Why women are TWICE as likely to have IBS than men, according to experts

The hashtag #HotGirlsWithIBS has been viewed more than 125 million times on TikTok. Meanwhile, #ibstok has 750 million views and #guttok 1.2 billion.

And in all of these clips, the content creators discussing their bowel conditions are women.

Irritable bowel syndrome – burning abdominal pain, bloating, constipation and diarrhea – affects 15 percent of Americans, but women are twice as likely to suffer from it than men.

Women tend to experience more bloating, nausea and constipation, while men with IBS report this more often diarrhea-related symptoms.

This has long been known among doctors, but why has remained a mystery.

Now a number of experts have explained interesting and convincing theories.

An important one is that women’s suffering may be due to their monthly cycles.

Women with IBS often see their symptoms worsen around the time of their monthly period due to hormone fluctuationsespecially estrogen and progesterone, which are crucial regulators of normal bodily functions such as digestion.

Meanwhile, other experts say the connection between the gut and the brain may be more sensitive in some women.

Women are also more likely to have other intestinal problems.

They are whopping 700 percent more likely than men have a ‘debilitating’ intestinal disease called microscopic colitis, which causes intestinal inflammation leading to persistent diarrhea.

Women are too psychologically more affected by gastrointestinal symptoms, according to doctors at Weill Cornell Medicine, with women reporting increased depression and anxiety and decreased quality of life.

As is the case with many uniquely female health conditions, such as polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD), and endometriosis, IBS and other gastrointestinal disorders are the result of a complex interplay of psychological and physical factors.

Dr. Arefa Cassoobhoy, internal medicine specialist in Atlanta, said: ‘The only thing experts are certain of is that your gender plays a role.

‘A growing body of research shows that sex hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone, may be the reason. They can cause IBS symptoms, which may explain why you have more flare-ups at different times in your menstrual cycle.”

Immediately after a woman’s normal menstrual period ends, estrogen levels rise. Estrogen is an essential sex hormone that can modulate the brain’s perception of pain and alter its movement through the intestines, leading to symptoms such as constipation.

Afterwards, progesterone levels rise to prepare the uterus for a possible pregnancy.

The higher prevalence of IBS in women is thought to be due to a combination of factors, including fluctuating hormones throughout a cycle

Higher progesterone levels reduce the number of bowel movements a woman has per day, and if that plummets at the start of her period, she is more likely to develop diarrhea.

IBS and other gastrointestinal problems are disorders in the interaction between the brain and the intestines. Within the digestive system is the enteric nervous system – a second brain species – composed of more than 100 million nerve cells to control all points of digestion, from swallowing to elimination.

Dr. Jay Pasricha, director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Neurogastroenterology, said, “The enteric nervous system appears incapable of thinking as we know it, but it communicates back and forth with our cerebrum—with profound results.”

A woman’s overall gastrointestinal tract moves more slowly than a man’s. Contractions of the muscles in the intestinal tract help move the food. If those contractions are too slow, the person likely has the constipation-dominant variety of IBS, while faster contractions lead to the diarrhea-dominant type.

The stress hormone cortisol is also thought to have some influence on IBS and other gastrointestinal disorders. Often high cortisol levels go hand in hand with constipation And Spikes are known to slow blood flow to the digestive organs, causing stomach cramps.