What Is Stomach Or Abdominal Pain
Abdominal pain is pain that you feel between the chest and the groin, explains David Greenwald, M.D. director of clinical gastroenterology and endoscopy at Mount Sinai Hospital.And while its commonly referred to as a stomach ache, the pangs dont always come from that very organ. They can actually originate within the abdominal wall or any of the gastrointestinal organs including the liver, gallbladder, pancreas, small and large intestines, and appendix, says Indira Mahidhara, M.D., M.P.H., physician editor at MCG Health. Some stomach pain is even linked back to the chest , the urinary tract, and even migraines, she adds.
Stomach pain also varies in intensity from mild to severe, and can manifest as many different sensations, including a knife-like sharp or dull achy pain, burning, squeezing, and spasms, adds Dr. Mahidhara.
When Do You Get Endo Belly
The main symptom of endo belly is severe bloating, especially during or right before your period. Bloating is when the abdomen fills with air or gas, making it look larger. It may also feel tight or hard to the touch. Endo belly can cause discomfort, pain, and pressure in your abdomen and your back.
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Can Stomachaches Be Prevented
Not all belly pain can be prevented. But to help avoid common types of stomachaches:
- Wash your hands before eating or preparing food, and after using the bathroom.
- Dont overeat, and try not to eat right before going to sleep.
- Drink plenty of water and eat fiber-rich foods, such as fruits and vegetables, to keep food moving through your digestive system.
- Avoid foods that have passed their expiration date or or werent stored properly.
- If you have a food allergy or intolerance, avoid eating foods that make you sick. If you have a food allergy, always carry two epinephrine auto-injectors, and know when you should use them.
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Try Over The Counter Treatments
Depending on what sort of stomach pain youre experiencing when you wake up, there are plenty of over-the-counter medications that can provide you with some immediate relief. If youre experiencing gas pain, try a medication with the ingredient simethicone like Gas-X, or try taking digestive enzymes with foods that are hard to digest .
For heartburn, there are antacids like Pepcid AC, and for cramping or general stomach upset, Pepto Bismol is a safe and reliable solution.Occasional constipation can be relieved with a mild laxative or stool softener or you can load up on fiber, water, and magnesium. To reduce pain immediately, you can take an acetaminophen like Tylenol but stay away from NSAIDs like Ibuprofen as they can further irritate your stomach.
Although these medications are over the counter, we encourage you to consult with your doctor first if you have any other underlying conditions.
Abdominal Pain Treatment And Home Remedies
The treatment for abdominal pain depends on its cause, and may include:
- Medications to lower inflammation, prevent acid reflux, or treat ulcers or infection
- Surgery to treat a problem with an organ
Over-the-counter pain relievers like aspirin and ibuprofen can irritate your stomach and worsen your pain. Donât take them unless a doctor has diagnosed the cause of your belly pain and recommends their use.
Some diet and lifestyle changes may help belly pain caused by gas and indigestion. Here are some things you can try:
- Eat smaller portions at more frequent meals
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How Is Abdominal Pain Diagnosed
Your healthcare provider will ask you detailed questions about your pain. Theyll want to know:
- Where you feel it.
- How long youve had it.
- If it comes and goes.
- If its getting worse.
- If it stays in one place or moves.
- What makes it better or worse.
- What other symptoms you have.
From your answers, your healthcare provider will try to determine if you need emergency treatment. Sometimes your healthcare provider will be able to tell right away that your pain is temporary and not serious. Sometimes they may suspect a more serious condition and may want to run some tests. And sometimes they wont be able to solve the mystery on the first visit. Your pain may subside, or you may have to return for further investigation.
When Should I Call The Doctor
Sometimes, what seems like one problem food poisoning, for example can turn out to be something more serious, like appendicitis.
- the pain is very strong
- you’re vomiting a lot
- you already have another health condition
- the pain gets worse over time, doesn’t go away, or wakes you up from sleep
Also let the doctor know if you:
- have pain when you pee
- have trouble pooping or peeing
- have blood in your poop or pee
- think the belly pain is from an injury
- might be pregnant
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If You Have Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory bowel disease includes Crohnâs disease and ulcerative colitis. These conditions are based in your immune system and involve a lot more than an upset digestive system, through that can be one of the symptoms. Food doesnât cause IBD, and thereâs no single diet that helps everyone with IBD. But it can help to keep a food journal so that you learn what your trigger foods are, then you can avoid them.
Vague Upper Abdominal Pain Associated With Nausea And Belching
Sometimes stomach pain is hard to identify or comes with multiple symptoms. Vague pain in the upper and mid-abdominal area that is linked to nausea, burping, or belching could be signs of a heart attack, particularly in older individuals. Physicians say tests like an ECG or cardiac markers can be lifesaving. They also warn that vomiting with back or jaw pain and shortness of breath can also be a sign of a life-threatening emergency.
Women are also more likely to experience abdominal pain or digestive issues during a heart attack. It’s important to learn how heart disease, including heart attacks, can affect women differently.
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You Have Celiac Disease
Celiac disease is an immune reaction to eating gluten that can impact sufferers in different ways. One is stomach pain after you eat gluten, Dr. Bedford says. BTW: Your stomach can also hurt if you have a mild gluten intolerance , but this is different from celiac disease. With celiac, a person’s small intestine becomes damaged when they eat gluten with a gluten intolerance, someone may simply have a physical reaction like diarrhea or gas after eating gluten. Your doctor can help you determine what might be at the root of the problem.
You Might Have A Food Allergy
A food allergy is a step up in severity from a food intolerance. If you have an allergic reaction to a food, it means your immune system has mistakenly identified that food as a potentially harmful invader and mounted a defense against it, the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology explains. That immune system defense is what leads to symptoms like abdominal cramping, a tingly or itchy mouth, hives and overall bodily itching, facial swelling, diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, and even potentially life-threatening trouble breathing.
According to the AAAAI, the most common food allergens are proteins in cows milk, eggs, peanuts, wheat, soy, fish, shellfish, and tree nuts. If you notice youre constantly dealing with pretty intense symptom flare-ups after eating these foods, an allergy could be to blame.
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Why Does My Stomach Burn After I Eat
Its happened to many of us before: not long after finishing a meal, you have a gnawing or burning stomach pain. While many may write it off as simply heartburn, it may be a symptom of gastritis, a common condition that can occur gradually or suddenly in response to certain triggers, such as food.
Not surprisingly, diet and lifestyle can have a significant impact on your digestive health and your overall health, which is why it is so important to pay attention to what you eat.
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Why Does Your Stomach Hurt After Drinking Water We Have Answers
There are several potential reasons why someone might experience stomach pain after drinking water. In most cases, the discomfort is likely to be caused by a minor digestive issue, such as indigestion or acid reflux.
However, there are some other potential causes that should be considered, including infections, inflammatory conditions, and even certain medications. Keep reading while we lay out the m,ost common reasons you are feeling the pain!
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Advice For People With Diabetes
Having gastroparesis means your food is being digested slowly and at unpredictable times. If you also have diabetes, this can have a big effect on your blood sugar levels.
The nerves to the stomach can be damaged by high levels of blood glucose, so itâs important to keep your blood glucose levels under control if you have diabetes.
Your doctor can advise you about any changes you may need to make to your diet or medicine. For example, if youâre taking insulin, you may need to divide your dose before and after meals and inject insulin into areas where absorption is typically slower, such as into your thigh.
Youâll also need to check your blood glucose levels frequently after you eat.
Page last reviewed: 14 October 2019 Next review due: 14 October 2022
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You Have Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth
SIBO occurs when there is an abnormal amount of bacteria in your small intestines. When there are too many bad bacteria, it overwhelms the good bacteria that is needed for digestion. It can cause bloating, diarrhea, and abdominal pain after meals due to poor digestion.
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Risk factors of SIBO include advanced age, prior abdominal surgery, autoimmune disorders, or chronic constipation, says Dr. Vanderheyden.
Treatment involves antibiotics to eliminate the bacteria overgrowth and dietary changes, so Dr. Vanderheyden recommends checking in with a gastroenterologist if you suspect you have SIBO.
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How Are Helicobacter Pylori Transmitted
Even though there are many hypotheses for how Helicobacter pylori are transmitted, their major mode of transmission is not specifically known. Possible routes of infection include oral-oral , fecal-oral , and sometimes spread via inadvertent use of unsterile medical equipment such as probes or endoscopes.
When To See A Doctor
There are certain characteristics or associated symptoms of abdominal pain that may indicate a potentially serious condition. If your stomachache resulted from an accident or injury, please seek immediate medical care. Please also get urgent medical attention if you experience bloody stool, severe muscle cramps, a fever higher than 101 degrees Fahrenheit, vomiting, swelling in your abdomen, yellowish eyes or skin, or difficulty breathing.
There are also related symptoms where we suggest that you schedule an appointment with your doctor, although you do not necessarily need urgent care. These conditions include stomach pain that lasts longer than 24 hours, loss of appetite, sudden weight loss, vomiting, fever, pain when urinating, or continuous constipation. If you experience stomach pain or stomach cramps while pregnant or breastfeeding, we recommend that you schedule an appointment with your Baptist Health provider.
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Stomach Ache And Junk Food All You Need To Know
In supermarkets, stores, and restaurants you will find different categories of junk food. Such as drinks, chips, snacks, candies, chocolates, and other packed stuff for eating.
Another category of junk food is fast food which you can eat while driving or sitting anywhere at any time. It includes energy drinks, burgers, pizza etc.
How Can I Feel Better
Most bellyaches don’t have a serious cause. They can happen for many different reasons, but most are easy to treat.
If stress or anxiety seem to be behind the pain, the doctor may recommend that you talk to a counselor or therapist. They help people figure out what’s behind their stress and give advice on how to fix problems or handle them better.
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Types Of Stomach Pain
There are different types of stomach pain identified by time, intensity, and how the pain feels. Stomach pain may be acute, chronic, or progressive. Acute abdominal pain is temporary, usually lasting a few hours or a few days. Chronic pain is long-term, lasting sometimes weeks, months or longer and usually comes and goes. Progressive stomach aches get worse over time. There may also be additional symptoms with progressive stomach pain.
Stomach pain can also be mild to severe. The intensity of pain does not always correlate with the severity of the potential cause.
In addition, pain can be categorized by location. Pain in the upper abdomen may be the result of gallstones, hepatitis, pneumonia or a heart attack. Pain in the center of the abdomen might be caused by injury or appendicitis. Pain in the lower abdomen or around the belly button can be caused by injury, flu, hardened stool, kidney infection, hernia, appendicitis or cancer. In women, lower abdomen pain can be related to menstrual cramps, miscarriage, endometriosis or ovarian cysts.
Stomach pain can also be grouped by how the pain feels.
What Happens When You Overeat
Eating a large meal can affect your sleep, your weight and your organs over the short and long term. Find out what really happens to your body when you overeat.
Sometimes its taste, sometimes its habit, or maybe its stress. But chances are, at some point, you have over-eaten.
It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to send a signal to the stomach to let you know that youre full. Overeating occurs when you continue to eat beyond this point of fullness, says Erma Levy, a research dietitian at MD Anderson.
Overeating can lead to unwanted weight gain, and carrying excess weight can increase your cancer risk.
But its not just about the unwanted calories. Overeating affects your body in a variety of ways. We spoke to Levy to learn more about the effects of overeating. Heres what she had to say.
So, what happens to your body when you overeat?
What are the long-term effects of overeating? When you eat, your body uses some of the calories you consume for energy. The rest are stored as fat. Consuming more calories than you burn may cause you to become overweight or obese. This increases your risk for cancer and other chronic health problems.
Overeating can even impact your sleep. Your circadian clock, which controls your sleep cycles, causes your sleep and hunger hormone levels to rise and fall throughout the day. Overeating can upset this rhythm, making it hard for you to sleep through the night.
What are some ways to stop overeating?
Learn serving sizes
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Why Does My Stomach Hurt After Eating
Stomach pain is a common and usually short-lived, benign symptom. Almost everyone has experienced a bout of stomach pain after eating, often as a result of dietary indiscretions. But if you frequently have stomach pain after eating, or if pain is severe, see your medical practitioner recurring stomach pain after eating can coincide with potentially serious health issues.
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Urgent Advice: Speak To Your Gp As Soon As Possible If:
- you have severe abdominal pain, especially if it’s concentrated in one area
- the pain starts suddenly or unexpectedly
If your GP is closed, phone 111.
Serious causes of sudden severe abdominal pain include:
- appendicitis the swelling of the appendix means your appendix will need to be removed
- a bleeding or perforated stomach ulcer
- acute cholecystitis inflammation of the gallbladder, which may need to be removed
- kidney stones small stones may be passed out in your urine, but larger stones may block the kidney tubes, and you’ll need to go to hospital to have them broken up
- diverticulitis inflammation of the small pouches in the bowel that sometimes requires treatment with antibiotics in hospital
If your GP suspects you have one of these conditions, they may refer you to hospital immediately.
Sudden and severe pain in your abdomen can also sometimes be caused by an infection of the stomach and bowel . It may also be caused by a pulled muscle in your abdomen or by an injury.
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Questions Your Doctor May Ask About Abdominal Pain That Get Worse After Eating
- Have you experienced any nausea?
- Any fever today or during the last week?
- Have you lost your appetite recently?
- Have you been feeling more tired than usual, lethargic or fatigued despite sleeping a normal amount?
Self-diagnose with our free Buoy Assistant if you answer yes on any of these questions.
Upper Abdominal Pain Between The Ribcage
If you develop an aching or stabbing pain or pressure in the upper abdominal area just under the ribs, this may indicate a heart-related problem. Physicians say this pain is often accompanied by shortness of breath and is concerning if the pain persists. People often assume this type of pain is indigestion, and while that may be the case, anyone with risk factors such as diabetes or hypertension should see a doctor as soon as possible.
If you do struggle with acid reflux, it may be time to talk to a gastroenterologist. They can help you manage your symptoms through medications, lifestyle changes and diet.
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