Common digestive problems and how to look after your gut

Digestive complaints are among the most common reasons people visit a physician, and among the most commonly self-treated for months before that visit. Most gut problems are manageable once the pattern is named. This article covers the usual suspects and the signs that should not be waited out.

For the wider picture, see our guide on Abdominal Pain Causes & Gastritis: Symptoms and Treatment.

Acidity and reflux

Heartburn is a burning behind the breastbone, often after meals or when lying down, sometimes with a sour taste. It happens when stomach acid moves up into the food pipe (reflux). Triggers are predictable: large or late meals, fatty and spicy food, coffee, fizzy drinks, tight belts and lying down soon after eating.

Occasional heartburn is ordinary life. Daily heartburn is worth a visit, because repeated acid exposure can irritate the food pipe. Long-term self-treatment with antacids from the supermarket often masks a problem that deserves a proper look.

Bloating and wind

A swollen, tight abdomen after meals usually comes down to how and what we eat: eating fast, talking while eating, fizzy drinks, chewing gum, and fermentable carbohydrates like beans, onions and some breads that produce gas in sensitive people.

Persistent bloating earns a check when it comes with pain, vomiting, changed bowels, or when it is new and progressive rather than a lifelong pattern.

Constipation and irregular bowels

Constipation usually means hard, infrequent stools or straining, and the causes are often simple: too little water and fibre, long sitting, ignoring the urge, and medicines like iron, some painkillers and some antacids.

The useful fixes are boring but real: regular water through the day, fibre from food rather than sudden supplements, activity, and a regular unhurried toilet time, ideally after breakfast when the gut is most active.

The painkiller connection

Regular use of common painkillers like ibuprofen and diclofenac irritates the stomach lining and can cause gastritis or ulcers, especially on an empty stomach or alongside blood thinners. If you take these often for headaches or joint pain, tell your physician. There are usually safer ways to manage the pain.

Signs that are not routine

See a physician promptly for:

• Difficulty swallowing, or food sticking
• Unintended weight loss
• Vomiting that persists, or vomit containing blood or coffee-ground material
• Black, tarry stools or visible blood
• Severe or worsening abdominal pain
• A new change in bowel habit lasting weeks, especially after 50
• Anaemia found on a blood test without a clear reason

These features do not prove something serious, but they change what the problem could be and should not be managed with guesswork.

Looking after your gut day to day

The basics protect most people: eat at regular times, slow down at meals, drink water regularly rather than in binges, include vegetables and fibre daily, limit painkillers to genuine need, and take stress seriously as a gut factor. And when a symptom persists, get it named. A short consultation that names the problem beats months of guessing.

You may also find these guides helpful: When Is Abdominal Pain Serious? Warning Signs You Should Not Ignore and Gastritis vs Acid Reflux: What Is the Difference Between the Symptoms?. For how these problems are assessed in clinic, see the digestive problems page.