Stomach tightness in pregnancy

Heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy is one of the many problems that women experience in this condition and cause concern about their health and the impact of such factors on the development of the unborn child.

The birth and development of a new organism in the mother’s womb makes “adjustments” to the functioning of many systems and organs of the pregnant woman, and a feature of these changes in the digestive system is heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy.

Causes of Stomach Heaviness During Pregnancy: Mechanics

When considering the causes of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy, we will omit cases where women had problems with digestion before pregnancy: they know about their illnesses, and they are well acquainted with the feeling of heaviness in the epigastric region, so when visiting a women's clinic, they should have told their doctor about this.

Let us dwell on some of the features of the digestive organs during pregnancy, which is proceeding normally, and at the same time the pregnant woman did not have gastritis or any other gastric pathology.

Let's start with hormones, the production of which undergoes significant changes during pregnancy. First of all, the ovaries and adrenal cortex synthesize much more progesterone, which, while performing the task of reducing contractions of the muscular layer of the uterus, simultaneously reduces the intensity of functional contractions of the esophagus, stomach, small intestine and large intestine. In this, progesterone is actively assisted by estrogens and hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin).

So the symptoms of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy - discomfort in the epigastrium, a feeling of fullness in the stomach, sometimes with a minimal amount of food eaten - are the consequences of a decrease in the tone of the muscular walls of the stomach (atony) and a violation of its peristalsis and general motility. A decrease in tone leads to the fact that the walls of the stomach do not tightly cover its contents, which is why it quickly ends up in the lower part of the "digestive sac".

Peristalsis and motility of the stomach - mixing of the food mass and its further movement (into the duodenum) - are also reduced in pregnant women, which causes heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy. This occurs due to a decrease in the production of the enterohormone motilin, which regulates gastric motility. In addition, during pregnancy, the level of the pancreatic hormone glucagon increases. On the one hand, it provides increased blood supply to the skeletal muscles of pregnant women and helps create energy reserves (in the form of liver glycogen). On the other hand, high levels of glucagon in the blood of expectant mothers leads to additional relaxation of the smooth muscles of the internal organs, including the stomach and intestines.

But if you think that all these are signs of ill health and that treatment of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy is necessary, then you are mistaken. It is due to the decrease in contractile activity of the muscle fibers of the walls of the gastrointestinal tract that the digestive system of a pregnant woman processes food more thoroughly and extracts maximum benefit from it.

And in addition to the description of the stomach "mechanics" during pregnancy, it should be recalled that the size of the uterus increases from month to month, and the stomach changes its usual position: from horizontal to almost vertical, and even presses upward. And continues to work! Therefore, heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy in the later stages is almost a normal phenomenon.

[ 1 ], [ 2 ], [ 3 ]

Causes of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy: chemistry

Now let's move on to gastric chemistry, which determines the causes of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy.

A sufficient level of acidity in gastric juice is a necessary condition for the normal digestion process. Hydrochloric acid, produced by the fundic glands of the stomach, performs an extremely important function in the gastric juice: only in its presence does the synthesis of the proteolytic enzyme pepsin occur, breaking down proteins that enter the body with food.

So, pregnant women have low levels of hydrochloric acid in their gastric juice, which is what gastroenterologists associate with the symptoms of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy. From the very beginning of pregnancy until the seventh month, the production of the gastric cerebrointestinal hormone gastrin, which causes the secretion of hydrochloric acid and, accordingly, pepsin, is significantly reduced.

But the production of the hormone secretin in the small intestine of pregnant women increases significantly, and this also reduces the level of hydrochloric acid, since the main function of secretin is to block the production of this most important component of gastric juice. The neuropeptide hormone VIP (vasoactive intestinal peptide), which is close to secretin, significantly limits the synthesis of hydrochloric acid, the level of which also increases during pregnancy.

[ 4 ], [ 5 ], [ 6 ]

Diagnosis of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy

Most gastroenterologists and obstetricians-gynecologists have a unified point of view on heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy: this is a physiologically determined specificity of the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract, characteristic of this condition, and it should be perceived adequately.

Perhaps, in some cases, the diagnosis of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy can be carried out. Although the question arises - how? During pregnancy, neither fractional probing of the stomach nor intragastric (intragastric) pH-metry with "swallowing a tube" can be carried out. It will also not be possible to see what is happening in the stomach of a pregnant woman by prescribing a gastroscopy: a gastroscope can only get into the stomach cavity by inserting it through the esophagus. X-ray examination of the stomach is also contraindicated during pregnancy.

There is one more diagnostic method left – determining the tone and intensity of gastric motility using electrogastrography, that is, by recording its biopotentials with the apparatus sensors, which are installed on the abdominal wall above the stomach. Obviously, even this method of diagnosing heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy is not feasible.

[ 7 ], [ 8 ]

Treatment of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy

Is it necessary to treat heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy if this is a physiologically determined temporary feature of the digestive system? The correct answer, obviously, you already know...

Moreover, what kind of treatment for stomach heaviness during pregnancy can be done with pills? In fact, there are drugs for solving problems of low stomach acidity and sluggish digestion, for example, the well-known Pancreatin (Pangrol, Festal). But during pregnancy, as noted in the official instructions, it "can be prescribed by a doctor in cases where the expected therapeutic effect for the mother exceeds the possible risk to the fetus." The drug Pancreatin is prescribed for a lack of digestive enzymes, however, there is no data on the safety of its use during pregnancy.

There have been no clinical studies that would confirm the safety of the enzyme preparation Creon (Pantitrate) for pregnant women. So everything is clear with the tablets too.

Some people hope to treat heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy with folk methods. In most cases, medicinal herbs are used, or rather their decoctions and infusions intended for oral administration. For heaviness in the stomach, an infusion of oregano helps: pour one tablespoon of dry grass with a glass of boiling water, insist for a quarter of an hour under the lid; take before meals three times a day - a tablespoon. But pregnant women should not take this infusion under any circumstances! Common oregano has such a chemical composition that it has a stimulating effect not only on the motility of the gastrointestinal tract, but also on the myometrium of the uterus, increasing its contractions. All women know what this threatens.

Prevention of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy

It is easy to guess that there are simply no ways to prevent the occurrence of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy - given the etiology of this syndrome. But there are simple rules, by following which unpleasant sensations in the stomach area can be minimized.

So, prevention of heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy consists of:

• an energy-balanced diet (2000-2500 kcal) and the exclusion of heavy foods (fatty, fried, smoked, confectionery and semi-finished products);
• consumption of fermented milk products instead of whole milk products;
• mandatory consumption of first courses (soups, borscht, etc.);
• avoiding food that is too hot or too cold;
• fractional nutrition (at least six times a day, but in small portions);
• stop eating any food before bedtime (at least two hours);
• lack of rest after eating in the form of “lying down on the couch for half an hour”: during short walks, food is digested more easily, and the stomach is much less overloaded.

But the prognosis for heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy is the most positive. As soon as your baby is born, heaviness in the stomach during pregnancy will remain... only in the memories of this important period in the life of every woman.