The Top 5 Causes of Stomach Pain

When I meet a new client in my clinic, they are already eating a clean diet........

What do I mean by clean?

I'm talking about natural wholefoods, no preservatives and additives, very little alcohol and a lot of home made meals.

So what happens when the food you eat is still giving you pain and bloating?

The top 5 causes:

1. Low stomach acid- When your digestive system isn't producing enough digestive enzymes to break down your food, it will ferment and release gas. This causes bloating and quite often pain across your abdomen.
2. Fructose malabsorption- You can't get my natural than fruit, but it can cause complete mayhem in your gut if you can't digest it properly. Fruit contains fibre, high water content, various vitamins and fructose. Fructose is another highly fermentable food that can cause pain in your gut if your digestion is feeling sluggish.
3. Inflammation- No one wants an angry gut! Stress, toxins and some foods can trigger an inflammatory response. Not so bad if it's for the short term, but long term your absorption will be impacted and not function efficiently.
4. High fibrous foods- The benefits of fibre are crucial to long term optimal health. They keep us feeling full, reduce the risk of heart disease, diabetes and obesity. But when your gut has too much unwanted bacteria in the small intestine; high fibre foods such as pasta, bread and legumes will feed the bacteria. The bacteria release gases after eating the fibre and cause bloating and possible pain.
5. Food intolerance- Have you noticed when you eat a specific food group your tummy bloats up and a dull aching pain crosses your lower abdomen? Or it might even be single item such as eggs or a specific nut type. The problem with identifying food intolerances is that reactions can occur up to 48 hours after ingestion. You can create a food diary and write down all food and drink you have eaten. Or you can test for food intolerances via a blood test.

So what can you do?

• Take a digestive enzyme before each meal. This will activate you stomach acid or digestive enzymes, so your food can be broken down easier.
• Eat more alkaline based foods. This would include vegetables and fruit.
• If you are reacting to fruit, try cooking it. Start with apple or pear and eat it by itself. this way you don't run the risk of it fermenting when other food is being digested first.
• Stress less. Try not to eat on the run, chew your food and take time out for you!
• Avoid problematic foods and reduce introduce slowly after your tummy has had a chance to heal.
• If your concerned about not knowing what foods are causing the problem, have a blood test to take the guess work out of the situation.
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