Hiccups after eating

This pathology is an unpleasant but not fatal deviation from the norm. This process occurs due to the reflex compression of the diaphragm, which provokes a more gusty inhalation of atmospheric air and a very rapid closure of the vocal cords, which are regulators of the volume of gas passing through the larynx. This process is accompanied by a fairly specific, recognizable sound. Most often, hiccups appear after eating. In this article, we will try to understand this problem and find ways to stop it.

[ 1 ], [ 2 ], [ 3 ]

Causes of hiccups after eating

Spasm of the diaphragm - this process can bring a lot of unpleasant sensations and the causes of hiccups after eating can be different, but all of them are associated with increased irritation of the nerve receptors of the vagus and sympathetic nerves "serving" the diaphragm.

Not only for medical workers, but also for ordinary people, it would be useful to know what causes hiccups after eating:

• One of the sources of the discomfort in question is diseases of the cerebral cortex, affecting the areas responsible for the respiratory centers.
• Diseases that affect the nerve endings that extend from brain cells.
• Overeating can trigger hiccups.
• This may be a reaction of the human body to a specific food product, for example, hot spices, certain plant components with a specific smell.
• Hiccups can also be caused by hypothermia, which mainly affects small children.
• Hiccups can be caused by foods that are too cold or, conversely, too hot.
• Incorrect diet: eating dry food, eating on the go.
• The causes of hiccups after eating may also be related to individual characteristics of the body.
• Hiccups can also be one of the symptoms of a more serious pathology, for example, myocardial infarction.
• Tumors of the digestive tract, both benign and malignant.
• Multiple diseases of the central nervous system.
• Hiccups after eating can be caused by pneumonia.
• Uremia is a poisoning of the body by protein metabolism products due to impaired kidney function.
• Intervertebral hernia.
• Increased intracranial pressure.
• Gastritis is an inflammatory process or degenerative changes in the mucous membrane inside the stomach.
• Consequence of a nervous tic.
• Hiccups after eating may appear in the postoperative period if the surgery affected the spine or gastrointestinal tract.
• Neoplasms affecting the spinal cord.
• Intravenous anesthesia with the drug "Brietal" (sodium methohexital) can cause unpleasant reflexes.
• This reflex can also be provoked by some everyday reasons, which can be periodic in nature.
• The mood of the person with whom he sits down at the table can influence the fact of occurrence of the discomfort in question. Both a depressed and overly excited state negatively influence the digestion process.
• The reason for hiccups after eating can also be neurotic. For example, anxiety before an important exam, a speech in front of a full hall.
• Traumatic brain injury.
• Encephalitis is an inflammation of the membranes of the brain.
• But hiccups can be provoked not only by a spasm of the diaphragm, but also by muscle contractions affecting the esophagus. Stagnant food can be the cause of such a process.
• Diabetes mellitus.
• Ignoring basic nutritional rules: talking while eating, poor chewing of food, swallowing large portions, reading books and newspapers, watching TV or working on the computer while eating. Spreading attention to several things at once leads to poor digestion of food, and hence to hiccups.
• Eating in a position that is unnatural for the digestive tract, making it difficult for food to move through the passage.
• Meningitis is an inflammatory process that affects the brain.

Hiccups themselves are harmless, but they can be an indicator that something has gone wrong in the body. And if such attacks become more frequent, this fact should not be ignored, because it can indicate the development of a fairly serious pathology in the body. And how quickly it is detected and adequate measures are taken depends on the future fate and life of a person.

Why do hiccups start after eating?

There is probably no person on Earth who has not been bothered by hiccups at least once in their life. It causes a lot of discomfort, but does not threaten human health. If hiccups appear once and quite rarely, then there is no pathology in this case. A little patience and within 1-3 minutes the attack will pass on its own, it will be enough to drink a few sips of water. So why do hiccups start after eating?

This question is asked by many people, trying to find the answer to it on their own. The main reason for this pathological manifestation is irritation of the nerve endings of the diaphragm, less often - irritation of the walls of the esophagus. Under normal conditions, the diaphragm functions in its normal rhythm. Inhale - it "goes" down, allowing the respiratory system to take in the necessary amount of air. Exhale - the diaphragm rises, pushing carbon dioxide out of the human body. If it is irritated, the rhythm of work is disrupted, and it begins to move in jerks. Portions of incoming air are different. A sharp influx of air into the larynx, which is then fed to the vocal cords, and we get a characteristic, well-known sound.

But this is the direct source of hiccups, and the reasons that provoke it to this step are quite varied. Sometimes it is enough to drink carbonated water, and hiccups are guaranteed - everything depends on the individual characteristics of the body of people. Even in a healthy person, if you do not take stopping measures, this unpleasant process can last from five minutes to half an hour.

If hiccups do not go away for a longer period of time, you should consult a qualified doctor, as such symptoms may indicate a serious pathology in the patient.

There is also a conditional division of the resulting hiccups: episodic hiccups are reflex attacks caused by various household conditions. Prolonged hiccups are attacks caused by one of the diseases of organic origin, while the transformation of one type into another does not occur.

Hiccups after eating in adults

This somewhat uncomfortable process is familiar to every person from an early age and, often, it is not taken seriously. "Someone remembers," some will say. But if hiccups after eating in adults occur episodically (celebrating a birthday the day before or going out with friends for a barbecue), then there is no point in worrying too much, next time you just need to monitor the quantity and quality of the food you eat and there will be no problems with hiccups.

A reflexive sharp contraction of the diaphragm is a physiological process. And for it to happen, there must be a significant reason. And if this reason is similar to the one mentioned above, then, indeed, it is advisable to watch what and how you eat, not to overeat and not to overcool. But if, having analyzed the situation preceding the occurrence of hiccups after eating in adults, the person himself cannot determine the reason for its appearance, and the attacks do not go away for a long time, then you should not joke with such symptoms. Hiccups themselves will not harm the human body, except that they will bring a few unpleasant minutes (or hours) to their owner, but they can signal a deeper and more serious pathology affecting his body.

If the body of an adult is healthy, and hiccups bother him quite often, one of the main reasons for this pathology, doctors say, is constant overeating and hence the stretching of the stomach walls. This fact becomes the cause of hiccups in nine out of ten hiccuppers. Therefore, the culture of nutrition is very important, which must be instilled in a person from an early age.

Hiccups after eating in a child

A small child's body is so vulnerable and reacts to any external or internal irritant. Parents especially often have to observe hiccups in their babies, thinking that the child is simply overcooled. But hiccups after eating in a child can also occur for other reasons. What are they and is there a need to sound the alarm about this?

Many young mothers are interested in the question: "Why does a baby hiccup and is it possible to help him get rid of hiccups faster?" Pediatricians explain this reflex physiological process by the fact that under the influence of certain factors, the epiglottis spasms, preventing oxygen from passing normally through the respiratory tract. At the same time, the intercostal muscles and the diaphragm of the chest begin to contract incorrectly, which is where such a familiar characteristic sound comes from.

If it is cool in the room or outside and the baby starts hiccupping, do not rush to wrap him up - simply, due to the imperfection of thermoregulatory abilities, his body begins to adapt to the surrounding conditions. A short period of time will be enough for the hiccups to pass on their own.

But most often you can observe hiccups in a child after eating. There are several reasons for this:

• The digestive tract, like the baby’s body, is not yet perfect and continues to grow and develop.
• During feeding, it is necessary to ensure that the child chews food well.
• Due to their innate activity, many babies continue to spin around at the table, doing a lot of other things in parallel with eating. At the same time, their attention is scattered, distracted from the process of eating. In such a situation, the stomach is not ready to work, which provokes hiccups.
• It is worth making sure that the baby does not chatter while eating. Together with food, he swallows portions of air, which, trying to get out of the child's body, lead to spasms of muscle tissue and vocal cords.
• You should not give your child too dry food. A sandwich eaten outdoors or a few cookies can cause hiccups in a child.
• A baby may also hiccup from drinking fizzy drinks.

If a small child or schoolchild is prone to hiccups, it would be a good idea to consult a pediatrician. If the cause of the discomfort is any household factors, it is enough to eliminate them from the baby's life and the problem will be solved. If it is not possible to eliminate them, then you should try to reduce the intensity of the irritant to a minimum. It is quite possible that the child will grow up and this problem will go away on its own.

But if the hiccups have organic roots, then it is urgently necessary to fully examine the baby so as not to miss any serious illness at an early stage. In any case, you should not brush off the problem and self-medicate. After all, children are not always able to say what is bothering them.

Hiccups in a newborn after eating

Sometimes pregnant women feel rhythmic pulsations in their stomach. When they ask the obstetrician-gynecologist, she usually gets the answer that it is just her baby hiccupping. Doctors know that the fetus, even in the sixth to eighth week of development, can already be bothered by hiccups.

After the baby is born, this problem does not go away, causing young parents to worry. Many of them believe that when hiccups occur, their baby begins to experience discomfort, pain symptoms, but pediatricians hasten to assure them that hiccups do not bring any discomfort to the baby. The reasons for the occurrence of this reflex process can be different, but most often, hiccups occur in a newborn after eating.

The result of feeding can be:

• If the baby eats very actively and “greedily”, at the same time swallowing portions of air, which then try to exit the body.
• A similar situation occurs if a young mother has too much milk, it flows quite actively and the baby simply tries to swallow it all. In this situation, the mother should express a little milk before feeding. But you should not be too zealous. The more breast milk you express, the more the woman's body will produce for the next feeding.
• Another factor that can trigger hiccups in a newborn is that after eating, the baby’s stomach is full and begins to press on the diaphragm, which triggers the hiccup mechanism.
• When bottle feeding, hiccups may be caused by a hole in the nipple that is too large.

Reflex spasms are not entirely harmless, they can cause the baby to regurgitate profusely, and in some cases even vomit, it also prevents him from falling asleep, which quickly exhausts the child's nervous system. Frequent hiccups, immediately after eating, should alert the young mother, perhaps she is feeding her child incorrectly, or there may be another, more serious reason. But only a specialist can answer this question.

Diagnosis of hiccups after eating

If a child or an adult starts to get fed up with the problem in question, then you should not put off going to the doctor. Diagnosis of hiccups after eating includes:

• Analysis of the patient's complaints. The doctor is interested in how long ago the hiccups appeared, how often, intensely and for how long they bother the patient.
• The doctor finds out the anamnesis. He is especially interested in the presence of diabetes, gastrointestinal diseases and pathologies that provoke an increase in blood glucose levels.
• If necessary, the patient will have to undergo consultation with a psychiatrist, neurologist, surgeon and/or gastroenterologist.

Treatment for hiccups after eating

Hiccups, as a symptomatology, are not specific, clearly indicating a specific disease. If there are isolated cases of its occurrence, then there is no need to introduce any therapeutic treatment. A specialist can only advise the patient to reconsider his attitude to the regime and quality of nutrition. If an attack does occur, doctors advise in this situation to take a few sips of water or, having taken a deep breath, hold the exhalation for as long as the person can stand it.

If we turn to the experience of our ancestors, we can find many simple, but quite effective tips there.

• If you have an attack of hiccups, you can put a piece of sour or bitter fruit (grapefruit, lemon, etc.) in your mouth; lemon juice or a little diluted vinegar will also work.
• You can drink a large cup of water in small sips after eating. You should drink slowly, measuredly. If this method is not very effective, you can do the same thing, only bending your body forward (as if you are reaching for an outstretched hand).
• A less pleasant, but no less effective method is to press on the tongue at its base, causing a gag reflex.

If an organic pathology has been diagnosed, then the treatment of hiccups after eating includes therapy aimed at stopping the disease that causes discomfort. For example, if the cause of hiccups lies in a pathological violation of the integrity of the walls or contents of the stomach (gastritis), then the gastroenterologist will prescribe a full course of treatment for this disease. If the source of hiccups is meningitis, then effective measures of complex therapy are prescribed by a neurologist.

Medical statistics show that hiccups are often caused by increased stretching of the stomach walls and excess carbon dioxide (CO2) in the patient's blood. Sometimes it is enough to remove such gases from the digestive tract. For this purpose, drugs are prescribed that relax the muscles of the esophageal valve. These can be mint drops, motilium, domperidone, cerucal, metoclopramide or domrid.

Cerucal is recommended to be taken half an hour before meals. An adult patient is prescribed a dosage of one tablet three to four times a day. For adolescents who have already reached the age of 14, the amount of the drug administered is determined by a dose of half to a whole tablet, taken two to three times a day. If necessary, the dosage can be increased, but it should not exceed two tablets (20 mg) or six tablets per day at a time.

Based on the clinical picture, the attending physician may prescribe the administration of this drug in the form of intramuscular and intravenous injections.

For adult patients and children over 14 years of age, one to three times a day, one ampoule containing 10 mg.

For children from two to 14 years old - the recommended amount is calculated as 0.1 mg of the drug per kilogram of the child's weight. If therapeutic effectiveness requires higher doses, they can be increased, but the maximum dosage should not exceed the daily figure of 0.5 mg per kilogram of the child's body weight.

This medicine is contraindicated for use in cases where the patient has increased individual intolerance to the components of the drug, as well as if the anamnesis includes intestinal obstruction or perforation, pheochromocytoma, internal bleeding, tendency to epileptic seizures, convulsions, increased sensitivity to sulfites, bronchial asthma. The drug should not be prescribed to women in the first trimester of pregnancy or during breastfeeding of a newborn child and children under two years of age.

Muscle relaxants such as baclosan, baclofen and lioresal are also used to “fight” hiccups.

Baclofen is administered to the body together with food. The starting dosage is 5 mg (one tablet) or half a tablet with an active substance concentration of 10 mg, taken three times a day. Then the dosage begins to increase every three days. Adult patients are usually given an increase of 30-75 mg per day.

If there is a need to take high therapeutic doses (from 0.075 to 0.1 g), it will be easier to take tablets with a concentration of 25 mg of the active substance. The maximum permissible daily amount of the drug is 0.1 g.

For children aged one to two years, the daily dosage is prescribed within the range of 10–20 mg.

For children aged two to six, the daily dosage is prescribed within the range of 20–30 mg.

For children from six to ten years old, the daily dosage is determined to be within the range of 30–60 mg.

For teenagers over ten years of age, the daily dosage is calculated using the formula 1.5 – 2 mg per kilogram of the child’s weight.

Contraindications to taking the drug include the patient's tendency to epileptic seizures, Parkinson's disease, increased intolerance to the components of the drug, as well as chronic renal dysfunction.

This drug should be prescribed with extreme caution if the patient has a history of cerebrovascular insufficiency, atherosclerotic lesions of the brain vessels, ulcerative diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, as well as during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

To cope with hiccups, the attending physician can introduce dimethicone, gascon drop, and zeolate into the treatment protocol.

Dimethicone is classified as an adsorbent. It is recommended to take one or two tablets of the drug after each meal and immediately before going to bed. Or one tablespoon of the drug in the form of a gel, taken before meals three to six times a day.

Contraindications for dimethicone include only hypersensitivity to its component composition. In case of an allergic reaction, the drug should be discontinued and another drug of this group prescribed, for example, corticosteroids.

If hiccups are particularly persistent, the attending physician must include antipsychotic medications in the treatment protocol, which effectively affect the reflex centers in the patient's cerebral cortex. For example, chlorpromazine, aminazine, or haloperidol may be prescribed.

The neuroleptic aminazine is administered to the patient before meals. In this case, the minimum recommended dosages are prescribed - one to three tablets taken two to three times a day. If therapeutically necessary, the dosage can be gradually increased. The duration of taking the drug is determined by the attending physician individually.

Contraindications for taking this group of drugs are quite extensive and are described in more detail in the instructions attached to the drug. But the main restrictions are hypersensitivity to chlorpromazine and/or other components of aminazine, severe renal and/or hepatic dysfunction, disorders in the hematopoietic organs, disorders affecting the spinal cord or brain, acute phase of craniocerebral injury, severe stage of cardiovascular pathologies, gallstone and urolithiasis, thromboembolism, myxedema, closed-angle glaucoma and some other pathologies. This drug should not be prescribed to women during pregnancy or breastfeeding, as well as to children under one year of age.

But since in nine cases out of ten the patient has distended stomach walls, which is a consequence of excessive food consumption, the first thing the doctor recommends is to review your diet and eating regimen.

Prevention of hiccups after eating

This reflex discomfort can be of both physiological and psychological genesis, therefore prevention of hiccups after eating includes simple but effective tips that allow a person to protect their body in both these directions.

• The first and most relevant advice is to follow a food culture:
  • You shouldn't overeat.
  • Portions should be small and meals should be frequent.
  • While eating, you should not talk, read newspapers, watch TV, or play computer games.
  • It is necessary to chew food thoroughly.
  • You should not eat "on the go" or "dry food".
• The atmosphere of the meal should be calm. You should not sit down to eat if a person is excited or, conversely, depressed.
• If hiccups after eating appeared as a result of worries about an upcoming important event, you should try to calm down and switch your attention to another subject.
• You can find your own, individual method of distraction, for example, tie a bright ribbon on your wrist or draw a funny face on the inside of your palm, and, if necessary, look at it.
• Some people try to scare the hiccupper. This should not be done. The person (both a child and an adult) risks getting a mental disorder instead of hiccups.
• A simple exercise will also help you calm down: you need to take a deep breath and try not to exhale, as long as you can, then slowly and deliberately exhale. It would not hurt to distract your thoughts with something pleasant.
• If you are planning an important event, taking a sedative can prevent hiccups after eating. This can be a tablet of any sedative or a simple tea of lemon balm, valerian, thyme, motherwort and other herbs that have a sedative effect. You can hold a glycine tablet under your tongue.
• Walks in the fresh air are also effective.
• A complete rest.
• Hypothermia should be avoided.

These simple tips will help you forget about hiccups forever, unless of course they are caused by one of the organic diseases.

Hiccups After Eating Prediction

Everything depends on the source that triggers the mechanism that provokes the process of hiccups. If the cause of this symptom is one of the diseases, then the prognosis of hiccups after eating directly depends on the timeliness and effectiveness of the treatment, but, mostly, it is positive.

If the attacks of reflex spasms are of a domestic nature, then a person only needs to reconsider his lifestyle and listen to the advice given above and the prognosis of hiccups after eating, in this case, will be simply wonderful. A person will forever forget about such a nuisance as hiccups.

Who doesn't like to eat well? But for some this "well" results in huge amounts of food consumed, for others - these are small portions of gourmet dishes. But hiccups after eating can "get" both of them. If hiccups appear rarely, from time to time, then you should not worry, you just need to reconsider your diet, maybe some foods are just not suitable for you. But if hiccups appear with enviable consistency, you should not ignore it. It is worth consulting a specialist who will help to find out the cause of this pathology and, if necessary, prescribe therapeutic therapy.

[ 4 ], [ 5 ]