“Stress causes stomach ulcers.”

For many years, the notion that stress causes stomach ulcers was deeply ingrained in public consciousness and even widely accepted within the medical community. From the 1930s through the 1980s, stress and certain lifestyle factors were often considered the primary culprits behind these painful sores in the digestive tract. People frequently observed that individuals experiencing significant emotional strain or demanding lifestyles also developed ulcers, leading to the logical, though ultimately inaccurate, conclusion that stress was the direct cause. This perspective positioned ulcers as a classic "psychosomatic" ailment, with the prevailing belief being that psychological distress manifested physically in the gut.

However, a groundbreaking scientific discovery dramatically shifted this understanding. In the early 1980s, Australian scientists Barry Marshall and Robin Warren challenged the established view by identifying a bacterium, *Helicobacter pylori* (*H. pylori*), in the stomachs of ulcer patients. Their meticulous research demonstrated that this bacterium was the true underlying cause of the vast majority of peptic ulcers, rather than stress. This revolutionary finding, for which they were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2005, transformed ulcer treatment from managing symptoms to eradicating the infection with antibiotics. It also became clear that the long-term use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen and aspirin, is another major cause of ulcers.

Despite the overwhelming scientific evidence, the idea that stress causes ulcers persists, largely because stress can indeed play a contributing role in a more indirect way. While not directly causing the initial ulcer, stress can exacerbate the symptoms of existing ulcers, slow down their healing, or make them worse. This is because stress can increase stomach acid production and potentially weaken the stomach's protective lining. Furthermore, stressed individuals might be more prone to behaviors that increase ulcer risk, such as increased use of NSAIDs for pain relief, or higher consumption of alcohol and tobacco. Therefore, while managing stress is beneficial for overall health and can help alleviate ulcer symptoms, it is crucial to remember that the primary causes of stomach ulcers are *H. pylori* infection and NSAID use.