Bloating isn't a medical condition. It doesn't necessarily mean that a person has eaten too much. It can be a case of eating wrong food which has not been digested by the body. Bloating occurs when air and water get trapped inside the stomach or intestine. As a result, the stomach gets swollen well past its normal level.

Culprits of bloating:
Bloating can result from a number of cases. Fatty or junk foods are one of the biggest culprits of bloating. It hinders the digestion process and doesn't let the stomach empty on time. Carbohydrates too can cause bloating. Even carbonated drinks can play spoilsport. It creates bubbles in the stomach leading to indigestion and bloating. Some food items related to gas include cauliflower, lettuce, hard candy, beans, Brussels sprouts, broccoli etc. Apart from this, consumption of excessive junk food and soft drinks can lead to bloating.

Steps to avoid bloating:
The best way to avoid bloating is to refrain from bloat causing foods as mentioned earlier. If you wear dentures, it should be ensured that it fits properly. There are instances when excess air gets inside the stomach due to an improper fixture of denture leading to bloating. Eating or drinking slowly is another good way of staying away from bloating. When you eat slowly, there are fewer chances of extra air getting inside the stomach. In the case of beverage consumption, avoiding the straw is a good idea. This way the unwanted air cannot make their way inside the tummy and play foul.

Taking a small walk after every meal is another good way of staying away from bloating. This way the gas inside the tummy cannot rise above the surface. The practice of calming technique such as yoga, deep breathing and meditation also goes a long way in giving relief from bloating.

Some home remedies to get rid of bloating include:
a. A cup of ginger, lemon and honey in a cup of hot water once everyday
b. 1 cup of herbal peppermint tea freshly prepared in boiled water
c. In the case of regular stomach bloating, intake of one caraway seed on a daily basis fetches immediate results
d. Consumption of a cup of baked pumpkin twice a week
e. Consumption of warm lemon water before you start your day is another good way of keeping bloating at bay.

Bloating can also be a symptom of other intestinal related problems as well. If the general method of control and measured diet doesn't suffice, it is time to visit a doctor to find the underlying cause of your problem. Doctors perform a series of tests to understand the problem and prescribe the required medicine to control or cure the problem.

Bloating: The Causes & Solutions

Gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GERD) refers to a health condition wherein the stomach acids tend to leak backwards from your stomach into the oesophagus, causing the latter to experience a good amount of irritation, thereby triggering a number of other problems. GERD has a way of affecting people irrespective of their age or gender. Patients who suffer from asthma are at greater risks of encountering the problem of GERD, and some asthma medicines tend to worsen reflux symptoms. However, the effects are indeed two-way in this regard. Acid reflux worsens asthma symptoms by deeply affecting the lungs and airways. Allergic reactions might also be brought about as a result of such a condition.

Symptoms 

GERD is a condition that everyone has experienced at one point or the other in their lives. It generally happens when on burping you are left with a bit of an acid taste that lingers in your mouth, followed simultaneously by a case of heartburn. A sure way to ascertain this condition is to check for the following symptoms: 

Sudden and excessive rise in saliva
Acid regurgitation
Gums show inflammation
Sore throat that is chronic
Bad breath
Cavities
Encountering pain or difficulty while swallowing
Hoarseness or laryngitis
Chest pain
How can it be treated?

The prime treatment measure for GERD is to adopt necessary lifestyle changes so that you may nurture better health. In case you happen to be overweight, it is important that you look into the matter of weight loss. 

Medicines must be taken along with a lot of water, and doctors must ensure that prescribed medications do not actually worsen your heartburn.
Over-the-counter medications and antacids can be used every once in a while after meals, but it does one good to remember that the effects don t last for long. Side effects of excessive dosage of antacids include constipation or diarrhoea. 
Proton pump inhibitors might also be recommended in acute cases of GERD to reduce the total amount of acid that is manufactured in your stomach. H2 blocker is another antidote that aims at reducing the level of acid that is released in your stomach.
Anti-reflux surgery is also prescribed for those people whose symptoms persist despite a change in medications and lifestyle patterns. An endoscopic surgery is another important procedure that may be opted for in order to correct GERD.


GERD - 4 Different Ways It Can Be Treated!

From our early memories, we would have been drilleed down with the importance of food and the benefits of eating certain foods. We naturally tend to assume that foods make us grow and sometimes we end up gobbling tons of food with a childhood innocence that they are going to make us taller and smarter in a jiffy. Looking back, we tend to smile at those memories nostalgically. However, in some cases, we grow up or we simply ignore one basic rule of eating the right food at the right time. 

Foods are very much related to time and the physics of our body can agree with them only if they are taken for a certain period. For instance, there are some foods that are beneficial to us, but can actually work in a negative way, if taken at a wrong time. For example, there are some foods that should never be taken on an empty stomach. Here are some such foods that you may want to know:

Tomatoes: Tomatoes are no doubt full of vitamins and antioxidants. However, when eaten on an empty stomach, these ingredients combine with acidic nature of our stomach and can result in stomach block. They put unnecessary pressure on the stomach and can cause stomachache. This can be dangerous for people who are already suffering from ulcers.
Citrus Fruits: Though citrus fruits like oranges, grapefruits, and lemons are high in vitamin C, fiber and antioxidants, they may irritate your stomach when taken first thing in the morning. The oesophagus lining of your stomach gets enlarged when there is no food to digest and taking these fruits can directly enlarge them even more, causing more friction to your stomach.
Short Crust/Puff Pastry: Pastries can be a good combination for breakfast but it is a strict no on an empty stomach. Pastries and crusts have yeast in them and they simply will not go well for an empty stomach.
Carbonated Drinks: Carbonated drinks are basically bad for health and imagine having them on an early morning. Nothing can be more troublesome for your stomach than having these carbonated drinks first thing in the morning. They up the risk of cancer and heart diseases and can also lead to many other complications. Strictly avoid them on an empty stomach.
Coffee or Tea: Is having coffee the first thing that you do in the morning? You may be unaware but you are actually causing a lot of harm to your body. Drinking coffee on an empty stomach can increase the levels of hydrochloric acid and can lead to constipation vomiting. They also slow the digestion process. Try having a glass of water on an empty stomach; give it some time to settle and then intake caffeine.

5 Things You Must Never Consume Empty Stomach!

We face different types of chronic diseases and health problems because of the way we live and lead our lifestyle. However one of the most important factors that influence our health and body is our food habit. We need to keep in mind regardless how busy we are, that 'our stomach is not a trash can'. We cannot continue eating junk and unhealthy food regardless how time saving and tasty they are. The more junk we eat the more harm our stomach and digestive system faces. So in this article, we will discuss how to not make your stomach a trash can and fall ill.

Here are some tips which will help you to keep your stomach healthy and away from potential harms. Follow these tips and improve the metabolism of not only your stomach but also your whole metabolic structure and live a healthy long life.

First of all, try to make a chart of the things which you eat regularly. This will help you to look into the things which you are eating and plan the diet accordingly for the next day. Thus maintaining a balance between different kinds of food. Try to substitute one of the heavy meals i.e. breakfast, lunch or dinner with a big glass of fresh fruit juice or shake.
Usually, a big glass of fruit shake includes all the essential vitamins and proteins that will keep you going through the day and it is completely healthy as well.
Drinking plenty of water is the key. Water is one of the, if not the, most important ingredient which keeps our body healthy and going. Water not only rehydrates our cells, vessels, organs etc. but it also helps the digestive tract to flush out unnecessary waste in the digestive system. It helps your stomach to digest better and also helps to prevent constipation. Therefore drink a minimum of 13 cups of water throughout the day if you are a full grown adult.
Eat plenty of fruits and vegetables. These two elements help your body to gain back the minerals and vitamins it had lost when you worked so hard throughout the day. Just like we need replenishment, our body needs it in a similar way. It keeps our digestive system and the brain clear and packed with the necessary ingredients.
Avoid eating junk food as much as you can. It was never said completely stop eating junk food, we all know that they are tasty and thus hard to resist. But do not make it a habit. Eat junk and oily food once or twice a month.

Are You Making Your Stomach A Trash Can?

A number of worms/parasites can infest the stomach and intestines. Children are more prone, and contract them by ingesting uncooked foods or fruits, contact with animals, playing in soil, or even unhygienic water.
The most common worms include pinworm, threadworms, roundworms, whipworms, hookworm, and tapeworm.

Signs and Symptoms

Whatever the type of worm, the symptoms are more or less the same and include the following:

Allergies: When worm infestation happens, there could be blisters on the body and the oral mucous membranes and food sensitivity can occur.
Anemia: The parasites growing inside the stomach suck out nutrition from the food, and therefore the body is deprived of essential nutrition. It could lead to severe anemia in some cases.
Altered bowel movement: While some organisms produce constipation by blocking the colon, others result in diarrhea which is body s way of removing harmful substances from the body
Fatigue: Needless to say, all this results in extreme fatigue and dehydration for the infested person.
Abdominal bloating: The parasites produce gas, which produces a gassy, bloated sensation
Altered immune function: As most parasites induce an allergic reaction, there is an increased amount of immunoglobulin A in the circulation.
Other: Restlessness, dark circles under the eyes, bedwetting, headaches and light sensitivity.
Some of the most popular homeopathic remedies are listed below and aim at strengthening the child s overall health. As always, the child will be asked thoroughly for all symptoms and then a remedy identified.

Cina: Very useful for all types of worm, it is the most popular remedy. The child is irritable, angry, has a pale appearance with rings around the eyes. When asked more, there will be teeth grinding (bruxism) at night, may have had convulsions, crying at night, nose picking, extreme hunger, milky urine, bluish discoloration around the mouth.
Calcarea: The child is usually fat, flabby child with a strong appetite and craving for things like chalk, coal, and pencils. There is aversion to dairy products and meat. There will be a crawling feeling in the rectum and anus. There is profuse sweating from the head, causing a wet pillow.
Spigelia: The child will have a pale face, blue rings around the eyes, tendency to faint, nauseating sensation, and pain around the navel. Stool with mucus and worms are an indication for using Spigelia.
Caladium: The worm travels from the perineum to the vagina and causes the girls to constantly itch around the vagina
Teucrium: Used in pinworm infestation, where there is a lot of irritation in the rectum. A thin dilution or tincture of this medication is used.
Indigo: Very effective in roundworms. The child is usually melancholic, has intense pain around the bellybutton, and may have had convulsions.

 Homeopathic Medicines to Treat Intestinal Worms in Stomach

Being fit is a matter of striking the right balance between one s diet as well as exercise. There are many kinds of problems that we all face when we do not strike a balance between the two. A flat stomach is a sought after feature in one s figure. One usually ends up losing a flat stomach when you have weight gain due to pregnancy and the onset of age. 

When one wants to get back a flat stomach, there are many measures that one can take because this is a very difficult thing to get back once you have put on weight because you will usually lose weight from the abdomen at the very end. Yet, one does not need to spend many hours in the gym for a flat stomach. You can also do exercises at home in order to get a flat stomach. Read on to know the secret!

Squats: One can do squats every morning as a part of a warm up before getting into the exercises. Ensure that you hold it for a while before you release and straighten up. You can also do squats while you are standing at the kitchen counter so that you get plenty of exercise with just a few moments of hard work through various times during the day.
Sit Ups: Sit ups are also a good form of exercise that one can do at home. Along with lunges and squats, you can also do sit ups so that you get a more toned torso with good exercise for your muscles in that area.
Pike and Stretch: This is another very well known exercise that can easily be done at home. The pike and stretch requires you to lie on a mat, facing upwards. Then, you will have to crunch up and try and touch your toes. The next step is to bring your arms behind your head and keep them straight while you crush up one leg at a time. This should be done at least ten times so that your abs and hips are well worked out.
The Standing Side Crunch: This crunch can be done with a chair. You need to stand on your left leg and then extend the left arm so that the right foot gets lifted off of the ground level by a few inches. Then, place the right hand behind your head with the elbow bent. After this, you will need to lift the left knee towards the right shoulder. Repeat this at least 15 times for it to show any results on your abs and abdomen area.
The Plank: This is a very well known move that many people take to. You will have to lie down on a mat and elevate yourself on your elbows. This position will have to be held for as long as possible for maximum effect on the abs, torso, hips and the thighs and legs as well. This exercise is recommended for a flat stomach, more than any other.

Want a Flat Stomach - 5 Must Do Exercises!

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