Abdominal complaints
Abdominal complaints are problems you may experience with your abdomen. There can be several reasons for this, including:
- Eating too much.
- Smoking.
- Alcohol.
- Abdominal flu.
- Greasy food.
- Being overweight.
- Coughing.
- Constipation.
- Bacteria which can cause stomach ulcers.
- Tension.
- Anxiety.
- Stress.
- Drinking coffee.
- Strong and spicy food.
- Eating chocolate.
- Eating peppermint.
- Carbonated drinks.
- Acidic drinks.
- Eating or drinking citrus fruits.
If you suffer from abdominal complaints, you may:
- Have pain in your upper abdomen.
- Suffer from burping.
- Suffer from heartburn.
- Feel bloated in your abdomen.
- Feel nauseous.
- Vomit.
- Get full quickly.
There are a number of things you can do about abdominal complaints yourself, such as:
- Eating regularly.
- Eating plenty of fibre.
- Drinking at least 1.5 to 2 litres of water per day.
- Not eating foods you can’t tolerate.
- Not drinking alcohol.
- Not drinking caffeinated drinks.
- Not eating too much or too much greasy food.
- Not drinking carbonated drinks.
- Getting enough exercise.
- Sleeping with your head end raised for a week. Do this by stacking a few extra pillows on top of each other. Heartburn, belching and other abdominal complaints can be reduced or resolved as a result.
- Losing weight if you’re overweight.
- Reducing your stress levels and talking to someone if you’re feeling anxious or gloomy. Find out what can help you to reduce or resolve this together.
- Making sure you get enough sleep and if you find this difficult, we recommend you contact your GP.
- Taking medication for abdominal complaints if you’ve been prescribed these.
We recommend you contact your GP immediately In the following situations:
- If your stool is dark black.
- If you vomit blood.
- If you have blood in your stool.
- When the pain is unbearable.
- You faint and/or become very drowsy.
- If the symptoms don’t go away.
- If the symptoms don’t change.
- If the symptoms don’t get worse.