How can you prevent abdominal pain?
In my IBS symptoms survey, the majority of you said that abdominal pain was your most frequent symptom. So, today I'm going to look at steps that you can take to avoid abdominal pain. These include:
- Chewing your food
- Avoiding eating excessive amounts of gluten
- Eating green vegetables
- Limiting caffeine and alcohol
- Limiting fizzy drinks
1. Chew you food
As I have mentioned in many previous blogs, chewing your food is vital for good digestion. It's also one of the simplest steps you can take to improve your digestion – and it's free! Given this, you'd imagine that most of us would be keen to get chewing; but, surprisingly, many of my clients find it harder to do than they had anticipated. It's definitely worth the effort, though!
If you chew your food properly it's easier for your digestive system to access the nutrients the food contains. When food is chewed thoroughly, you signal to the stomach to produce digestive enzymes, which break food down into its component parts. Good strong stomach acid and plenty of digestive enzymes are needed to tackle protein and pick up nutrients such as calcium and iron. A lack of stomach acid will also delay the movement of food along the digestive tract, leaving you feeling as if your meal is 'sitting like a stone' in your stomach.
Once you are chewing well and, therefore, digesting your lovely healthy food, you'll hit the 'satiety' button sooner and feel nicely satisfied, rather than taking in several more servings and then feeling bloated and uncomfortable!
You'll know that we are always encouraging you to drink enough water; however, a good way to reduce digestive discomfort is to avoid drinking (anything, water included) for at least half an hour before and after a meal. Drinking with food increases the likelihood that you won't chew properly, as it's easy to wash the poorly chewed food down with a drink. It also increases the volume of food/drink in the stomach, making it more likely you'll get reflux. Additionally, it dilutes your digestive enzymes. No good outcomes there!
My Top Tip
Sit down to eat. If you regularly eat on the run, you'll be way more likely to suffer from digestive hassles. Sit down, relax, and let your body focus on digestion.
2. Avoid eating too much gluten
We're all much more aware of gluten now, as there has been an increase in the range of foods labelled free from it. Gluten is an indigestible protein that is found in cereals, grains and pasta and is often associated with digestive problems.
One study found that consuming gluten every day for one week caused abdominal pain and bloating.1 This obviously doesn't happen to everyone, but if you are finding yourself unpleasantly extended on a regular basis, it's worth cutting back to see if your body prefers going gluten-light.
If you are properly allergic to gluten, it is known as coeliac disease. This is an autoimmune disorder in which gluten damages the lining of the small intestine, causing poor absorption of nutrients. Digestive symptoms of coeliac disease include abdominal pain, bloating and diarrhoea. Gluten intolerance, on the other hand, is a situation where gluten is tricky for your digestive system to handle, causing bloating, pain and constipation or diarrhoea on an erratic basis, so you're often not quite sure what is causing the problems.
Coeliacs obviously have to avoid gluten in any amount, all the time. Those with a gluten intolerance will benefit from doing the same, but won't necessarily fare as badly if they get a little exposure. I find that most people with digestive issues, or a tendency to experience digestive discomfort, feel better when limiting their intake of wheat/gluten-containing foods. The Western diet tends to focus around these foods (cereals, bread, pasta and pastry products are all likely to contain wheat or gluten), so lightening up the load by switching to some non-wheat/gluten alternatives is helpful.
The good news is that gluten-free status is now well-recognised, and there are many products designed specifically for a wheat or gluten-free diet. As many of these products are quite heavily processed, it's worth including a few simple 'swaps', such as gluten-free oatcakes or rice cakes in place of bread, rice or maize-based cereals instead of wheat-based ones, and bean pasta (e.g. ones made from black beans or mung beans, or lentils) instead of the ordinary ranges.
My Top Tip:
Research has shown that a gluten-free diet can be beneficial in reducing digestive symptoms such as abdominal pain.2
3. Eat your green vegetables
Green vegetables contain insoluble fibre, which adds bulk to your stool and makes it easier to pass. Having regular bowel movements reduces the likelihood of abdominal pain – as well as reducing bloating, wind, and abdominal cramps. Women tend to have fewer period cramps if they are not constipated, too.
Having green veg regularly in your diet will lower the risk of constipation and, therefore, reduce the chances of abdominal pain. Go for steamed or lightly roasted veg, as these are easy to digest and take less energy to break down than cold, raw veg.
Green vegetables are also components of the Mediterranean diet. For more information on this diet, have a look at our Nutritionist Emma's blog "What makes the Mediterranean diet so healthy?".
Green vegetables are often bitter tasting, and, as you'll have heard me say many times, bitters are fantastic for your digestion! Digestive bitters are herbs that support the digestive system by stimulating the production of digestive enzymes, as well as ensuring the correct balance of stomach acid. This allows you to break down protein properly and effectively absorb minerals, as outlined above. As well as this, digestive bitters also help to fend off Helicobacter pylori, which causes all kinds of digestive chaos, including stomach ulcers.
4. Limit caffeine and alcohol intake
Caffeine can trigger an increase in your levels of stomach acid, which is positive in that stomach acid is essential for effective digestion. Sadly, though, caffeine is also associated with acid reflux, as well as bloating.3 So, if you want to avoid acid reflux and abdominal pain, lay off the caffeine!
You could try one of the many delicious herbal teas available instead – lemon balm or lemon verbena are both very soothing. Research has found that lemon balm can help to reduce stress and increase calmness.4 Stress is a key factor in reducing digestive response, because when you are stressed your body releases adrenaline, which shuts down the digestive system. So, lemon balm is a great choice as an alternative to caffeine, to relieve pressure on your digestion.
As another example of the pros and cons of caffeine, it can increase peristalsis (the contraction of the muscles on the intestines) and thereby encourage a bowel movement. However, overactive muscular contraction potentially decreases the amount of time that the colon has to absorb water from stool. This may then encourage looser stools or diarrhoea. Since diarrhoea and abdominal pain often go together, the amount of caffeine you are taking in may explain some of your digestive mayhem.
Alcohol prevents the absorption of minerals by damaging the cells lining the intestines. Alcohol can also prevent the secretion of digestive enzymes, meaning you end up with poorly digested food that encourages bloating, wind and possibly diarrhoea. So, drinking alcohol may cause a variety of digestive problems for you!
Additionally, drinking excessive amounts of alcohol may lead to gastritis. This is a condition that occurs when the lining of the stomach becomes inflamed. When chronically inflamed, your stomach lining changes and some of the protective cells in the stomach are lost. Gastritis often causes digestion problems such as pain, bloating and nausea. If you regularly drink excessive amounts of alcohol and experience any of these symptoms, it's best to go and talk to your doctor.
5. Limit fizzy drink intake
The bubbles in fizzy drinks contain carbon dioxide, which can contribute to gas and bloating. According to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, consuming fizzy drinks can increase the amount of air in your digestive tract.5
It's certainly the case that fizzy drinks tend to be associated with an increase in digestive discomfort, especially when taken alongside food. Keeping your fizzy drinks to a minimum is, therefore, quite likely to improve your digestive powers. If you love fizzy juice, have it away from food to minimise the negative impact.
Bloating and burping aren't the only problems connected to fizzy drinks, though. It is no secret that fizzy drinks are bad for your teeth! Phosphoric acid, carbonic acid and sugar work together to cause tooth decay.
Toothache and sensitivity are both common symptoms of tooth decay and, if you have sore or sensitive teeth, you may have difficulty chewing. As we have seen, chewing is a vital part of the digestive process, without which your digestive experiences are likely to be unpleasant. So, to avoid both toothache and abdominal pain, it's best to lay off the fizzy drinks!
So, what can you take away from this blog?
Abdominal pain can be caused by several diet and lifestyle factors. You can help to prevent abdominal pain by improving how you eat, and reducing your intake of foods and drinks that have a negative effect on your digestive system. Small changes quickly make a big difference to your digestion, which is encouraging!
What you said!
We recently ran a poll to find out when you are most likely to experience abdominal pain. We've crunched the numbers and here are the results.
Results: When are you most likely to experience abdominal pain?
51% of you said that you are most likely to experience abdominal pain after eating. If you suffer from this problem, try eating smaller portions and have 5 to 6 small meals per day rather than 3 standard meals.
References
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21224837
- https://academic.oup.com/ajcn/article/79/4/669/4690166
- https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/heartburn-and-acid-reflux/
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4245564/
- https://www.niddk.nih.gov/health-information/digestive-diseases/gas-digestive-tract/symptoms-causes
