Do stomachs shrink?

whitpauly

I'm talking about actual stomach size,,not the ab area,I watch a lot of 600 lb life and when he does the gastric sleeve he'll often comment that it's a huge stomach when he's cutting it out,sorry if it's a dumb question or been asked already but the search button only revealed posts about outer stomach shrinking-thanks

LivingtheLeanDream

It's a good question! I have no idea LOL so I'm in for the answers too
I do know I can't eat as much as I could when I was heavier because I get full easily now.... but I'm not sure my stomach itself has actually shrunk.

Crafty_camper123

I've always wondered this myself. I've done some googling on it in the past. All I could find was that it is possible to shrink your stomach. But, it requires an unhealthy amount of calorie restriction to do so. However, I find that since I have began eating less, it seems to take less food to make me feel full now. I'm kind of guessing that has to do more with hunger hormones then stomach shrinkage. But I'm not sure. Perhaps some of our more knowledgeable MFPers will jump in?

Fitnessgirl0913

I have always wondered about this as well. I know that if I eat like I did before I lost weight I get an awful stomach ache or can even throw up so my guess is yes? I am not sure if it is because my stomach shrank or I am just not used to eating that way anymore. That is purely based on experience though and no actual science lol. Who is that awesome guy that always posts the scientific and mathematical break down of stuff? I wonder if he may know anything about this.

mazcor536

As an adult, your stomach pretty much stays the same size no matter what (unless you have surgery). It’s your appetite that changes. Smaller appetite = feel full quicker.

ninerbuff

No it doesn't. We're born with a certain size and grows along with us. It can easily be expanded though. When people learn to eat a moderate amount of food or a certain diet over a long period of time, reintroducing large meals or foods they haven't consumed for a long time can play havoc on digestion.
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JeromeBarry1

Wikipedia says "In adult humans, the stomach has a relaxed, near empty volume of about 75 millilitres. Because it is a distensible organ, it normally expands to hold about one litre of food."

L1zardQueen

http://time.com/2954614/competitive-eating-health-risks/ I'm not sure if this helps or not

Freyhb

I sure feel like today my stomach shrank lol. I'm sure that's not really the case but I got takeout from a Mediterranean place that I really, really wanted to eat and I could only eat a quarter of it. My stomach is so full right now, I can't even breathe. But yeah, before I started to eat, I was feeling ravenous and three bites into it, I started feeling full.

Enthusiast84

Not sure about stomachs shrinking by my appetite has most definitely decreased.

BarneyRubbleMD

Yes it does, sort of--but it would be better to say that it expands (over time) to handle what one stuffs into it (hence the surgeons comments) and "shrinks" back to "normal" when eating an appropriate amount of food for that individual. As a former binge eater, I use to be able to consume huge amounts of food (about 8000 calories worth at one sitting during an evening binge) but now I could not eat one-forth that amount in one sitting. But I'm also sure I would "stretch" my stomach back out again (over time) to accommodate that amount of food again if I don't keep my binge eating under control.

CharlieBeansmomTracey

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/does-dieting-actually-make-your-stomach-shrink-180955521/ stomachs stretch to accommodate food then it after awhile it shrinks back down to size.

jennifer_417

Freyhb wrote: »

I sure feel like today my stomach shrank lol. I'm sure that's not really the case but I got takeout from a Mediterranean place that I really, really wanted to eat and I could only eat a quarter of it. My stomach is so full right now, I can't even breathe. But yeah, before I started to eat, I was feeling ravenous and three bites into it, I started feeling full.

That happens to me too when I'm super hungry! Wonder what causes it?

CharlieBeansmomTracey

jennifer_417 wrote: »

Freyhb wrote: »

I sure feel like today my stomach shrank lol. I'm sure that's not really the case but I got takeout from a Mediterranean place that I really, really wanted to eat and I could only eat a quarter of it. My stomach is so full right now, I can't even breathe. But yeah, before I started to eat, I was feeling ravenous and three bites into it, I started feeling full.

That happens to me too when I'm super hungry! Wonder what causes it?

could be satiation from certain macros? could be other things, some underlying conditions can cause that too. if you have a lot of bloating and feel very full from small amounts of food its best to see a dr about it., if it isnt gas then its nor a normal thing especially if its painful

ashirley695

Just read about this in textbook.
Stretch receptors!
Stretch receptors send signals to the brain (hypothalamus? Don't quote that...) that serve as one of our signals that we are "full". Over a period of time, consuming higher amounts of food than we should in one meal will result in less sensitive stretch receptors, dulling or delaying the message to brain that we are full and encouraging us to consume more.
In addition, some humans have more receptors and/or more specific receptors than others. One person may have more stomach receptors for fats than another, for example, which can drastically alter the messages the stomach sends to the brain. This, I do believe, is why some of us find we have to adjust our intakes of the standard recommendation for fat, protein, and carb in order to not feel the hangry, cravings, chronically over eat, basically to find the satiety sweet spot.
They are also doing studies to understand correlation between receptors and obesity, etc. I thought this was great, proof that one size "dieting" in terms of food intake will not work for all.

JeromeBarry1

What text book is that @ashirley695 ? What's your course of study?

seltzermint555

Rambling anecdote...

Unfortunately I feel like I still have horrible hunger and satiety cues after major weight loss and I only know I'm hungry if I get lightheaded, and only know I'm really full based on eating all of the portion I set out for myself.

I have never been a big volume eater in particular but I also honestly don't get it when people are like "wow I can't finish this 2 cup bowl of creamy pasta, it's just too rich". Yes I'd feel that way if it was a truly huge portion like in some chain restaurants where it comes on a platter that looks like it's for 2-4 people to share. But honestly I don't feel like my stomach has shrunk at all and I don't even really feel like my appetite has changed THAT much, 4 years into maintaining a 130 lb loss.

This is why I "need" MFP, to properly determine how much to eat and how often.

jgnatca

As a post gastric bypass patient I now get an unusual reaction if I am overfull (doesn’t take much!). I sneeze. I suspect the Vagus nerve is sending a different signal after surgery and my involuntary system expels in this most unusual fashion. My nose may begin to run beforehand.

I can eat a quarter pounder less one bite, and no liquids to confuse the matter! I was only able to finish half a Tim Hortons chili deal, so saved the second half for the next day. I eat slowly so as not to disturb anything.

johnnylakis

mazcor536 wrote: »

As an adult, your stomach pretty much stays the same size no matter what (unless you have surgery). It’s your appetite that changes. Smaller appetite = feel full quicker.

I love WebMD!

mudknuckles

If you boil them they will shrink

crackpotbaby

The stretch receptors post is basically what we were taught in the anatomy and physiology compoment of our nursing degree.