In the digestive system, gas formation is a normal process. It is essential to get rid of excess gas of our body, either passing or burping. If the gas is not moving correctly or trapped in your body, it probably results in gas pain.
On the other hand, the intake of food that is more likely to produce gas can increase your gas and pain. However, by adopting some healthy habits can lessen your pain. Certain digestive disorders such as celiac disease and irritable bowel syndrome can increase the gain of your body.
Trap gas can result in incredibly uncomfortable feelings, and it can result in cramps, sharp pain, tightness, and chest or shoulder pain. In some cases, gas pain is so severe that doctors mistake it for gallstones, heart diseases, and even appendicitis.
What does trap gas feel like?
In some cases, gas pain can become so severe that anyone can be confused by it. Gas pain that gathers in the left part of your colon or stomach can feel like a heart-related disease. It includes discomfort in areas like the neck, back, jaw, arms, shoulder, and especially upper body.
In women, jaw pain is particularly common. Due to jaw pain, the person has to face the shortness of breath. Gas pain in the intestine can sometimes become severe for people. Sometimes it feels like the person has appendicitis or gallstones.
Causes
Several causes can result in excess gas.
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Food
Some common foods become the cause of gas. Especially some high fiber food may become the cause of gas in your body. Following is a shortlist of foods rich in fibers.
- Whole grains
- Fruits
- Vegetables
- Peas and beans (legumes)
Despite gas production, fiber is vital to keep your digestive tract in proper working. Besides, it regulates your cholesterol and blood sugar levels.
Dietary factors
Some other dietary factors contribute to gas formation in the digestive system.
- Carbonated beverages like beer and soda can increase stomach gas.
- Eating habits such as sucking on candies, drinking liquid through a straw, eating too quickly, and talking while eating can be the results of more gas.
- Artificial sweeteners such as mannitol, sorbitol, and xylitol found in some beverages and sugar-free foods may become the cause of excess gas in the colon.
- Psyllium containing fiber supplements such as Metamucil may become the cause of excess gas in the colon.
Medical conditions
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Food intolerance
If your digestive system can’t absorb and breakdown, a particular food, gas, or bloating may occur. Sugar in dairy products and proteins such as gluten in grains and wheat.
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Chronic intestinal disease
Excess gas is a symptom of chronic and intestinal conditions such as Crohn’s diseases, ulcerative colitis, and diverticulitis.
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Constipation
Gas is painful to pass out in case of constipation.
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Small bowel bacterial overgrowth
A change and increase in bacteria can cause excess gas, weight loss, and diarrhea in the small intestine.
Symptoms
Here are some common symptoms of gas pain.
- Bloated abdomen
- Burping
- The uncomfortable feeling after eating
- Nausea
- Stomach cramps
- Pain during lie down and especially bending
- Rumbling voices from your stomach
- Pain moves around the whole body, especially up the back and in shoulders.
Precautions
Many strategies help to prevent pain due to gas. Here is some of the following.
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Eat slowly
Eating quickly or while moving can result in the intake of air with food as well, and it leads to gas related problems and shoulder and chest pain. In this case, you can slow it down by chewing each bite many times. When you chew food correctly, it not only helps you to avoid gas-related pains but indigestion as well.
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Avoid straws
When you drink through a straw, you not only drink liquid but swallow air as well. Furthermore, drinking from the bottle is not helpful. For avoiding gas pain and other complications, it is better to take sips from the glass.
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Say no to carbonated drinks
Many carbonated drinks certainly send a lot of gas to your stomach. Besides, it can cause pain and bloat.
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Eliminate problematic foods
Certain foods can result in trapped gas. In this case, try to eliminate all these foods from your diet. Here is a list of foods that can become the cause of your gas pain.
- Artificial sweeteners, such as maltitol, aspartame, and sorbitol
- Cruciferous vegetables, such as cabbage and broccoli, etc.
- Onions and garlic
- Fiber drinks and supplements
- High-fat foods
- Dairy products
- Fried foods
- Legumes, a group that includes lentils and beans
- Spicy foods
- Prunes and prune juices
To avoid trigger foods, you can keep a diary. Don’t take a sudden step as it can be challenging to cut out something from your diet, such as artificial sweeteners.
Treatment
There are several different ways you can try to avoid gas problems.
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By drinking warm liquids
You can remove excess gas through your digestive system by drinking plenty of liquids, unusually warm water. It can ease your discomfort and pain. Furthermore, you can avoid the excess of gas intake by drinking non- carbonated drinks.
For some people, herbal teas and warm water can help avoid pain and discomfort.
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Activated charcoal (Charcocaps, Actidose-Aqua, and others)
By taking it before and after a meal, you can reduce the symptoms. But with its benefit, it can disturb the ability of your body to absorb medications. It can stain your clothes and mouth. Furthermore, no research has shown a clear benefit of activated charcoal.
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Probio-Lite supplements ( Digest Dairy Plus, Lactaid, and others)
You can expect a gradual decrease in acid buildup, painful bloating, and heartburn related symptoms. The tightness in your chest, the searing pain when you lay down, shoulder pain, the gas, the problems swallowing. All of this will begin to lessen over time. If you’re pregnant or breast-feeding must talk to your doctor before using Probio-Lite supplements.
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The gas problem is not a problematic situation for some people, but it can be severe for someone on the other hand. Your gas problems may be the result of your other health problems. In this case, by treating these diseases, you can feel relief in your gas problems.
You can treat your bothersome gas by adopting a little change in your diet and lifestyle. Some preventions don’t work for everyone. You can find relief to the gas problems by a trial and error method. Besides, food plays a crucial role in solving this problem.
FAQ’s
Can gas cause shoulder pain?
Gas pain in the left part of your colon can feel like heart-related problems and severe pain. This pain resembles an intense pressure on a chest. Gas problems can result in pain, especially on upper body parts such as arms, neck, back, and shoulders.
Can drinking water help to remove excess gas?
Drinking water slowly can be helpful in the case of excess gas, but using a glass instead of a straw. The gas helps to move the problematic food through the digestive system. It can make it harder to contract your intestines to avoid gas problems.
Why is gas pain so bad?
Sometimes the gas trapped in your intestine and stomach is so hurtful. Usually, most of the people release gas 20 times on average in a day. Mostly diarrhea and constipation are responsible for the blockage of gas in the stomach.
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