Pain is not all bad. Research says stomachache may be directly protecting the intestines.

It drives us to do something to get rid of the pain. Is the pain itself still a form of protection? Scientists at Harvard University in the United States have shown that pain is not only a simple alarm signal, but also directly involved in protection in some cases. In a new study by scientists at Harvard University, when goblet cells interact directly with pain neurons in the gut, they are triggered to release more protective mucus. The researchers observed that mice lacking pain neurons produced less protective mucus and their intestinal microflora became unbalanced. In order to explore the reasons behind it, scientists analyzed the behavior of goblet cells in the presence and absence of pain neurons. When pain neurons are present and stimulated, a receptor on the surface of goblet cells combined with pain neurons releases a substance, which in turn stimulates goblet cells to produce more protective mucus; when pain neurons are not present.

Pain is a very unpleasant feeling and experience for us. It is like a warning system that drives us to take some corresponding actions to dispel the pain. But have you ever thought that pain itself is still a form of protection? Recently, CNMO learned that scientists at Harvard University in the United States have shown that pain is not only a simple alarm signal, but also directly involved in protection in some cases.

Stomachache

It is understood that in a new study by scientists at Harvard University, scientists have found that when goblet cells interact directly with pain neurons in the gut, they are triggered to release more protective mucus. In the experiment, the researchers observed that mice lacking pain neurons produced less protective mucus and their intestinal microflora became unbalanced.

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To explore the reasons behind it, the scientists analyzed the behavior of goblet cells in the presence and absence of pain neurons. Scientists have found that when pain neurons exist and are stimulated, a receptor on the surface of goblet cells combined with pain neurons releases a substance, which in turn stimulates goblet cells to produce more protective mucus; when pain neurons do not exist, this mechanism disappears. In addition, further studies by the researchers have shown that the presence of certain intestinal microorganisms can also activate and release the same substance to maintain the balance of intestinal microflora.

In addition, studies have shown that dietary factors, such as capsaicin, can play the same role in addition to intestinal microbes. Usually, when the stomachache is unbearable, pain relief is a common method, but the study shows that pain relief can have adverse consequences. Therefore, this raises an important question for the future-how to manage pain in a way that does not undermine this protective nature.