Irritable Bowl Syndrome is believed to be due to the abnormal function (dysfunction) of the muscles of the organs of the gastrointestinal tract or the nerves controlling the organs. The nerves that control the gastrointestinal tract, however, are complex.

Nerves can be found along the entire span of the gastrointestinal tract that begins at the esophagus and ends at the anus. This network of nerves interacts with the many nerves associated with the spinal cord. The nerves contained in the spinal cord then interact with the nerves of the brain. (The gastrointestinal tract is exceeded by the amount of nerves only by the brain and spinal cord.) Therefore, it is possible for irritable bowl syndrome to cause the nerves to malfunction in the spine, the brain as well as the intestinal tract.

The nervous system that controls the gastrointestinal organs, as with most other organs, contains both sensory and motor nerves. The sensory nerves continuously sense what is happening within the organ and relay this information to nerves in the organ’s wall. From there, information can be relayed to the spinal cord and brain.

The sensory input results in the motor responses called contractions and relaxation in the muscles of the organ. As such, abnormal inputs to the sensory nerves or the motor nerves or even at the receptors in the intestines, brain and spinal cord can produce irritable bowl syndrome.

A number of researchers suggest that it is possible to experience the perception of a disease or health problem due to the abnormal function of sensory nerves. A simple example is food causing the normal stretching of the walls in the small intestine where the sensory impulses signal pain to the spinal cord and the brain.

There are other researchers who agree that abnormalities in how the motor nerves work can cause the perception of a problem. An example would be abnormal impulses through motor nerves that cause a painful contraction of a muscle.

Lastly, one area that is receiving a great deal of scientific attention is the potential role of gas produced by intestinal bacteria in patients with IBS. Studies have demonstrated that patients with irritable bowl syndrome produce larger amounts of gas than individuals without irritable bowl syndrome, and the gas may be retained longer in the small intestine.

It was discovered that due to this gas the abdominal cavity increased in size gradually over the length of a day then returned to normal size in the morning. This is most likely due to poor digestion and its effects on the absorption of dietary sugars. Insufficient absorption of fructose and lactose compounded by poor digestion serves to escalate irritable bowl syndrome because of increased production of gas.

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