Many people experience occasional pain after a meal due to eating too quickly, overeating, consuming fatty foods or emotional factors such as stress. In some cases, stomach pain after eating indicates a serious health problem. If your stomach pain is severe, sudden or persistent, seek prompt guidance from your doctor.
Heartburn
Heartburn refers to a painful or burning sensation in your upper abdomen that commonly often occurs after eating. Heartburn occurs when the valve between your esophagus and stomach is weakened or relaxed, allowing stomach acid to rise upward. Overeating, eating too quickly, eating spicy or fatty foods, emotional stress and carrying excess body weight increase your risk for heartburn. Additional symptoms may include burning in the throat, chest or abdominal pain after bending over or lying down, difficulty swallowing or hoarseness. According to the Mayo Clinic, intense, persistent heartburn symptoms may indicate a more serious, chronic condition known as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). In addition, heart attack symptoms may be mistaken for heartburn and vice versa. If your pain lasts longer than several minutes or you experience dizziness, difficulty breathing or sudden, crushing pain in your chest, seek emergency medical attention.
Pancreatitis
Pancreatitis involves inflammation of the pancreas---a long, flat gland between your stomach and upper abdomen that aids in digestion and hormone production. Symptoms of pancreatitis may include abdominal pain that often worsens after eating, nausea, vomiting, rapid pulse rate and fever. According to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC), approximately 210,000 people in the United States are hospitalized annually due to acute pancreatitis, or pancreatitis that appears suddenly. Acute pancreatitis generally requires several days in the hospital, during which a person receives intravenous (IV) fluids, antibiotics and medication to relieve pain and inflammation. Chronic pancreatitis does not heal and worsens over time. Alcoholism, cigarette smoking, gall stones, abdominal surgery, certain medications, infections, unhealthy cholesterol levels and heredity may contribute to the development of pancreatitis. To reduce your risk, do not smoke or drink excessively and adhere to a nutritious, reduced-fat diet.
Gallstones
Gallstones are small, pebble-like deposits that develop in the gallbladder, an oblong sac below your liver in your upper right abdomen. Two types of gallstones exist. Cholesterol gallstones are yellowish in color and are comprised mainly of cholesterol. Pigment gallstones are brownish and result from having too much bilirubin, a chemical produced when your body makes red blood cells, in the fluid produced by your liver called bile. According to NDDIC, abdominal pain after eating that lasts up to several hours is a common symptom of gallstones, in addition to pain between your shoulders or below your right shoulder blade. When gallstones create blockage in the body, typically following a high-fat meal, the result is known as a gallstone "attack." Seek medical attention for a gallstone attack to prevent infection, rupture or further pain.
