Acute stomach pain after eating usually is the result of a food allergy or food intolerance. Both conditions cause discomfort and isolated pain while your body is digesting the food. If you experience pain after eating certain foods, keep a food journal and talk to your doctor about the specific foods and reactions you experience. Stomach pain after eating is not normal, and you should talk to a doctor for a diagnosis.
Food Intolerance
A food intolerance is a deficiency in the digestive tract that causes the body to improperly digest food. In many cases, the small intestines do not produce enough of the specific enzymes needed to break down the sugars or proteins found in a specific food, according to the American College of Gastroenterology. Once you've eaten a food to which you are intolerant, your symptoms will persist until your body expels the food.
Food Allergy
According to MedlinePlus, a food allergy is an overexaggeration of the immune system to certain proteins found in foods. The most common foods allergies are to fish, eggs, milk, soy, nuts, peanuts and wheat. A food allergy causes the body to build up a defense against what it mistakenly identifies as harmful proteins. This leads to the production of histamine and antibodies to fight off the proteins. The result of these chemicals is inflammation in the gut that leads to common food allergy symptoms.
Common Symptoms
Common symptoms of the two food-related conditions are gas, bloating, abdominal pain, stomach cramping, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, floating stools and foul-smelling stools. With food intolerance, you develop these symptoms within 20 to 30 minutes after eating the food; food allergy symptoms can develop with a few minutes or up to two hours after eating.
Different Symptoms
According to the Mayo Clinic website, a food intolerance does not affect the immune system and therefore will not cause any symptoms aside from the digestive ones. However, a food allergy can cause other symptoms such as hives, skin rashes, nasal congestion, sinus pressure, shortness of breath, chest tightness, difficulty breathing and facial swelling. Report these symptoms to your doctor to prevent a severe allergic reaction.
Diagnosis
Your doctor might want to run specific tests to determine the exact cause of your symptoms. He might recommend that you have allergy testing to diagnose or rule out that possibility. Acute stomach pain also can be related to a condition other than food allergy or intolerance, so your physician should evaluate your condition.
