Bloating — What Is It and What Does It Mean?

1. You Have Gas

You can feel bloated when you have excess gas trapped in your digestive system. Common symptoms of gas include belching, bloating, and flatulence.

It’s normal to have symptoms of excess gas, especially after eating. Eating and drinking can cause you to swallow small amounts of air along with your food and drink. Certain activities may increase how much air you swallow, such as:

The type of food you eat can also cause excess gas. Carbohydrates (such as sugar, starch, and fiber) can cause gas when the bacteria in your intestines begin to break it down. You may notice that you have more gas when you eat more carbohydrates.

Other foods that can cause excess gas include:

2. You Have a Food Intolerance

A food intolerance can occur if your digestive system has difficulty digesting (breaking down) certain foods.

A food intolerance is different from a food allergy, which is caused by your immune system. Food allergies have different symptoms than food intolerance, including rash, difficulty breathing, or swelling of your mouth and lips.

If you have a health condition that makes it difficult for you to break down certain foods, you may have increased gas and symptoms of bloating. Common food intolerances include lactose intolerance, gluten intolerance, and fructose intolerance. Other food chemicals that may cause symptoms of food intolerance include:

Lactose Intolerance

Lactose intolerance is the most common type of food intolerance. It’s estimated that about 68% of the world's population has lactose intolerance.

Lactose is a carbohydrate (sugar) found in milk. It can be found in any product made from milk and some processed foods. You may be intolerant to lactose if your body doesn’t make enough of an enzyme (a type of protein) called lactase that helps you break down lactose.

If you have lactose intolerance, you may experience symptoms of bloating within a few minutes or hours after eating lactose.

Fructose Intolerance

If you have fructose intolerance, you have difficulty absorbing and digesting fructose. It’s estimated that about 40% of people in the Western hemisphere have trouble digesting fructose.

Fructose is a type of sugar commonly found in fruit. People with an intolerance can experience symptoms of bloating shortly after eating fructose. People with severe fructose intolerance can experience serious complications, such as kidney damage, liver damage, coma, and death.

Gluten Intolerance

If you feel bloated or sick after eating food with gluten, you may have a gluten intolerance. It’s estimated that about 6% of Americans have a gluten intolerance.

Gluten is a protein found in some grains, including wheat, rye, and barley. If you have a gluten intolerance, you can experience other symptoms in addition to bloating, such as:

3. You’re Constipated

You may feel bloated if you’re constipated. Constipation is defined as having fewer than 3 bowel movements (pooping) per week. However, everyone's bowel habits are different, and you may feel constipated if you have more or fewer bowel movements than 3 per week.

Constipation happens when your colon (also known as your large intestine) absorbs too much water from your stool (poop). When this happens, your stool becomes harder and more difficult to pass. The buildup of stool in your colon can cause your abdomen to appear larger and cause abdominal pain.

Constipation is one of the most common digestive complaints in the United States (US). Some people are more likely to experience constipation, including:

You may also be more likely to become constipated if you:

There are ways to treat constipation when you have it.

4. You’re About to Start Your Menstrual Cycle

It’s common to feel bloated before and during your menstrual cycle (period). Three out of four women experience bloating around their period.

Bloating may occur around the time of your period because of certain female hormones. For example, estrogen can cause fluid retention — when your body holds on to water, causing swelling. If swelling occurs in your abdomen, it can make you feel bloated. Estrogen and progesterone can also interact with your digestive tract and cause increased gas in your intestines.

Another reason you may feel bloated before your period is that your uterus actually increases in volume just before your period starts.

5. You Take a Medication That Causes Bloating

Medications can cause bloating by causing gas in your digestive tract or causing constipation.

You may feel bloated if you take an antacid to treat heartburn. Fiber supplements can also cause increased gas. Fiber is a type of carbohydrate that isn’t digested. Because of this, the bacteria in your intestines may produce more gas when you take a fiber supplement. If you take too much of a fiber supplement or don’t drink enough water, it could cause constipation, which can also make you feel bloated.

Medications that can cause constipation include:

6. You Have a Chronic Medical Condition

Bloating is a possible symptom of several different chronic medical conditions.

Gastrointestinal Disease

People living with GI disease are more likely to experience bloating than the general population. People with GI disease have difficulty with digestion, which can cause symptoms that lead to bloating, such as excess gas and constipation.

GI diseases associated with bloating include:

Liver Disease

People with liver disease can feel and look bloated if they develop ascites.

Ascites is a condition where fluid builds up in the abdomen. The fluid builds up between two layers of tissue called the peritoneum that lines the organs in the abdomen.

While liver disease is the most common cause of ascites, it can also be caused by heart failure, kidney failure, an infection, or cancer.

Cancer

Certain cancers can make you feel bloated if they affect the organs in your abdomen. Examples of cancers that may cause bloating include:

If you’re experiencing symptoms of bloating due to cancer, you will likely have other symptoms, such as fatigue or unexpected weight loss.

For gynecological cancers, like ovarian and uterine cancer, you may experience unusual vaginal bleeding or pelvic pain. Colon cancer can also cause blood in your stool. If you have stomach cancer, you may experience difficulty swallowing.

Talk to your doctor if you experience any of these symptoms. Additionally, regular cancer screening can help you detect some cancers before symptoms occur. Talk to your doctor about which screening tests are appropriate for you.