Neurogastroenterology and the brain in the abdomen

[Teacher]

One type of "brain" of the body is called the enteric Moss by God or enteric nervous ICU-the-mine ("en-te-ro" literally means "inside the intestines," from the Greek enteron, "gut"). This system contains 100 million neurons - more than the spine. According to modern neuroscience, the nerve system that surrounds the colon and other digestive organs in the abdomen is about the same complexity as the cat's brain. It is called the "second brain" of the human body.

In recent years, much data has emerged on how the enteric nervous system reflects the activity of the central nervous system. Dr. Michael Gershon, professor of cell anatomy and biology at the Columbia-Presbyterian Medical Center in New York, is one of the founders of a new branch of medicine called neurogastroenterology. In his book The Second Brain: The Scientific Basis of Gut Instinct and a Groundbreaking New Understanding of Nervous Disorders of the Stomach and Intestines), Gershon states that the gut brain is very important for human health and happiness, and plays an important role in situations of discomfort and stress. Many digestive disorders, such as colitis and acute abdominal syndrome, are caused by problems in the enteric nervous system.

The enteric nervous system governs various aspects of digestion, from the esophagus to the stomach, then to the small intestine and colon. Neurogastroenterologists also believe that there is a complex interaction between the enteric nervous system and the immune system.

The enteric nervous system controls the digestion process

Biologists believe that the enteric nervous system was too important in the evolution of mammals. Therefore, it is not located in the head of the newborn - because in this case, too long connections between the head and the abdomen would be required. A baby needs to eat and digest food from birth. Therefore, the evolutionary process may have retained the enteric nervous system as an independent chain [9]. It is connected to the central nervous system, but for the most part is able to function independently, without the control of the brain.

The “brain in the belly” receives and sends impulses, remembers experiences and reacts to emotions using the same neurotransmitters as brain cells. The neurons of the enteric nervous system are located in tissue “capsules” along the esophagus, stomach, small intestine, and large intestine. As a single organ, it is a network of neurons, neurotransmitters and proteins that transmit messages between neurons, its cells are like brain cells and form a complex network that allows it to act independently, learn and remember, thanks to which we can “feel inwardly ”.

So we have something like a cat's brain in our stomach. When the cat is happy with everything, it purrs. But if something threatens her, she hisses: "Shhhhhhhh!" When the central nervous system is faced with a threatening situation, it releases stress hormones into the bloodstream that prepare the body to respond to stress: fight or flight. In the gut system, there are many sensory nerves that stimulate the production of these chemicals - and then we get the feeling that we are "nervous".

Current research also shows that stress, especially early in life, can lead to chronic gastrointestinal disorders. One doctor reports that about 70% of patients who come to him with complaints of chronic gastrointestinal diseases have experienced traumas in childhood, such as the loss of a parent, serious illness, death of significant others, and so on.

It is interesting to note that in the traditional cultures of all continents, the belly was believed to be the sacred "home of the soul." In the Japanese martial arts, Chinese medicine, dances of Africa, India, Polynesia, North American Indians, the Middle East and Europe, there are practices to activate the energy of the abdomen to awaken the "soul-strength" in the center of the body.

The center of the abdomen, which the Japanese call hara, is considered the “core” of the body in many martial arts and healing practices, both physically and energetically. It is a center of strength and balance that encompasses several organs of the body. The ha-re start leg by tying it to the ground, creating a grounding and allowing us to move. Moreover, ha-ra is considered to be the source of life and a kind of spiritual center. Its development helps to achieve mastery, strength, wisdom and peace.

In Japanese, the word ha-ra represents and abdomen, and qualities of character that arise when a person activates the "life force", concentrated in the abdomen. [10] "The man ha-ra " - the one who lives with creativity, boldness, confidence, dedication, integrity and hard. Hara no aru hitoliterally means the person is "centered" or "has a belly." Such a person is balanced, relaxed, generous and kind-hearted. He is calm, does not judge others, he knows what is important, accepts things as they are, and he has a sense of harmony and proportion. He is ready for everything that may await him on the way. When such a person reaches maturity through perseverance, discipline and practice, he is called hara no dekita hito - one who has "finished his belly."

In Chinese, the center of the abdomen is called dantian. Literally, this word means a field that must be cultivated in order to grow a crop that sustains life. That is, when a person activates the center of his body with the help of movement and breathing, he gains access to the center of his being, soul-force and inner source.

Obviously, these linguistic expressions reflect the intuitive understanding and subjective experience associated with the fact that the "mind in the belly" is an essential element of our somatic intelligence and a powerful resource.

The following is a simple exercise you can use to establish and strengthen your mind-in-the-belly connection:

1. Sit comfortably, with a "straight back" - so that the spine is straightened, but relaxed; feet are completely on the floor. Place the palm of one hand on your stomach. The thumb is at the level of the navel, and the rest of the fingers are below. Place the second palm on the back, on the lower back, exactly opposite the palm on your stomach.

2. Relax and breathe deeply into your belly. Imagine a string stretched between the centers of both palms. Try to see it, feel it, describe it.

3. Find the center of the string. Concentrate on it and take a few breaths in and out. Pay attention to the images and sensations you have. Watch as a sensation due to "abdominal brain" (center of the abdomen, hara, dan-cha-it ). You will feel centered, calm, relaxed and balanced.

The connection to the center of the body can be a “gateway” and an anchor to our somatic mind and body wisdom.

Source: NLP-2: Next Generation - Robert Dilts

 

[Tomcat]

How the brain of an erudite person functions​

The brain of an erudite person is connected more efficiently, according to the results of diffuse MRI scans.

The more knowledge a person accumulates, the better the different areas of the brain are connected - and vice versa. Scientists suggest that a well-structured brain helps to handle and integrate complex fragmented knowledge.

Is the intelligence of a person visible in his brain? If so, how does it manifest itself? According to some studies, the volume of the brain and its anatomical structure play an important role in this. Other scientists believe that the factor of mental ability is rather the specific activity of the brain. That is, the brains of smart people can be more efficiently connected. One way or another, these indications concerned only the so-called mobile intelligence - the ability to learn new things and identify relationships.

However, what about knowledge? Already studied and assimilated information is also an important part of our intelligence, it is also called crystalline intelligence. “We can determine the general erudition of a person, and this stock of knowledge is decisive for an individual's life path. However, we still know very little about the relationship between erudition and brain properties, ”says Erhan Genc of the Ruhr University in Bochum.

Gentz and his colleagues decided to investigate this problem. To do this, the analyzed scientists 324 men and women using a special form of magnetic resonance imaging - the so-called diffusion MRI. It allows you to reconstruct the processes of nerve fibers and thus get an idea of the structural combinations in the brain. Using mathematical calculations, scientists determined the effectiveness of these messages and compared it with the results of tests that determined the erudition of the subjects.

Nerve connections shown by diffuse MRI.
Result: the level of erudition is closely related to structural connections in the brain - regardless of age and gender. In people with a large store of knowledge, connections in the brain have been especially effective - and vice versa.

The functional connection of the thinking organ not only determines the success of learning and memorizing new information, it also facilitates its subsequent use. “We assume that individual knowledge is scattered throughout the brain in the form of partial information,” explains Ergani Gentz. "Effective connections are needed for information located in different parts of the brain to be collected and used successfully."

What does it mean? For example, to answer the questions about what constants are present in Einstein's theory of relativity, you need to combine the concept of "constant" with the knowledge of what the theory of relativity is. "We assume that an effective structural combination in the brain causes better integration of fragmented information and, therefore, better results on the erudition test," the scientists summarize.