You have a second brain: in your gut. The Enteric Nervous System, as it’s called, is made up of “sheaths of neurons embedded in the walls of the long tube of our gut, or alimentary canal, which measures about nine meters end to end from the esophagus to the anus.” It contains about 100 million neurons-more than either the spinal chord or peripheral nervous system.
According to this article, the Enteric Nervous System acts as a small brain, complete with it’s own senses and reflexes, that controls digestion. This skips relaying information through the PNS and spinal chord to the brain and back, instead doing it all “on site.” However, professor Emeran Mayer of U.C.L.A. says that the ENS is too complicated to have evolved for the sole purpose of digestion. According to Mayer, “A big part of our emotions are probably influenced by the nerves in our gut.” In fact, every day emotional well-being may depend on messages from the second brain. Research has even uncovered connections between the ENS and autism.
Have you ever heard anything about the Enteric Nervous System?
Why do you think your gut would influence your emotions?
1 Response to “Brain #2”
Wow that is pretty strange. I have never heard about the Enteric Nervous System. It would be pretty cool if it had evolved into another “brain”. I think that emotions being influenced by hunger is pretty straight forward. I’m sure that it’s something that is actually wired in our brain. My grandpa and dad actually have noticeable mood swings when they get hungry. They both seem to get grumpier when they get hungry and the longer it takes for them to get food the more easily they get ticked off.