Bananas & Stomach Aches

Someone please help!

I just ate a banana with my breakfast and am now suffering with bad stomach cramps and nausea. I get this every time I eat a banana. It also happens with pineapple.

Could I be allergic to them?

It's not down in my intestines/bowels (i don't need to use the bathroom), it's more 2-3 inches above my belly button in my stomach. I'm fine with banana flavoured milk or banana smoothies but if I dare eat a full banana I'm in agony afterwards. I googled it but couldn't find anything useful, except maybe it's a case of eating under ripe fruit. Not really a fan of mushy bananas though.

Does anyone else get this? I find it tends to go away after a while, but the agony and nausea is unbearable while it's there.

Any advice would be very helpful!
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Replies

  • ms_leanne
    ms_leanne Posts: 523
    I think you should see a GP/Physician and ask them.

    It could be something in your stomach acids such as excess acid being produced with certain foods.

    Can you tell me whether you have tried drinking milk whilst in pain and does it help at all?
  • purpk
    purpk Posts: 9
    Someone please help!

    I just ate a banana with my breakfast and am now suffering with bad stomach cramps and nausea. I get this every time I eat a banana. It also happens with pineapple.

    Could I be allergic to them?

    It's not down in my intestines/bowels (i don't need to use the bathroom), it's more 2-3 inches above my belly button in my stomach. I'm fine with banana flavoured milk or banana smoothies but if I dare eat a full banana I'm in agony afterwards. I googled it but couldn't find anything useful, except maybe it's a case of eating under ripe fruit. Not really a fan of mushy bananas though.

    Does anyone else get this? I find it tends to go away after a while, but the agony and nausea is unbearable while it's there.

    Any advice would be very helpful!

    Does any other fruit do this to you? Fruits like strawberries perhaps? Do they make your mouth itchy at all as well? Your symptoms are sounding like an allergic reaction. Which could be dangerous if you have a severe one.

    Food allergies are something you shouldn't leave unchecked. If you think you may be allergic to something, my advice would be to see a doctor and maybe request an allergy test to find out what foods you should be avoiding, this could potentially save your life one day.
  • Ejwelton
    Ejwelton Posts: 331 Member
    I get it with bananas occasionally if they are too green.

    And almost always with eggs.
  • mjcat002
    mjcat002 Posts: 15
    This happens to me and just started in the last couple years. I have learned bananas have a latex substance in them, and I have developed an allergy to eating this.
    check this out if you want:
    http://www.ehow.com/facts_5009540_symptoms-bananas-allergy.html
  • sabrinalee8
    sabrinalee8 Posts: 45 Member
    Someone please help!

    I just ate a banana with my breakfast and am now suffering with bad stomach cramps and nausea. I get this every time I eat a banana. It also happens with pineapple.

    Could I be allergic to them?

    It's not down in my intestines/bowels (i don't need to use the bathroom), it's more 2-3 inches above my belly button in my stomach. I'm fine with banana flavoured milk or banana smoothies but if I dare eat a full banana I'm in agony afterwards. I googled it but couldn't find anything useful, except maybe it's a case of eating under ripe fruit. Not really a fan of mushy bananas though.

    Does anyone else get this? I find it tends to go away after a while, but the agony and nausea is unbearable while it's there.

    Any advice would be very helpful!

    Does any other fruit do this to you? Fruits like strawberries perhaps? Do they make your mouth itchy at all as well? Your symptoms are sounding like an allergic reaction. Which could be dangerous if you have a severe one.

    No other fruit does it to me and pineapples only when I eat too much of them. No itchiness in my mouth or rashes either, just the stomach ache which gradually disappears along with the nausea.
  • kalamitykate83
    kalamitykate83 Posts: 227 Member
    Bananas are high in potassium so could maybe be to do with this if you have high levels of it, I'd check with your GP / Health shop to see what they say. They can do tests to check potassium levels so you may want to ask for one!
  • mazdauk
    mazdauk Posts: 1,380 Member
    I get bloating and cramps after apples (not in crumble or pies, funnily enough, only raw!) but not bananas.
  • squidgely
    squidgely Posts: 29 Member
    Hi, I clicked on this post straight away because I suffer with the same :)
    I don't know what it is, but I'm not too worried. It started happening about a year ago and I'm just guessing my stomach is just more delicate than it used to be.
    I can't eat a banana first thing in the morning unless I've eaten something else before it or with it. My mum is the same. It gives us both stomach cramps and I get quite windy lol.
    I also can't drink a lot of milk anymore. For example, a milky coffee will give me stomach cramps, as will a lot of milk on cereal. I now have bio yoghurt on cereal, or I make porridge with water.
    I think some things are just a little harder on our stomachs than others, and this may crop up at any time of our lives.
    XXX
  • Mlr315
    Mlr315 Posts: 2 Member
    The same kind of stomachache happens to me when I eat avocado. It's up higher and really painful for hours. I just make sure to avoid eating avocado, the pain is almost instant and definitely not worth it. I've heard that bananas and avocado allergies are related, but I have no problems with bananas.
  • hammomh
    hammomh Posts: 43 Member
    possibly sensitivity to high potassium foods, I have it. I don't get super bad pains but bad enough to make stop and curl over a little until they pass.

    I have to avoid things like avocado, mushrooms, yoghurt, apricots and bananas. But, I do eat spinach and kale which gives a little pain but I enjpy them too much :)
  • TLow97
    TLow97 Posts: 55
    Oh man, this thread isn't helping me right now... I don't like bananas but I'm trying to eat some foods that are more nutritious and balance me out--and I have 1/2 banana sitting in front of me! Welp, down the hatch...
  • zazielascaux
    zazielascaux Posts: 35 Member
    Could be fructose malabsorption or you might struggle digesting cellulose ( insoluble fibre).
  • Hi get the same thing! I thought I was weird lol! It is worse when I have an empty stomach though, so I try to avoid banana's until after I've eaten something else. It doesn't happen with any other fruit or food that I'm aware of - just bananas!
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
    Sounds more like acid reflux or a sensitivity rather than an allergy. I would just avoid it for a while ( a month or two) and then reintroduce slowly. I had this happen to me with mushrooms. I can now eat them but I have to watch my portion sizes. I was also going through a lot of stress at the time and I think that was part of my problem.
  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    I'm allergic to apples and get nasty heartburn from some grapes, pineapple, and a whole lot of vegetables. Oddly enough, I can eat Florida grown strawberries, but none grown anywhere else.

    It has taken some trial to find what is safe for me to eat and what isn't.
  • sharonfoustmills
    sharonfoustmills Posts: 519 Member
    See a doctor

    Don't eat bananas
  • GrandMaKandy
    GrandMaKandy Posts: 259 Member
    Are you eating them from the fridge? That and them being under ripe may cause cramps.

    I was taught from a young child that;

    1. Never to put bananas in the fridge
    2. Make sure they are fully ripe - unless cooking them.
    3. Not to eat them late into the evening / night.

    Something to do with them being high potassium, iron and dense.
  • I recently am having the exact same problem.. nausea and terrible cramping. My nurse friend said that I have just developed an intolerance to them, not an allergy but just a "no more eating Banana" stage in life. :( I love them.. this makes me sad lol
  • I have been keeping a food diary, and see what foods cause the stomach cramps. I eat a healthy diet, and lots of vegetables. I've noticed that lately this happens to me with broccoli and cauliflower. When I eat the organic ones it doesn't happen. Two days ago, I ate a banana and after that I had a weight watchers chocolate ice cream bar, right after that I got an excruiating pain in my upper stomach that went under my both wing bones, It lasted around an hour. Tonight, I ate a banana and it happened again. I think it is the bananas. Last year was the first time I got that discomfort, so I went to my doctor and he sent me for an ultrasound of my stomach. It showed that I had gallstones. I'm not fat, I don't eat fried or fatty foods, I eat a healthy diet, mostly skinless chicken, fish and very rarely red meats, maybe once a month. I eat leguines, thats why I can't understand what is causing this problem.
  • SAME exact problem! If I eat a banana by itself I'll be doubled over in pain for the next hour or so. No other fruit does this to me. It's a bummer because I love bananas as a healthy, delicious snack. It doesn't seem to effect me in smoothies or baked into things like banana bread, so I guess I'll just take my bananas how I can get them.