Why does my stomach hurt when i eat certain foods

SEO LP – What could be the cause of stomach cramps after eating

What are the treatments for stomach cramps?

  • Mild abdominal cramps can be treated with home remedies or OTC medicine. Home remedies like apple cider vinegar, ginger, and chamomile tea, in particular, are known to relieve mild pains and bloating in the abdomen. 
  • Stomach cramps that occur as a result of allergies and intolerances can be avoided by dietary changes. After tests and diagnosis, your doctor will prescribe you a customised diet, limiting the foods that trigger the allergy. 
  • Dietary changes are also effective to control overeating. In cases where it is uncontrollable, it is recommended to consult a dietician or a therapist to identify the underlying cause for overeating. 
  • If you have IBS, your doctor may prescribe you special medication like fibre supplements, laxatives, or antidiarrheal medication. Pain-relieving medication will be prescribed for IBS patients experiencing severe pains, cramps, and bloating. 

Visit the Sydney Gut Clinic

If stomach cramps are persistent and if you experience them very often, it is necessary to treat the underlying cause behind them. Schedule an appointment with us to get an accurate diagnosis of your condition. 

At Sydney Gut Clinic, we have a team of gastrointestinal specialists trained to identify the causes behind symptoms you experience and direct you to the best treatment options.

FAQ

Which foods can trigger abdominal cramps?

Refraining from eating food you are allergic to can help alleviate cramps. The most common foods that cause allergies are protein-based food like cow’s milk, eggs, peanuts, wheat, soy, fish, shellfish, and tree nuts. 

In addition to this, limiting your intake of spicy and oily foods can also help alleviate stomach cramps.

How can you treat stomach cramps after eating?

There are many treatment options available depending on the cause of stomach cramps. The most common treatment options are: 

  • Consuming lactose-free food
  • Gluten-free diets
  • High-fibre diets
  • Medication

When should you be concerned about abdominal cramps?

If your cramps continue after OTC medication and at-home remedies, seek medical attention. Additionally, cramps may signal a severe condition if you also experience the following symptoms:

  • Severe diarrhoea 
  • Fever
  • Severe pain
  • Blood in stools
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting

Which conditions can cause stomach cramps?

Stomach cramps are often a result of your body reacting to medical complications in the digestive tract. Most of the time they are triggered as a result of certain types of food. 

If cramps occur outside your dietary habits, it may mean a different gastrointestinal condition like inflammatory bowel disease, intestinal obstruction, or even food poisoning and intestinal infections. Visit a gastrointestinal specialist to get an accurate diagnosis of the stomach cramps you experience.

Consult our specialists for diagnosis and treatment of abdominal cramps

Sydney Gut Clinic services are only available to patients in Australia.

It’s not clear exactly what causes IBS, but there are a few theories. People with IBS may have abnormalities in how their brains and guts interact that lead to digestive problems and pain, the NIDDK explains.

This can manifest in a few different ways. Dr. Chey says that people with IBS may have large intestines that contract more strongly and more frequently when they eat a meal than other people’s, which can then cause abdominal pain and other issues. Another theory is that people with IBS are “extra sensitive to the stretch that is normal in the intestines from the breakdown of food products,” Dr. Krishnareddy says.

5. You might have inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

IBD is an umbrella term for two conditions that both cause chronic inflammation of various parts of the digestive tract: Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. People with either type of IBD often experience periods of remission followed by flare-ups, according to the Mayo Clinic.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains that Crohn’s disease usually affects the part of the small intestine that meets the large intestine, but the characteristic patches of inflammation it causes can be anywhere from the mouth to the rectum and seep through multiple layers of the G.I. lining. Ulcerative colitis, on the other hand, affects continuous portions of the large intestine and/or rectum, with the innermost lining becoming inflamed.

If you have Crohn’s disease, you’re likely to deal with abdominal cramping, diarrhea, and weight loss, and might also have additional symptoms like fatigue, nausea, joint pain, and anemia, the NIDDK says. With ulcerative colitis, the most common symptoms are abdominal pain and diarrhea (specifically containing blood or pus), the NIDDK notes, though you may also have issues such as fatigue, nausea, anemia, and an urgent need to use the bathroom. (As you can tell, Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis can have pretty similar symptoms.)

If your abdominal cramps are making life miserable, try to talk to a doctor.

Treatments for the above issues can vary wildly. For instance, if you think the issue is that you have a hard time processing beans, which then leads to painful gas, over-the-counter medications like simethicone (the active ingredient in products like Gas-X) may help with the distension that causes your pain, Dr. Krishnareddy explains.

However, if you’re experiencing cramps that are pretty severe, along with other symptoms that make you think you might have a chronic issue like IBS or IBD, it’s really important to try to consult with a doctor—particularly because taking over-the-counter medications won’t treat the real issue at hand.

“These medications can decrease the symptoms just enough that the person doesn’t go to their doctor to get evaluated,” Dr. Krishnareddy says. “But it’s not actually [addressing] the underlying problem.”

Ultimately, if getting abdominal cramps after eating is affecting your life, it’s time to consult the professionals. “If you’re having symptoms that are occurring frequently enough to interfere with your ability to conduct your daily activities, you need to see a doctor,” Dr. Chey confirms. This is especially true, he says, if you’re having serious symptoms like vomiting (with or without blood), seeing blood in your stool (which can sometimes look like tar instead of being red), or inexplicably losing weight.

Even if your cramps come without these types of symptoms, it’s good to look for an explanation if you’re dealing with them persistently. “In many cases—especially with Crohn’s—it’s just a vague abdominal pain, which is why it takes so long to reach a diagnosis,” Dr. Krishnareddy says. “That’s why I always tell people if you feel anything is wrong with you, or out of the ordinary, it’s always better to get checked out by your doctor.”

Trust your gut when it tells you something’s wrong. At the very least, your doctor should be able to ask you some questions that get you closer to figuring out what’s going on.

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