Symptoms of indigestion

Our stomachs process food several times every day and they generally do an excellent job - week in, week out. However, since our digestive systems are highly-tuned and very sensitive, it's quite easy for things to go wrong. So it's probably not surprising to learn that nearly 40%¹ of the UK population experience indigestion symptoms. That means about 18 million of us nationwide. In fact, it's so common that as many as 7%¹ get it every single day. So if you find an enjoyable meal is spoiled by an uncomfortable or painful stomach and embarrassing after-effects, you're certainly not alone. But help is at hand - don't feel you have to put up with indigestion. Indigestion is the general term which refers to stomach discomfort but there are, in fact, three distinct types of problem: excess acid, trapped wind and dysmotility i.e. nausea or queasiness or heavy bloated stomach after eating. To get the right kind of remedy, you need to know which kind of digestive complaint you are suffering from. Your doctor or pharmacist will be able to tell you which problem you have but, so that so you can pinpoint this for yourself, we have listed the different symptoms in the table below:

SYMPTOM GROUP 1	SYMPTOM GROUP 2	SYMPTOM GROUP 3
a burning pain just behind your breastbone (can be called heartburn)	gassy or bloated feelings	queasy, nauseous feelings
a rising pain in your gullet which feels like it's moving up towards your neck (can be called heartburn)	unnaturally distended abdomen	fullness - like you've eaten lots even when you haven't
a bitter, stinging acid taste in the back of your throat (can be called heartburn)	flatulence	heavy bloated stomach - like there's a brick in it
belching	belching	feels like something is sitting in your stomach
sharp, sore pain the stomach (can be called acid indigestion or sour stomach)	uncomfortable pain in your abdomen	stomach ache or general discomfort rather than pinpointed pain
If you have these sensations, you probably have EXCESS ACID, so click here to find out more.	If you are experiencing the above symptoms, it's most likely you have TRAPPED WIND. Click here to know more.	If this sounds like you, then you may have DYSMOTILITY. Click here to know more.

There is a fair amount of crossover between the different types of symptoms and you may find you don't fall neatly into any one group. So, if you can't decide which of the three columns above best describe your digestive problem, simply click on the main symptoms you know you get in the left hand menu.

¹ Lydeard, Jones Gut 1990, 31, 401-405
² Grainger, S L et al Post Med. Journal (1994), 70, 154-161


		May 16th, 2008