What Can Cause Gas In The Stomach

How To Get Rid Of Gas

Often, your gas is caused by what you eat. Food is digested primarily in your small intestine. What is left undigested is fermented in your colon with bacteria, fungi, and yeast, as part of digestion. This process produces methane and hydrogen, which are expelled as flatus.

For many people, changing dietary habits is enough to alleviate gas and its accompanying symptoms. One way to determine which foods are giving you gas is by keeping a food diary. Common culprits include:

• foods with high fat content
• fried or spicy food
• artificial ingredients commonly found in low-carbohydrate and sugar-free products, such as sugar alcohol, sorbitol, and maltitol
• beans and lentils
• cruciferous vegetables, such as Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, and broccoli
• prunes or prune juice
• foods containing lactose, such as milk, cheese, and other dairy products
• fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols molecules found in a wide range of foods, such as garlic and onion, that may be hard to digest
• over-the-counter fiber drinks and supplements

Once you figure out what food is causing the gas, you can modify your diet to avoid the culprit.

If changing your diet doesnt completely do the trick, you have several options to try.

Can Ibs Cause Back Pain

Recent studies estimate that up to 81% of people with irritable bowel syndrome have low-back pain. Its unknown how many suffer from it, but some experts believe backache may be referred or grabbing in nature meaning they are not originating locally but instead traveling along a path towards your lower spine where you would feel the sensation more intensely due to proximity.

Who Might Get Intestinal Gas

Excess gas can make your stomach feel swollen or bloated. You may pass flatulence . Though uncomfortable, excess gas is rarely a concern. Things that make you produce too much gas include:

• Behavioral factors, such as swallowing air while chewing, drinking and talking.
• Dietary choices, such as consuming too many gas-producing foods .
• Digestive problems, such as irritable bowel syndrome , lactose intolerance and celiac disease.
• Intestinal infections, such as giardiasis, that cause an overgrowth of intestinal bacteria.
• Medications or motility disorders that slow the bowels, such as IBS, diabetes and scleroderma.

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Why Is Gas Pain In The Stomach So Painful

Gas pain is often described as crampy or sharp, with an uncomfortable burning sensation that originates from within the abdomen.

In fact, gas in the stomach is caused by excess air filling the body. Gas can usually be caused by eating too fast, talking while eating, or drinking carbonated drinks.

If these gases are not excreted from the body, problems such as abdominal pain and bloating begin to occur.

Eating And Drinking Habits That Can Cause Gas

Everyone swallows a small amount of air while eating or drinking. However, the following factors can cause a person to swallow excess air:

• chewing gum
• drinking carbonated beverages
• eating or drinking too quickly

If a person does not eliminate stomach gas by belching, the gas will move into the intestines and will eventually pass as flatulence.

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Symptoms And Treatment Of Intestinal Gas

• Treatments

Gas is a completely normal part of digestion, and everyone has intestinal gas. Additionally, uncomfortable gas symptoms are common, sometimes necessitating prescription gas medication or a visit to a gastroenterologist.

In most cases, trapped gas is not a symptom of a disease or a condition, although it can be embarrassing, painful, and uncomfortable. If your gas is not improving with changes in diet and lifestyle habits, see a healthcare provider for an evaluation.

Gas can be created by swallowing air during eating or drinking, or it can develop during the digestive process. When food is not broken down completely in the small intestine, it passes through to the large intestine where the bacteria digests food further and also creates gas. Some foods that cause many people to have gas include dairy products, beans, and artificial sweeteners.

Gas / Bloating Symptoms & Treatment

Gas is simply air in the digestive tract and is a normal part of the digestive process. You eliminate gas from your body through your mouth when you burp or your anus when you pass gas . Flatulence gets its odor from sulfur. The more sulfur, the greater the smell.

Gas is produced by swallowed air and the breakdown of certain foods by bacteria in the digestive system. People who swallow more air or eat certain foods may have more gas. Excess gas in your stomach or intestines can cause discomfort, pain, and bloating.

Swallowing air causes stomach gas. While you naturally swallow some air when you eat and drink, you may swallow too much air from eating or drinking too quickly, drinking carbonated beverages, smoking, chewing gum, wearing loose dentures, and sucking on hard candy. Most of the time this extra air is expelled by burping. Sometimes it may be released as gas.

Gas and bloating may result if your body does not properly digest and absorb carbohydrates in your small intestine, which can occur if you dont produce enough digestive enzymes. Undigested carbohydrates are broken down by harmless bacteria in the large intestine, which can cause gas and bloating.

Additionally, foods containing soluble fiber do not break down until they reach the large intestine. Soluble fiber is found in oat bran, beans, peas, and fruits such as berries.

Sugars that are most likely to cause gas include:

Starches that commonly cause gas include potatoes, corn, noodles, and wheat products.

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Fructose Malabsorption: Its More Than Just A Fruit Problem

In the last few years another food-related intolerance has come to light as a possible cause for many peoples gas, bloating and abdominal pain. Once thought of as severe, rare, and the result of a genetic disorder, mild to moderate fructose intolerance is now suspected to occur in a significant proportion of the healthy population as well as play a part in some cases of IBS.

Fructose is a sugar found in fruit. Sucrose is made up of glucose and fructose. Sugars can be big complex molecules, or small and simple ones. The simplest sugar is glucose, which is the sugar our bodies use for energy. Before any kind of sugar we eat is utilized it must be broken down into small, simple units. But some of us apparently have trouble breaking down and utilizing fructose. And, as with lactose intolerance, when fructose is allowed to pass through the digestive tract to the colon, bacteria have a field day producing gas.

In a study presented in 2002 to the 67th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology, researchers at the University of Kansas indicated that fructose may not be properly absorbed by a significant portion of healthy adults. Subjects in their study were given levels of fructose about equal to that in a typical can of soda. They were then given a hydrogen breath test . The study showed nearly half the subjects had abnormally high levels of hydrogen gas.

Why Do Farts Smell So Bad

Digestive gases comprise oxygen, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen. This mixture is originally odorless but acquires an unpleasant smell when the digested food passes into the colon for the final stage of the digestive process, wherein the digested food starts decomposing in the large intestine.

The bacterial decomposition infuses trace amounts of hydrogen sulfide, skittle, and indole to the digestive air, giving it a contemptible odor. The foul smell associated with farts is due to the presence of sulfur. The higher the sulfur content, the stronger the smell.

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What Causes Stomach Pain

Common Causes Harmless abdominal pain usually subsides or goes away within two hours.

• Gas: Formed in the stomach and intestines as your body breaks down food, this can cause general stomach pain and cramps. This often can be indicated by belching or flatulence.
• Bloating: Related to gas, this occurs when excessive gas builds up in your digestive tract. Your stomach will usually feel full, and you may experience cramps.
• Constipation: This occurs when you are having difficulty making bowel movements. If you are having two or fewer bowel movements a week, constipation is the likely cause. In addition to feeling bloated and nauseous, you may experience cramping and pain in your rectum.
• Indigestion: You typically experience this as an upset stomach, burning, or belly pain after eating.
• Stomach flu: Your stomach may hurt before each episode of vomiting or diarrhea.

Severe Pain Causes In serious cases, the stomach pain gets worse. This may be an indication of a more severe condition, such as:

Most of the time, gas is no more than a minor annoyance.

However, gas occasionally produces intense pain that makes the entire abdomen feel full and tender. This pain can radiate to the back, causing back pain and bloating. Minor gastrointestinal problems, such as stomach viruses, may also cause intense gas pain.

Sometimes, GI issues can cause muscle pain. This can happen after straining to have a bowel movement or repeatedly vomiting.

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The Foods Most Likely To Cause Gas

Beans have the reputation of being “the musical fruit,” but there are plenty of other gassy foods. They all have the potential to contribute to intestinal discomfort, such as bloating and flatulence.

This article presents a number of fruits, grains, and other foods that can cause gas. If gas is a problem for you, knowing about these gassy foods can help you to make changes in your diet.

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How Is The Cause Of Excessive Flatulence Or Gas Diagnosed

A health-care professional may review what patient eats and the symptoms produced. The patient might be instructed to keep a food and drink diary for a specific period of time and track the passage of gas during the day. Careful review of diet and the amount of gas passed may help relate specific foods to symptoms and determine the severity of the problem.

The primary tests, if necessary, will likely include measuring the amount of hydrogen in the patients breath after the person eats suspected foods. Because bacteria are largely responsible for the production of hydrogen, an increase in exhaled hydrogen as measured by the breath test will suggest food intolerance, with the bacteria fermenting the undigested food to produce excess gas. After the patient eats a problem food, breath testing should show an increase in hydrogen in as little as 2 hours.

Another possible test is analysis of flatus for gas content. This should help differentiate gas produced by swallowing air from gas produced in the gastrointestinal tract.

If these tests produce no diagnosis, broader testing can be accomplished to help exclude more serious disorders such as diabetes, cancer, malabsorption, cirrhosis of the liver, poor thyroid function, and infection.

If lactase deficiency is the suspected cause of gas, the health-care professional may suggest the patient avoid milk products for a period of time. A blood or breath test may be used to diagnose lactose intolerance.

You’re Swallowing Too Much Airlike Literally

One commonly overlooked cause of gas is actually ingesting air, which causes it to accumulate in the esophagus, according to the Mayo Clinic. It happens when you do anything that causes you to swallow an excessive amount of air, such as “drinking carbonated beverages, smoking, eating or drinking too fast, talking while eating,” Dr. Balzora explains.

It can also be caused by chewing gum, sucking on candies all day, or breathing through your mouth while you sleep. If you have gas in the morning or wake up feeling completely full, it might be because of the way you’re breathing as you sleep. It also turns out that swallowing air can be a symptom of gastroesophageal reflux disease , which is a condition where stomach acid travels up the esophagus , but well get into that a bit later.

If swallowing air is simply something you do when youre nervous, this situation is called aerophagia, and it can contribute to excessive gas. So if you think swallowing air might be at the root of your gas issues, Dr. Schnoll-Sussman suggests taking a look at your daily habits and seeing where that extra air might be coming from. For instance, you might be able to minimize the amount of air you ingest by opting for non-carbonated beverages , trying not to talk while you eat, and avoiding chewing gum.

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Upper Abdominal And Chest Pain After Eating:

Some people begin to feel burning and pain in the abdomen and chest immediately after eating. The most common reason for this is to show haste and speed while eating.

Some people have a habit of swallowing one bite after another. It seems that they are not eating bites but swallowing food even though the food should be well digested.

Quickly swallowing without chewing well causes a load on the stomach and causes pain and burning in the chest.

The same condition can occur when eating heavy and greasy foods that are not accustomed to eating. Digestive and anti-heartburn drugs are effective in this condition.

These drugs are commonly found in medical stores. Sometimes these drugs do not go away. In this case, consult a doctor. You can also take with you a list of foods that cause this condition after eating.

This list will help you understand your condition and prescribe the right medicine.

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When Is Gas A Sign Of A More Serious Problem

Sometimes, having symptoms of gas can be a sign of a more serious condition that needs urgent medical attention. Examples include:

• Gastroparesis: This is a condition where the stomach empties slower than normal. It can make you feel gassy, but can also cause significant nausea and vomiting.

• Intestinal obstruction: This is a blockage of a portion of the bowel, and it is a very serious medical condition that needs emergency attention. Intestinal obstruction can cause significant pain, bloating, and vomiting.

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Gas Pain In The Chest Vs Heart Pain

At times, it can be hard to tell the difference between pain caused by your heart and pain coming from your chest area. Before you read any further, you should know that if youre having any type of severe or stabbing chest pains, you should seek emergency medical assistance right away. If your pain feels like a tightness or discomfort in your chest, its far less likely that youre in the midst of a health emergency.

Heart pain may often feel like gathering pressure in the center or left side of your chest. It may build and intensify before slowly dissipating, or it may continue to grow in severity. You may recognize heart pain because it comes on suddenly and doesnt seem related to other symptoms, things you have eaten recently, or the way you are otherwise feeling that day.

Gas pain in your chest is typically accompanied by other symptoms, such as those mentioned above. If your pain is accompanied by abdominal pain, flatulence, heartburn, or acid reflux, it is most likely related to gas in your chest.

Symptom Of Gas Pain In The Stomach

The most common symptom of gas pain in the stomach involves difficulty breathing.

Common symptoms of gastrointestinal tract infection include

• Fever

• Muscle spasms

• Tingling in the extremities.

Pain that feels like its coming from inside the rib cage should be taken seriously. It could be a sign that a serious intestinal condition is about to take hold.

If other symptoms are present, such as vomiting and nausea, then its time to contact your doctor.

Stomach pain can also be a symptom of many diseases.

Stomach pain can also be a symptom of many diseases, so it should not be ignored and a doctor should be consulted immediately.

• Pain in the upper abdomen: Upper abdominal pain is most often associated with gastric acidity. Eating foods with acidic effects increases the amount of acid in the stomach, which causes heartburn and discomfort.

  Eating antacids and foods can help alleviate this condition. If the pain persists, it could be a sign of damage to the stomach, heart, lungs, central arteries, and other organs of the upper torso. If irritation and pain persist despite the use of antacids and foods, then a doctor should be consulted immediately.

• Pain in the lower abdomen: This is very common. In women, it is usually associated with menstruation. Exercising or swimming lightly during menstruation, or pouring lukewarm water on the abdomen, reduces the severity of the discomfort.

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When To See A Doctor For A Urinary Tract Infection

Urinary tract infections usually require a visit to the doctor to confirm diagnosis and receive treatment. If a UTI is suspected, a doctorââ¬â¢s appointment is always recommended for the following groups of people:

• Children
• Anyone who has not had a UTI before
• Anyone with blood in their urine
• Anyone with symptoms of an upper urinary tract infection
• Anyone whose symptoms have returned after treatment

Some people who experience UTIs on a frequent basis might be offered different management options by their doctor, such as long-term, low-dose antibiotics. In these special cases, the onset of UTI symptoms may be managed at home, and a visit to the doctor is not always necessary.

In very mild cases, a bladder infection/cystitis may clear on its own without the need for medical treatment. However, other conditions such as genital herpes or vaginal thrush can be mistaken for cystitis, so people who are unsure whether they have cystitis should still see a doctor.

Feeling unwell? People experiencing symptoms that may be linked to a urinary tract infection can carry out a symptom assessment using the free Ada app now.

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