What to Do About Bloating? How to Relieve Bloating? Sometimes relieving bloating only requires changing a few small habits. Below, we explore the causes of bloating and ten simple methods to alleviate it. Causes of Bloating Cardiovascular diseases may present with acute or chronic congestive heart failure (especially right ventricular insufficiency), mesenteric vascular embolism, or thrombosis.
Intestinal disorders are also major contributors to bloating, commonly seen in acute or chronic intestinal infections (such as bacterial dysentery, amoebic colitis, intestinal tuberculosis, Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis), malabsorption syndrome, acute or chronic intestinal obstruction, pseudo-obstruction, diverticular disease, and constipation from various causes.
Functional gastrointestinal disorders include aerophagia, persistent hiccups, and functional dyspepsia (non-ulcer dyspepsia).
Liver diseases are also significant causes of abdominal distension, commonly seen in acute and chronic hepatitis (especially severe hepatitis, where distension is a primary and persistent symptom), cirrhosis (often the main early symptom), liver abscesses, and hepatocellular carcinoma.
Biliary tract diseases such as acute and chronic cholecystitis, cholelithiasis, and biliary obstruction from various causes.
Pancreatic diseases include acute and chronic pancreatitis, giant pancreatic cysts, pancreatic cancer, etc.
Acute infectious diseases such as shock pneumonia, typhoid fever, severe pulmonary tuberculosis, and sepsis.
Ten Simple Methods to Relieve Bloating
1. Practice a few simple exercises
Simple, easy-to-perform movements can effectively alleviate bloating.Lie on your back with hands placed on your chest and abdomen. Breathe slowly for 1–3 minutes. Then bend your knees, hug your knees toward your abdomen, and return to starting position. Repeat 10–30 times to promote gastric emptying. Before bedtime, press one hand on your navel and massage in a clockwise and counterclockwise direction 40–100 times each.
2. Avoid wolfing down food
This habit introduces air into the intestines, causing bloating. Minimize consumption of carbonated drinks and beer. Desserts containing fructose or sorbitol are also gas-producing foods.
3. Rest briefly before meals<
Relieve fatigue before eating to significantly reduce stomach gas during meals.
4. Wash your face before meals
Use the 15 minutes before eating to wash your face and gently massage your face and neck area (moving upward from the bottom) to gradually relax.
6. Manage negative emotions
Feelings like anxiety, worry, sadness, frustration, or depression can weaken digestion or stimulate excessive stomach acid production. This leads to increased gas and worsened bloating.
7. Limit gas-producing foods at dinner
First and foremost, avoid various legumes. The oligosaccharides in beans ferment in the gut, breaking down to produce gases that cause symptoms like belching, intestinal rumbling, bloating, and abdominal pain. Therefore, older adults should minimize bean products at dinner.
8. Avoid excessive high-fiber foods
Overconsumption of high-fiber foods can generate significant gas in the gastrointestinal tract. Examples include wheat bran (31% fiber content), dried bamboo shoots (30%), chili peppers (over 40%), and other high-fiber vegetables like ferns, cauliflower, spinach, and pumpkin. Whole grains such as buckwheat noodles and corn also fall into this category.When consuming these foods, pay attention to balanced combinations and avoid excessive intake.
9. Increase intake of stomach-protective and gas-relieving foods
Certain foods nourish the stomach and promote gas relief. For instance, Chinese yam strengthens the spleen and stomach, benefits kidney qi, aids digestion and absorption, and its viscous texture protects the stomach lining. Daikon radish relieves gas but should be eaten cooked, such as in stewed soups. Additionally, hawthorn, onions, and garlic all benefit the gastrointestinal tract.
10. Perform simple stretching exercises before bed
Before sleeping, do simple stretches to release accumulated gas in the stomach. Method: Lie flat with arms and legs extended. Inhale while bending your right knee, feeling the right leg press against the abdomen. Exhale while lowering the right leg. Repeat with the left leg.