Bloating!

sassyg

What can cause it? Is it sodium?

I have an 84cm waist / 96cm tummy as 'normal' i.e first thing in the morning. By the end of the day than can increase by up to 12cm!.

I'm lactose intolerant, but it happens even when I don't have any lactose-containing products. I have no other food intolerances, and it's not TOM-related.

I start the day feeling really good about myself, then by afternoon/evening I have this massive gut and I feel so gross : ( My hips don't change by more than 1cm.

Please help! Is it normal for measurements to change SO MUCH in a day?

wilmelenne

are you eating a lot of fruit? I was having the same problem and for me it was fruit. I since cut a lot of it out.

sassyg

not a lot I think. 1-2 pieces a day (banana and/or apple).

wilmelenne

apples is what did it for me, and pears...google it...

CallejaFairey

bananas can do it for me at times.

jenfunfur

You would be suprised what dairy products can sneak into, are you checking to make sure food does'nt contain whey protien etc? Maybe there could be a minor wheat intolerence, as lot of people with lactose intolerence can't have wheat either. I think you would have to be having a lot of sodium to cause that much difference, but maybe up your water intake or try some herbal teas. Nettle tea is quite good for fluid retention & general cleansing.
I suffer a lot from bloating as i have so many intolerences, i live through herbal teas to control the symptoms and it really helps. Hope you find the cause

Neliel

Welcome to the bloating arena! Stress is the cause of my bloating and apparently it's IBS. I have had a gut 2 inches bigger than normal for 2 weeks straight now. It's awful. And yes, it tends to get bigger as the day goes. I totally feel your pain.

sassyg

Thanks for your replies!

Fruit I don't always have though. Yesterday I had none and it was an awful day for it.
I only have a lactose intolerance, rather than a dairy intolerance, so milk proteins in products aren't of any concern. Even small amounts of milk are OK as there is a managable amount of lactose in them.
I'll look for nettle tea as I have heard about that before! Thanks.

Happyoceangirl

I deal with this too... it's quite amazing the difference between a bloated and a non-bloated day. Peppermint tea is good to soothe stomach ailments, and fennel tea is good for excess gas, bloating, stomach discomfort. (it doesn't taste so great though, so I have to mix it with the peppermint).

I have found that when I am careful to eat foods in a way that my body can digest them properly, it helps quite a bit. For me, that means avoiding eating animal protein and starch in the same meal, and always eating fruit alone. It has to do with the body's digestive enzymes. The enzymes needed to digest animal protein are different from the enzymes needed to digest starch. When they are present at the same time, they will neutralize each other, leaving the food sitting, undigested and rotting in your system until your next meal forces it onward. The reason for eating fruit alone is that fruit is the most quickly digested food (from what I understand). It can be absorbed into your system in about 20 minutes. But if eaten with other foods, the body's energy and digestive enzymes tackle the other foods first, leaving the fruit to ferment... leading to bloating, gas, discomfort.

I always used to think that bloating I'm feeling now is directly related to what I ate last. But doing research on the digestive system helped me realize that our food lingers in our bodies for up to 72 hours before digestion is complete. Therefore, bloating in the abdominal area may be more a result of what I ate 2-3 days ago than what I had for my last snack. It is important to pay attention to how you feel not only immediately after consumption, but to sort of track how you feel for the next 48-72 hours to see if you can find a correlation.

I realize that the "normal" person probably doesn't need to go to this extent. Please forgive me if I seem like I'm on a soapbox. I by no means want to assume this is right for everyone. . Pretty sure there are lots of various reasons and factors people get bloated, and this is just one of them. I just know that it seems to be helping me a lot, so on that basis, it is worth sharing. My bloating is significantly less when I follow these guidelines, and considerably worse when I don't. :flowerforyou:

Happyoceangirl

I also just want to wish you luck in figuring out what is causing this for you! If you come across any "ah-ha's" it would be great to share them so we can add to our collective information bank!

Good luck!

VickiMitkins

You would be suprised what dairy products can sneak into, are you checking to make sure food does'nt contain whey protien etc? Maybe there could be a minor wheat intolerence, as lot of people with lactose intolerence can't have wheat either. I think you would have to be having a lot of sodium to cause that much difference, but maybe up your water intake or try some herbal teas. Nettle tea is quite good for fluid retention & general cleansing.
I suffer a lot from bloating as i have so many intolerences, i live through herbal teas to control the symptoms and it really helps. Hope you find the cause

Youmight consider looking at the wheat issues as suggested above. I have the same problem with bloating. I figured out that I am wheat intolerant. Once I cut out wheat the afternoon bloat decreased. Sadly it has not stopped. Certain vegetable get me also - broccoli is one.

tmaksparkie

Ok this might seem silly but, you may have a gluten intolerance, I did that is why I eat primal ( no grains at all) I used to blow up like a balloon pants that fit really good in the morning where tight by afternoon, and the stomach bloating made me look pregnant. So I did some experimenting and that's what I found out, I never had a stomach ache or anything just the bloating and a little uncomfortable from tint clothes. Why don't you friend me and I can help you more if you would like.

jkestens63

For me its excess sugar that makes me bloat - goes straight to the belly. As long as I drink tons of water, stay away from processed sugar (fruits don't bother me), and exercise it pretty much keeps the belly down.

Happyoceangirl

This is fascinating. I love seeing all the different culprits. Makes me feel like doing more detective work...

callipygianchronicle

Just took a quick peak at your diary. I am not familiar with VitaQuench, but I looked at the ingredients [Natural Flavours, Acidity Regulators (296, 330), Maltodextrin, Salt, Sweeteners (955, 950), Vitamins (Ascorbic Acid (C), B1, B3, B5, B6, B7, B12) ] And although I have no idea what “Sweeteners” or “Acidity Regulators” are, these may in fact be the culprits behind your bloat.

Aside from being unable to tolerate the aftertaste, artificial sweeteners universally upset my stomach. And, if you do in fact have a gluten intolerance, the maltodextrin may be triggering a reaction. Do you get bloated if you drink only water and no VitaQuench?

Edited to Add:
Just googled. Sweetners 950 is Acesulfame Potassium (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acesulfame_potassium)
Sweetners 955 is Sucralose (http://www.australianbeverages.org/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=ASP0002/ccms.r?PageId=10091#WHAT_IS_SUCRALOSE_AND_HOW_IS_IT_MADE?)

NanRunsOnPaleo

For ME, I found that eating grains causes bloating. I've cut out all grains, soy, legumes and have been eating Primal. I'm still testing this.

cowlover22

Try an anti gas or magnesium pills, but yes this can happen!

sassyg

Just took a quick peak at your diary. I am not familiar with VitaQuench, but I looked at the ingredients [Natural Flavours, Acidity Regulators (296, 330), Maltodextrin, Salt, Sweeteners (955, 950), Vitamins (Ascorbic Acid (C), B1, B3, B5, B6, B7, B12) ] And although I have no idea what “Sweeteners” or “Acidity Regulators” are, these may in fact be the culprits behind your bloat.

Aside from being unable to tolerate the aftertaste, artificial sweeteners universally upset my stomach. And, if you do in fact have a gluten intolerance, the maltodextrin may be triggering a reaction. Do you get bloated if you drink only water and no VitaQuench?

Edited to Add:
Just googled. Sweetners 950 is Acesulfame Potassium (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acesulfame_potassium)
Sweetners 955 is Sucralose (http://www.australianbeverages.org/scripts/cgiip.exe/WService=ASP0002/ccms.r?PageId=10091#WHAT_IS_SUCRALOSE_AND_HOW_IS_IT_MADE?)

Hi

Yup I get it without or without the water additive. This week has been the first time since before Christmas that I bought some.

i'm dubious about the gluten intolerance as I have been tested... I may give it a try though... Sugar on the other hand, is highly likely I do have too much of it.

Thanks!

donicagalek

A TON of "diet" foods are loaded with sodium which causes water retention (and therefore bloating). I'm guilty of eating this stuff. :-/ :-)

Flavored rice cakes, sugar free Jell-o, pickles... if it's low cal and tastes pretty good they're making up for it somewhere. :-D

Patti233

I have this very same problem just about every afternoon. It is worse when I am working.. Or my clothes are tighter.. Not sure. I guess I need to do some research and find out the cause.. There sure doesn't seem to be any reason for it. All of your posts are very interesting. I am going to see what works for me.. Thanks for sharing...