Hiccup after eating

This pathology is an unpleasant, but not fatal deviation from the norm. This process arises because of the reflex compression of the diaphragm, which provokes more gusty inhalation of atmospheric air and a very rapid closure of the vocal cords, which are regulators of the volumes of gas passing through the larynx. Such a process is accompanied by a rather specific, all recognizable sound. Most often there is hiccup after eating. In this article, let's 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 hiccoughs after eating can be different, but all of them are associated with increased irritation of the nerve receptors of the wandering and sympathetic nerves that "serve" the diaphragm.

Not only medical workers, but also a simple person, it is not superfluous to know what are the causes of hiccups after eating:

• One source of this discomfort is the cerebral cortex diseases affecting the areas that are responsible for respiratory centers.
• Diseases that affect the nerve endings from the brain cells.
• To provoke the manifestation of hiccups is overeating.
• It can be the reaction of the human body to a specific food product, for example, spicy seasonings, certain plant components with a specific odor.
• Provoke a hiccup can and hypothermia of the body, mostly it concerns small children.
• Hiccups can cause too cold or, conversely, hot dishes.
• Incorrect diet: food in "dry clothes", food "on the go."
• The causes of hiccups after eating can also be related to the individual characteristics of the body.
• Hiccups may also be one of the symptoms of a more severe pathology, for example, myocardial infarction.
• Tumor of the organs of the digestive tract is both benign and malignant.
• Multiple diseases of the central nervous system.
• The cause of hiccups after eating can be pneumonia.
• Uremia is the poisoning of the body with products of protein metabolism due to impaired renal function.
• Intervertebral hernia.
• Increased intracranial pressure.
• Gastritis is an inflammatory process or a dystrophic change in the mucous membrane inside the stomach.
• Consequence of a nervous tic.
• Hiccup after a meal may appear in the postoperative period, if surgery interferes with the spine or gastrointestinal tract.
• Neoplasms affecting the spinal cord.
• The cause of unpleasant reflections is the intravenous anesthesia with the use of the drug "Brietal" (methohexital sodium).
• To provoke this reflex can also some household reasons, which can be periodic.
• Affect the fact of occurrence of the discomfort in question can be the mood of the person with whom he sits at the table. Negative on the process of digestion affects both depressed and overly excited state.
• The cause of hiccups after eating can also be of a neurotic character. For example, excitement before a responsible exam, performance in front of a full hall.
• A cerebral trauma.
• Encephalitis is an inflammation of the membranes of the brain.
• But to provoke a hiccup is capable not only of diaphragm spasm, but also muscle contractions affecting the esophagus. The cause of this process can be stagnant food.
• Diabetes.
• Ignoring the elementary rules of nutrition: conversations during meals, poor chewing food, ingesting large portions, reading books and newspapers, watching TV or working on the computer, along with eating food. Dispersion of attention to several cases immediately leads to poor digestion of food products, and hence to hiccups.
• Nutrition in an unnatural to work digestive tract pose, when it is difficult to promote food along the aisle.
• Meningitis is an inflammatory process that affects the brain.

The hiccup itself is harmless, but it can become an indicator that shows that the body has failed. And if such attacks increase, ignore this fact should not, because he can talk about the development in the body quite a serious pathology. And the fact how quickly it will be discovered and taken adequate measures depends on the fate and life of a person.

Why do I get hiccups after eating?

Probably there is not a person on Earth who has never been hiccuped for once in a lifetime. It gives a lot of discomfort, but does not threaten the health of a person. If the hiccup appears once and rarely, there is no pathology in this case. A little patience and within 1-3 minutes the attack will pass independently, it will be sufficient to drink a few sips of water. So why does the hiccough after eating?

This question is asked by many, trying to find an answer to it on their own. The main cause of this pathological manifestation is the irritation of the nerve endings of the diaphragm, less often the irritation of the walls of the esophagus. Under normal conditions, the diaphragm functions in its normal rhythm. Breathe - it "goes" down, allowing the respiratory apparatus to collect the necessary amount of air. Exhalation - the diaphragm rises, pushing carbon dioxide out of the body. If it is irritating, the rhythm of the work is lost, and it begins to move in jerks. The portions of the incoming air are different. A sharp intake of a portion of air into the larynx, which is then fed to the vocal cords, and we get a characteristic, well-known sound.

But this is directly the source of the appearance of hiccups, and the reasons that provoke it to this step are quite diverse. Sometimes enough to drink soda water, and hiccups are provided - it all depends on the individual characteristics of the human body. Even in a healthy person, if you do not take stop measures, this unpleasant process can last from five minutes to half an hour.

If the hiccup does not last longer - it is necessary to seek the advice of a qualified doctor, since such a symptomatology may indicate a serious pathology in the patient.

There is also a conditional separation of hiccups that have arisen: episodic ones are called reflex attacks caused by various living conditions. Prolonged hiccups are called seizures caused by one of the diseases of organic origin, while the transformation of one type into another does not occur.

Hiccup after eating in adults

This somewhat uncomfortable process is familiar to every person from a small age and, often, it is not taken seriously. "Someone remembers," some will say. But if the hiccup after a meal in adults occurs sporadically (birthday celebration the day before or leaving with friends for kebabs), then there is no point in worrying, next time it's just necessary to monitor the quantity and quality of the absorbed food and there will be no problems with hiccups.

Reflexive abrupt contraction of the diaphragm is a physiological process. And for it to happen, there must be a weighty reason. And if this reason is similar to the above, then, really, it is desirable to monitor what and how you eat, do not overeat and do not overcool. But, if you analyze the situation that precedes the appearance of hiccups after eating in adults, it is impossible to determine the cause of its appearance to the person himself, and seizures do not go on for a long time, then joke with such symptoms should not be. The hiccup itself will not harm the human body, except that it will deliver a few unpleasant minutes (or hours) to its owner, but it can signal a deeper and more serious pathology affecting its body.

If the body of an adult is healthy, and hiccups often get it, one of the main reasons for this pathology is called constant overeating, and hence the distension of the stomach walls. This fact causes hiccups in nine hiccups out of ten. Therefore, a very important food culture, which must be vaccinated to a person from a young age.

Hiccup after eating a child

A small child's organism is so vulnerable and reacts to any external or internal stimulus. Especially often parents have to watch their kids hiccup, thinking that the child is simply supercooled. But the hiccup after a meal in a child may occur for other reasons. What are they and is there any need to sound an alarm about this?

Many young mothers are interested in the question: "Why does the baby hiccup and can it 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 region spasms, not allowing oxygen to normally pass through the respiratory tract. At the same time, the intercostal muscles and the diaphragm of the thorax begin to abbreviate correctly, whence such a familiar, characteristic sound arises.

If it is cool in the room or on the street and the baby starts hiccuping, do not rush to wrap it up - simply because of the imperfection of the thermoregulatory abilities, his body begins to adjust to the surrounding conditions. There will be enough time for the hiccup to pass by itself.

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

• The digestive tract, like the baby's body, is not yet perfect and continues to grow and develop.
• In the process of nutrition, you need to ensure that the child chews food well.
• Due to their innate activity, many kids continue to spin and at the table, in parallel with eating, doing a lot of other activities. At the same time, his attention is dissipated, distracting from the process of food consumption. In this situation, the stomach is not ready for work, which provokes hiccups.
• It is worth watching that the baby does not chat while eating. Together with food, he swallows and portions of air, which try to get out of the child's body, lead to spasmodic muscle tissue and vocal cords.
• Do not give the child too dry foods. Eaten a sandwich or a few pieces of cookies can cause a child to hiccup.
• Ikat baby can and from drunk effervescent drinks.

If a small child or schoolboy is prone to hiccups, it is not superfluous to consult a pediatrician. If the cause of discomfort is any household factors, it is enough to exclude them from the life of the baby and the problem will be solved. If they can not be eliminated, then we should try to minimize the intensity of the stimulus. It is likely that the child will grow up and this problem will pass by itself.

But if the hiccup has organic roots, then it is urgent to fully examine the baby, so as not to miss at an early stage of any serious illness. In any case, brush off the problem and do self-medication is not worth it. After all, children are not always able to say what bothers them.

Hiccup after a newborn baby

Sometimes pregnant women feel in their stomachs rhythmic pulsations. Asking the obstetrician-gynecologist questions, she usually gets the answer that it's just her baby hiccups. Doctors know that the fetus, while still at the sixth - eighth week of development, can already get hiccups.

After the child was born - this problem does not go away, making the young parents worry. Many of them believe that with the hiccups their baby begins to experience discomfort, pain symptoms, but pediatricians rush to assure such that the hiccup does not bring the baby any discomfort. The causes of this reflex process may be different, but most often there is hiccup in the newborn after eating.

Such a result of feeding can be:

• If the baby is very active and "hungry" eats, while swallowing and portions of air, which then try to get out of the body.
• A similar situation arises and if the young mother has too much milk, it is quite active and the child is just trying to have time to take it all. In this situation, Mom should pour a little milk before feeding. But do not be too zealous. The more you strain the breast milk, the more the woman's body will produce for the next feeding.
• Another point that can provoke a hiccup in a newborn baby may be that after a meal the baby's stomach is full and starts to puff on the diaphragm, which starts the hiccup mechanism.
• With artificial feeding, the cause of hiccoughs may be too large a hole in the nipple.

Reflex spasms are not completely harmless, they are able to cause the baby plenty of regurgitation, and in some cases even vomiting, prevents it from falling asleep, which quickly depletes the nervous system of the child. Frequently occurring hiccups, immediately after ingestion, should alert the young mother, perhaps she is feeding her child incorrectly, or maybe another, more serious reason. But only a specialist can answer this question.

Diagnosis of hiccups after eating

If the child or adult begins to get the problem in question, then it is not worthwhile to postpone the trip to the doctor. Diagnosis of hiccups after eating includes:

• Analysis of patient complaints. Doctors are interested in how long hiccups have appeared, how often, intensely and continuously it takes the patient.
• The doctor finds out the anamnesis. He is especially interested in the presence of diabetes mellitus, gastrointestinal tract and pathology, which provoke an increase in the level of glucose in the blood.
• If necessary, the patient will have to consult a psychiatrist, neurologist, surgeon and / or gastroenterologist.

Treatment of hiccups after eating

Hiccups, like symptomatology, are not specific, clearly indicating a particular disease. If there are few cases of its occurrence, then there is no need to introduce any therapeutic treatment. The patient can only advise the patient to reconsider his attitude to the regime and the quality of nutrition. If the attack does happen, doctors advise in this situation to take a few sips of water or, taking a deep breath, hold the exhalation for as long as the person can withstand.

If you turn to the experience of our ancestors, then there are many simple but effective tips.

• If an attack of hiccups begins, then you can take a piece of sour or bitter fruit in your mouth (grapefruit, lemon, others), lemon juice or a little diluted vinegar will do.
• You can drink a large cup of water after eating with small sips. Drink should be slow, measured. If this technique is not very effective, you can do the same thing, just tilting the body forward (as if dragging for an outstretched hand).
• Less pleasant, but not less effective is the way when, pressing the tongue at its base, a vomitive reflex is caused.

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

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

Cerucal is recommended for taking half an hour before a meal. An adult patient is given a dosage - one tablet three to four times throughout the day. To adolescents who are already 14 years of age, the amount of the drug administered is determined by the dose from half to the whole tablet taken two or three times during the day. If necessary, the dosage can be increased, but it should not exceed one or two tablets (20 mg) or six tablets per day.

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

Adult patients and children older than 14 years one to three times a day for one ampoule, the volume of which is 10 mg.

Children from two years to 14 years - the recommended amount is calculated as 0.1 mg of the drug per kilogram of the weight of the baby. If therapeutic efficacy requires large doses, they can be raised, but the maximum dosage should not exceed a daily figure of 0.5 mg per kilogram of the child's body weight.

This drug is contraindicated for use if the patient has increased individual intolerance to the component composition of the drug, as well as if there is an obstruction or perforation of the intestine, a pheochromocytoma, internal bleeding, a tendency to epileptic seizures, seizures, hypersensitivity to sulfites, bronchial asthma. Do not prescribe the drug to women in the first trimester of pregnancy or during breastfeeding of a newborn baby and to children up to two years of age.

Muscular relaxants, for example, baclosan, baclofen and liorasal are used to "fight" with hiccups.

Baclofen is introduced into the body together with food intake. The starting dosage is determined in the amount of 5 mg (one tablet) or half the tablet with a concentration of active substance 10 mg taken three times during the day. Then the dosage starts to increase with a periodicity of three days. Adult patients are usually increased by 30 to 75 mg per diem.

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

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

To children from two up to six daily dosage is appointed or nominated within the limits of 20 - 30 mg.

For children from six to ten years, the daily dosage is determined in the range of 30-60 mg.

To teenagers over the age of ten, the calculation of the daily dosage is carried out according to the formula 1.5-2 mg per kilogram of the child's weight.

Contraindication to taking a drug is the patient's tendency to epileptic seizures, Parkinson's disease, in case of increased intolerance to the components of the drug, as well as in chronic form of kidney dysfunction.

With increased caution, it is necessary to prescribe this drug in the presence of an anamnesis of a patient with cerebrovascular insufficiency, atherosclerosis of cerebral vessels, with ulcer diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, as well as during pregnancy and lactation of the newborn.

To cope with hiccough, the attending physician can enter into the protocol of treatment dimethicone, gascon drop, zeolat.

Dimetikon is updated with a group of adsorbents. The drug is recommended to use one to two tablets 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 throughout the day.

Contra-indications of dimethicone include only hypersensitivity to its component composition. In case of an allergic reaction, the drug should be discontinued by prescribing another medication for this group, for example, corticosteroids.

If the hiccup is particularly resistant, the treating doctor in the protocol of therapy must enter antipsychotic drugs that effectively affect the reflex centers in the cerebral cortex of the patient. For example, chlorpromazine, aminazine or haloperidol may be prescribed.

Neuroleptic aminazine is injected into the patient's body before meals. In this case, the minimum recommended dosages are prescribed - one - three tablets taken two to three times during the day. With therapeutic need, the dosage can be gradually increased. Duration of drug intake is determined by the treating doctor individually.

Contraindications for the admission of this group of drugs are quite extensive and are described in more detail in the instructions accompanying the medicine. But the main limitations are hypersensitivity to chlorpromazine and / or other components of aminazine, a severe form of renal and / or hepatic dysfunction, a disorder in the organs of the hematopoiesis, disorders affecting the spinal cord or brain, an acute phase of craniocerebral trauma, a severe stage of cardiovascular pathologies, cholelithiasis and urolithiasis, thromboembolism, myxedema, occlusive glaucoma and some other pathologies. Do not prescribe this drug to women during pregnancy or breastfeeding, as well as children whose age has not reached one year.

But since in nine cases out of ten the patient has a stretching of the walls of the stomach, which is a consequence of excessive consumption of food, the first thing the doctor recommends is to reconsider his diet and diet.

Preventing hiccups after eating

This reflex discomfort happens both physiological and psychological genesis, so the prevention of hiccups after eating, includes simple but effective advice that allows you to protect your body in both these directions.

• The first and most relevant advice is to follow a food culture:
  • Do not overeat.
  • Portions should be small, and eating - frequent.
  • When eating, do not talk, read newspapers, watch TV, play computer games.
  • It is necessary to thoroughly chew food.
  • You should not eat "on the go" and "dry".
• The atmosphere of the meal should be calm. You should not sit down to eat, if a person is nervous or, conversely, depressed.
• If the hiccup after a meal has appeared due to feelings about the upcoming responsible event, it is worth trying 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 hand, and, if necessary, look at it.
• Some try to scare the hiccuper. This should not be done. The person (both the child, and the adult) risks to get instead of hiccups a mental frustration.
• Calm down and simple exercise will help you: you need to take a deep breath and try not to exhale, how much patience suffices, then slowly, slowly, exhale. At the same time, it would not hurt to divert your thoughts into something pleasant.
• If a responsible exercise is planned, prevention of hiccups after eating can be a sedative medication. It can be a tablet of any sedative or simple tea made from lemon balm, valerian, thyme, motherwort and other herbs that have soothing effects. You can hold a tablet of glycine under the tongue.
• Effective and walking in the fresh air.
• Complete rest.
• Supercooling should be avoided.

These simple tips will help to forget about hiccups forever, unless of course its cause is not one of the organic diseases.

Forecast of hiccups after eating

Everything depends on the source that triggers the mechanism, which provokes the hiccup process. If the cause of this symptom is one of the diseases, then the prediction of hiccough after eating directly depends on the timeliness and effectiveness of the treatment, but, mainly, it is positive.

If the attacks of reflex spasms are of a household nature, then it is enough for a person to reconsider their lifestyle and listen to the above tips and a prediction of hiccups after eating, in this case, will be just wonderful. A person will forever forget about such trouble as hiccups.

What kind of person does not like to eat well. But for some, this "good" results in huge volumes of consumed food, others - these are small portions of delicious dishes. But hiccups after eating are able to "get" and those and others. If the hiccups are rare, from time to time, then you should not worry, it is only necessary to revise your diet, maybe some foods just do not suit you. But if the hiccup appears with enviable constancy, it should not be ignored. It is worth consulting with a specialist who will help to find out the cause of this pathology and, if necessary, prescribe therapeutic therapy.

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