Digestive problems can be painful and embarrassing - and stress is a major factor in triggering them, LUCY STEPHENS reports.

PUTTING on a big presentation at work, going for a job interview, even getting married - these are some of the major events people go through every day.

But imagine if your big day at work or at the altar was disrupted by that most embarrassing of problems - diarrhoea or constipation.

It's an issue not many people like to talk about, yet new research to mark national Gut Week - which ends today - reveals some interesting findings about the digestive problems experienced by people in York.

According to the survey, commissioned by probiotic company Yakult, one in 20 people in York have experienced digestive troubles like diarrhoea before a big presentation at work.

A fifth have suffered the same before a job interview - and one in ten have run into problems during a driving test.

The reason? Stress.

Organisers of Gut Week say the pressures of modern working life are taking their toll on the nation's digestive systems, with nearly a sixth across Britain suffering from gut problems because of work-related stress.

Now in its eighth year, the week is organised annually by digestive health charities Core and the Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) Network, in association with Yakult, to raise awareness of the importance our gut plays in overall health and to help people take care of their digestive system.

It's an awareness campaign thoroughly approved of by Lesley Reed, a specialist IBS nurse at York Hospital.

She said: "Quite often IBS doesn't get as much press as some other conditions - consequently there isn't so much awareness."

Her department treats people suffering from IBS by giving them a full assessment, which may later involve treatments like hypnosis to try to resolve the problem.

Lesley says for many people, stress is a major factor in the development of the condition.

She said: "For many people, stress is one of the triggers that sets up some unpleasant bowel symptoms for them.

"They might have had a very bad year, a very traumatic house move or divorce."

Many people with stress seek solace in the very things that are worse for the digestive system: smoking, drinking and alcohol.

In fact, research has shown that more than two thirds of us take no action to protect our bodies from the effects of stress.

Doctors advise sleeping well, eating healthily and drinking enough water as a way of combating the tensions of work.

Lesley also suggested trying a probiotic product.

Anyone with a gut problem or worried they might have one can call a specialist Gut Week nurse. The nurses are available on 0208 743 4287, from 6pm to 10pm every evening, and 10am to noon on Saturdays, until September 3.