peterhutch asked:


Indigestion, also known as upset stomach or dyspepsia, is discomfort or a burning feeling in the upper abdomen, often accompanied by nausea, abdominal bloating, belching, and sometimes vomiting. Some people also use the term indigestion to describe the symptom of heartburn.

Indigestion is not a distinct condition, but it may be a sign of an underlying intestinal disorder such as peptic ulcer, gallbladder disease or chronic appendicitis. Indigestion, also known as upset stomach or dyspepsia, is a painful or burning feeling in the upper abdomen.

You might get indigestion from eating too much or too fast, eating high-fat foods or eating when you’re stressed. Smoking, drinking too much alcohol, using some medicines, being tired and having ongoing stress can also cause indigestion or make it worse. Sometimes the cause is a problem with the digestive tract, like an ulcer or gerd.

Indigestion, also known as dyspepsia, is a painful or burning feeling in the upper abdomen and is usually accompanied by nausea, bloating or gas, a feeling of fullness, and, sometimes, vomiting. While indigestion may be the result of a disease or an ulcer in the digestive tract, most often it is the result of eating too much, eating too quickly, eating high-fat foods, or eating during stressful situations.

Indigestion is very common and most people have it from time to time. For some people it’s very mild and doesn’t happen very often perhaps only after a large meal or particularly rich food. For others, it can be very painful, and sometimes feels as if you are having a heart attack.

Indigestion (say: in-dih-jest-shun) is just another name for an upset stomach. (It’s also called dyspepsia (say: dis-pep-see-ah.) Indigestion usually happens when people eat too much, too fast, or foods that don’t “agree” with them. It’s fair to say that big cheesesteak sandwich didn’t agree with Brandon!

Indigestion is the most often pronounced ailment of modern times branching out into varied abdominal diseases. The most common one would be Gastritis. To research into the symptoms of this ailment would be acid reflux or heartburn, pain in the abdomen, excessive burping, puking or vomiting, nausea and difficulty in releasing gas.

Causes

Heartburn. When stomach acid backs up into the esophagus — known as acid reflux — you may experience heartburn. This burning pain in the upper abdomen and under the breastbone may be accompanied by nausea and an acid or sour taste in your mouth.

Peptic ulcers. Peptic ulcers are open sores that develop on the lining of the stomach, upper small intestine or esophagus. They may cause burning pain anywhere from your navel to your breastbone. Many peptic ulcers are caused by the bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). Others are caused by regular use of certain pain relievers, such as aspirin, naproxen (Aleve) or ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others).

People of all ages and of both sexes are affected by indigestion. It’s extremely common. An individual’s risk increases with excess alcohol consumption, use of drugs that may irritate the stomach (such as aspirin), other conditions where there is an abnormality in the digestive tract such as an ulcer and emotional problems such as anxiety or depression.



Maria

Nilutpal Gogoi asked:


WHAT EXACTLY IS INDIGESTION?

If you have been to a party and have taken too many fatty foods, you would in all likelihood have indigestion. Indigestion is a common tummy dysfunction. Everybody has felt this discomfort called indigestion at some point or the other. However, the most complain of indigestion is flatulence or formation of gas in the tummy. Long with it comes the uneasy feeling of something solid and bitter coming up the food pipe or the esophagus. This is nothing but the stomach acid rising.

INDIGESTION SYMPTOMS

Some other symptoms of indigestion are nausea, a burning sensation or pain particularly in the upper portion of your abdomen, and you may even feel bloated. Indigestion also causes heartburn and unstoppable burping.

INDIGESTION DISORDERS

There is, of course, no need for worry if you had indigestion after a heavy dinner. However, if indigestion keeps on recurring with an uncanny regularity, then do consult a doctor. Such frequent indigestion can be a sign of a serious tummy ailment. Indigestion without having any fatty meals is definitely not natural.

Prolonged and rather repeated indigestion can be the cause of the irritation of the tummy lining or of the duodenum. The duodenum hollow tube connects the stomach and the jejunum (the central and shortest portion of the small intestine). Such aggravation can aggravate into life-threatening ulcers. Mentionably, many confuse heart burn with this dysfunction. But heart burn is basically due to the irritation of the esophagus.

DYSPEPSIA

Dyspepsia refers to the recurring pain in the tummy. Dyspepsia is also accompanied by heart burn, nausea and indigestion. Dyspepsia can be caused by ulcers in the stomach. These ulcers are formed by the hydrochloric acids. The situation can be aggravated by heart burn and indigestion. Certain drugs used in schizophrenia and arthritis have also been identified as primary causes of dyspepsia.

MEANS TO AVOID INDIGESTION

If you go to bed late or take your major meals quite late, you can have acid indigestion. So, always follow a proper diet roster. It is always advisable to have homemade meals. If you cannot make the time, then opt for a hygienic locale. Moreover, have the meals at the fixed times. Go for a nutritious breakfast. Then you can skip the lunch. Have lunch before noon and supper latest by nine. Avoid fast food as much as possible.

Don’t hit the bed immediately after the major meals. Allow the meal to settle down. Walk leisurely for some time after the meals.

Kick away the habit many people have of drinking water between and immediately after the meals. The water leads to flatulence formation. Allow at least 30 minutes between the meal and the glass of water.

Spice may be appealing to the palate. It is very dangerous for the tummy. Spicy foods trigger off flatulence. Similar is the case with the mouth watering dairy products. How many can say ‘NO!’ to chocolates? But then don’t rue the day if you have acid indigestion later on. The best option is to stay away from these lollipop booby traps. Having them in limited quantity once in a blue moon is okay, though!

Just as overeating is akin to inviting indigestion so also is drinking too much of alcohol or even caffeine. The other popular hobby of hundreds of people, namely smoking is also a culprit.

RELIEF FROM INDIGESTION

To get immediate relief, you can go for antacids. These antacids are readily available in any chemist’s shop. Antacids cure indigestion by neutralizing the hydrochloric acids that form in the tummy. The fatty substances that we consume accelerate the acid formation process. This leads to the uncomfortable feeling of indigestion.

BREATHING & YOGIC EXERCISES

To provide your body guaranteed immunity from indigestion, take to breathing and yogic exercises. One simple yogic byam also called asana (exercise) is the ‘Bajrasana’. After you have your meal, kneel down with your feet fingers bent outside under your buttocks. Place your hands on your knees. Close your eyes. Take deep breaths and concentrate on the food in your tummy. Imagine that they being digested. Wait for just five seconds and then exhale. Repeat it 10 times. Email me if you do not feel relaxed.

Early in the morning after brushing your teeth, just gulp down five grains of rice. Wait for some time and then drink at least 400 milligrams of water. This will stop indigestion and also ensure smooth bowel movement. Besides, you won’t feel hungry or feel the formation of gas if you have to skip lunch during the day.

Last but not the least, remember this principle. It is after all your body. Learn to respect it and it will respect you. Don’t overuse this machine. The parts may get worn out. Don’t treat is as a dustbin! You may have to spend a fortune overhauling it!



Nathaniel

Dr John Anne asked:


Do you eat too much, too quickly or stressed? What do you feel after eating? Do you have a sense of fullness after eating even if you only have eaten a small amount of food? These are only some of the questions a doctor may ask during consultation to determine if a person is suffering from indigestion.

Indigestion is different from constipation. This symptom is sometimes called dyspepsia, discomfort after meal or upset stomach. This kind of ailment is often accompanied by nausea, abdominal bloating, belching and vomiting.

Causes of Indigestion

Indigestion could be a symptom or a result of a currently occurring disease. It might be caused by a disease in the digestive system like ulcer or gastroesophageal reflux disease. However, the most common causes among many people are eating too much, eating too quickly, eating highly fatty foods or eating during stressful situations. These factors cause the stomach to not digest the food properly. Fatty foods are really difficult to digest especially those that contain insoluble fats.

Other causes include smoking, drinking too much alcohol, using medications that irate the stomach lining and being tired or stressed. However, there are other people that suffer indigestion that are not related to the previous factors mentioned. This type of indigestion is called functional or non-ulcer indigestion. It is a result of the malfunctioning of the stomach muscle while squeezing or digesting the food in take.

Treatment and Prevention of Indigestion

Other than the routinely physical diagnostic questions that a patient should honestly answer to determine if the patient is suffering from indigestion, there are other diagnosis that some physicians initiate to make sure of the occurrence of the ailment. Some of these require x-rays of the stomach and endoscopy of the small intestines.

As the adage goes, prevention is better than cure, the occurrence of indigestion could easily be prevented when the food intake is monitored. Monitoring food does not only require a person to check the food contents or nutritional values of the food but even the time of eating and the amount of food. It is still better to avoid the foods or situations that can cause indigestion. Smokers can be relieved when smoking is minimized or quitted. Exercising just after eating is also not recommended as it also causes indigestion.

When the problem is functional, consultation to doctors could provide the treatment. They could either give oral medication that may affect stomach motility or prescribe internal diagnosis.

Indigestion could be serious

Since indigestion could be a precursor to a more serious disease in the digestive tract, a person should see a doctor when the indigestion becomes recurrent or the symptoms have become worse or aggravating.

When indigestion already goes with vomiting, weight loss, appetite loss, black tarry stools or blood in vomit, heartburn or severe pain in the upper right of the abdomen, discomfort unrelated to eating, shortness of breathing and sweating, a person is already advised to see a doctor for consultation and diagnosis.

When the symptoms enumerated above last longer than two weeks, the indigestion could have already been elevated to serious disorder.



Melanie