responses? As Dr. Cohen pointed out earlier this semester, formal studies have shown McDonald's to single-handedly raise circulating levels of cytokines.
Also, what about countries that are at the top in terms of education performance? Take for instance, Japan, who is ranked much higher in reading, math, and science compared to the US. Are there much higher levels of stress and pressure to perform better in educational systems that demand more than what we are used to? It would be great to do a comparison study of highly-ranked and poorly-ranked (in terms of educational performance). Would the US just coast through with flying colors since we've adapted to worse diets and a less intense educational system? Would be interesting to see.
Great read, Nafisah!!
Is it the compromised immune system that results in a less adapted system for stress leading to the feeling of being more stressed, or is it the lifestyle and stress coping strategies that lead to a higher incidence of IBS? I think its interesting because how could you really know what came first, the chicken or the egg in this situation
ReplyDelete