Question: Hi Mel. I was reading your profile and saw that you said that the gut was controlled by it's own nervous system (the 'mini-brain'). Could you please explain what this 'mini-brain' is exactly and how it controls the gut? Thank you.

Hi rangachick, imadinosaur &matthew1

Thanks for your awesome question!

Okay so we normally think that the brain (and spinal cord) is the control center for the body – what we refer to as the central nervous system or CNS. That’s true but our nervous system is actually divided into the CNS and autonomic nervous system (ANS) and there is a special branch of the ANS which controls the digestive system. This is called the enteric nervous system (ENS- enough acronyms?) and is made of nerve cells/neurons which are found entirely within the walls of the gut.

We refer to the ENS as the mini-brain because it is like a control center for the digestive system. Our stomach and intestines can get orders from the brain- but if you were to cut off the connection to the brain, the ENS would be work by itself fine to digest, absorb, secrete and move intestinal contents. Obviously the brain is important in how your gut feels- when you feel nauseous that’s because your brains giving mixed signals which make you feel like wanting to throw up. The ENS and CNS work together to accomplish all the different functions of your digestive system!