How to get rid of build up gas in stomach

If you’ve ever experienced waves of sharp pain in your belly along with the feeling that your waistline is inflating like a balloon, you might be experiencing bloating and cramps due to intestinal gas. 

Everyone gets gas on occasion. It’s a natural byproduct of the bacteria in your intestines doing their job and breaking down the fibers, sugars and starches in the food you eat. Though gas pain is usually nothing serious, the discomfort can be intense.

Intestinal gas and its discomfort are likely to resolve on their own. Burping or passing gas through the rectum (flatulence) is usually enough to ease your physical discomfort.

Johns Hopkins gastroenterologist Hazel Marie Galon Veloso provides some perspective on bloating and gas cramps, including when to see a doctor.

Does constipation cause gas?

Yes, Veloso says. Anything that slows down the digestive process, such as a low-fiber diet, use of opioid medications or an anticholinergic drug can put the brakes on timely bowel function.

Veloso says eating a diet rich in fiber, staying hydrated and exercising is a good long-term approach for beating bouts of gas and cramping. “If these measures don’t improve constipation and gas, a polyethylene glycol laxative can help,” she notes.

Try It Steps to Avoid Gas Pain

“Since constipation causes gas and cramping, you should try to exercise regularly, stay hydrated and eat a healthy diet with plenty of fiber,” Veloso says.
Here are some other tips:

• Don’t drink with a straw.
• Choose noncarbonated beverages.
• Avoid chewing gum.
• If your symptoms persist, see your doctor to rule out food sensitivities, and other conditions.

Gas Pain: When to See a Doctor

Veloso says to be on the lookout for abdominal pain and bloating that persists even after constipation improves.

“You may have celiac disease or small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), which can cause these symptoms and can occur with either constipation or diarrhea. You may also have irritable bowel syndrome or another problem,” she notes.

The SIBO Connection

“We see SIBO in patients who have had abdominal surgeries such as roux-en-Y gastric bypass or conditions such as diverticulosis of the small bowel. It’s more common in people with systemic diseases such as long-standing or poorly controlled diabetes, scleroderma, lupus, Crohn’s disease, celiac disease, and those with a lowered immune system.

“Long-term intake of narcotics or acid-suppressive medications such as omeprazole, pantoprazole, lansoprazole and esomeprazole can also cause SIBO. Advanced age can be another risk factor,” Veloso adds.

The condition can be treated with antibiotics, antimicrobial herbs or a low FODMAP diet. FODMAP stands for “fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols.”

Food Intolerance

When it comes to recurring bouts of intestinal gas, food sensitivities such as lactose intolerance are another common culprit. Veloso says some food sensitivities are present at birth (primary); others can develop later on (secondary).

“If you get repeated episodes of gas and cramping, try to notice foods that tend to set it off,” Veloso advises.

Once you identify the food(s) that cause problems, check in with your doctor, who can help determine if you’re reacting to lactose, fructose, gluten or another ingredient. Modifying your diet, taking enzyme pills or other treatments may bring relief.

For women, if your doctor rules out a digestive problem, a visit to the gynecologist may be in order. Bloating and abdominal pain can mean something going on with your uterus, ovaries or fallopian tubes. 

There are many causes of bloating and gas pain, and most have treatments that can help you get relief. Any abdominal pain that’s severe or interferes with your life is a good reason to go with your gut and see a doctor.

When people talk about gas, they often focus on embarrassing sounds and unappealing odors. Those are definitely annoying, but gas pain is probably the worst part of the entire experience. Even among the preschool and elementary school set—the folks most likely to be charmed by gas as a health phenomenon—actual pain isn’t a fun part of the experience.

The good news is that having gas is a normal part of having a body, so you’re not alone in dealing with it. In fact, most people pass gas around 20 times a day, according to the Mayo Clinic. But while gas can be normal, dealing with severe gas pain isn’t. You don’t have to just suck it up and try to forge onward. Instead, it’s best to try to get gas pain sorted ASAP so it doesn’t disrupt your life.

Just to be super clear: What are the symptoms of gas?

Since you probably have a hunch, let’s start here. When you have a meal or snack, your food passes through your gastrointestinal (GI) tract. Your GI tract is made up of your mouth, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, large intestine (which includes the colon and rectum), and anus, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) explains.

Since you take in air as you eat, drink, talk, chew gum, and all of that fun stuff, that air has to pass through your GI tract as well. As it goes through your body, gas can cause a series of not-so-pleasant symptoms, including:

• Burping
• Farting
• Bloating
• Abdominal pain

What about the symptoms of gas pain in particular?

So, about that last symptom on the list up there. “For the most part, your GI tract is efficient at getting rid of gas,” Kyle Staller, M.D., M.P.H., a gastroenterologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, tells SELF. Sometimes you might not even notice it, or it might make its presence known with a harmless burp or fart. But other times, gas can cause spasms and distension in your GI tract during the digestive process, which can be pretty painful, Jamile Wakim-Fleming, M.D., a gastroenterologist at the Cleveland Clinic, tells SELF.

Pain can obviously come in a lot of different forms. Gas pain in particular, however, can include abdominal cramps and the feeling of knots in your stomach, the Mayo Clinic explains. Depending on the location, it can even be easy to mistake gas pain for other health conditions. For instance, Johns Hopkins Medicine says gas pain that shows up on your right side might feel similar to gallstones or appendicitis.

What even causes gas pain?

Why does gas sometimes hurt so bad that you want to cry and check yourself into the ER? Good question. There are a few main causes of gas (and gas pain) to keep in mind:

1. You’re swallowing a lot of air: We touched on this above, but it’s worth emphasizing as a gas pain cause. While it’s unlikely that you’re actually trying to suck down a bunch of oxygen, certain habits like regularly using a straw, drinking a lot of carbonated beverages, eating too quickly, and chewing gum can cause you to take in more air than normal. When this causes gas, it’s typically via burping, since the air comes back up before it can go all the way to your stomach.