Struggle With Nausea, Bloating, and Gas After Eating? Here's How To Feel Better

Food isn’t just for survival but also for pleasure.

Nothing beats tearing into sizzling chicken thighs, a stack of warm tortillas, or a vibrant, balsamic-drizzled Caprese salad. (Maybe, except for sharing the experience with loved ones.) So, if you occasionally experience nausea, bloating, and gas after eating, no matter how occasionally, you’re probably determined to make it stop ASAP.

Good news: this article shares 5 things you could do that may help you feel better after eating.

#1: Slow down when eating

While your stomach is a stretchy, muscular bag that can expand to accommodate food, it has a limit to how much it can do so. When you eat too fast, you risk overeating, which overstretches your stomach and may cause abdominal discomfort after eating.

How does eating speed affect satiety?

Essentially, it takes time for food to travel from your mouth to your stomach. Your brain also needs time to realize that your stomach is full (thanks to gastric stretch receptors and the response of certain appetite-regulating hormones). Studies have shown that this could take up to 20 minutes.

Finishing your meal much quicker than that means your brain would have received the satiety signals too late (i.e., you’d already be uncomfortably full).

So, here’s what you could do to slow yourself down during mealtimes and prevent abdominal discomfort after eating:

Practice mindful eating. Focus fully on your food as you eat. Pay attention to the tastes, smells, and textures of your food. Eliminate all distractions — the computer, phone, television, etc. — so you can concentrate on your meal.
Set a timer for 20 minutes. Try not to let yourself finish your meal before it goes off.
Place your cutlery down between bites. Don’t pick it back up until you’ve finished chewing and swallowing the food in your mouth.

Nausea bloating and gas after eating mindful eating

#2: Watch out for “trigger foods”

Certain foods just don’t play nice with the gut. While foods that trigger abdominal discomfort often vary from person to person, some common ones can include:

Greasy foods. These are rich in fat, which is the slowest digested macronutrient. They could delay gastric emptying (the time it takes for food to empty from your stomach), promoting fermentation in the stomach and potentially causing bloating, gas, and other symptoms of abdominal discomfort after eating. Common greasy foods to avoid are burgers, fries, pizza, potato chips, and fried chicken.
Foods high in FODMAP content. FODMAP stands for fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides, and polyols. These are carbohydrates that resist digestion. Studies have shown strong links between FODMAPs and abdominal discomfort after eating, including gas, bloating, and constipation. High-FODMAP foods and ingredients to watch out for include sweeteners (e.g., high-fructose corn syrup), wheat (e.g., bread), dairy products (e.g., soft and fresh cheeses), vegetables (e.g., Brussels sprouts), and legumes (e.g., baked beans).

Nausea bloating and gas after eating FODMAP

Caffeine. This stimulant increases gut motility, or food movement through your digestive tract. When your stomach empties too quickly, your small intestine receives large amounts of poorly digested food — potentially causing symptoms of nausea and bloating. A few surprising dietary sources of caffeine you may wish to avoid (especially if you’re already drinking a ton of coffee to boost your energy levels) include matcha ice cream, protein or energy bars, and cacao nibs.

To better identify your trigger foods, try keeping a food journal, logging in everything you eat or drink daily, and whether you experience any abdominal discomfort after eating. Over time, you may see a pattern that can better inform your food choices.

#3: Stay upright after eating

Love curling up on the couch after meals?

That may be the reason you’re experiencing abdominal discomfort after eating. When you go horizontal after eating, it is possible that the food you just ingested — which has made its way through your esophagus and the entrance of your stomach — will make its way backward, along with some stomach acids, and up into your throat.

When this happens, you may experience symptoms of heartburn and stomach discomfort.

That’s why most gut health experts recommend holding off on lying down immediately post-meals; some even recommend walking after a big meal.

Just so you know, walking after eating may not only aid digestion by stimulating your stomach and intestines (helping your food move at a healthy pace through your digestive system) but could also help your body maintain normal blood glucose levels, which is key to feeling vibrant and energized throughout your day.

Ideally, you should wait 30 minutes to 4 hours after eating before lying down. However, you can experiment with the time frame to determine what works best for you.

#4: Add probiotics and prebiotics to your diet

An imbalanced gut microbiome may contribute to abdominal discomfort after eating.

So, how do you keep the “friendlies” and “unfriendlies” in check? By making a conscious effort to incorporate probiotics and prebiotics into your diet:

Probiotics. Live microorganisms that, when consumed, confer a health benefit. Essentially the same thing as your “good” gut microbes. You can find probiotics in fermented foods, such as kimchi, gochujang, sauerkraut, and yogurt.

Nausea bloating and gas after eating kimchi

Prebiotics. Non-digestible fibers and compounds (mostly resistant starches) that serve as a nutrient source for your “good” gut microbes. Health experts recommend consuming between 3 to 5 grams of prebiotics daily for gut health; sources include bananas, lentils, and oats.

#5: Drink hydrogen water

Hmm. If you’re already dealing with abdominal discomfort after eating, wouldn’t adding water (hydrogen water, in this case) to the mix just worsen the problem? Absolutely not.

Here’s why:

Hydration facilitates the digestion process. Water keeps things moving smoothly through your intestines. It’s also an essential component of hydrochloric acid in your stomach, which aids in the breakdown of food, activation of digestive enzymes, and bacterial control.
Molecular hydrogen (H2) is a potent antioxidant. This means it could help with oxidative stress in the gut, which has been linked to an imbalanced gut microbiome and a compromised gut lining. These are known causes of digestive issues, including abdominal discomfort after eating.

Right. Hydrogen water sounds fantastic — but where would you even get it? The answer is right here, at Nutrionics™. A single tablet of our Nutrionic™ H2 Energizer dropped into a glass of water yields 10+ ppm of superpowered molecular H2 water.

Fun fact: gulping that down does more than simply address abdominal discomfort after eating (or make you go, “Ahhh,” on a sweltering day).

Hydrogen water also has many health benefits, including supporting healthy glucose curves, cholesterol levels, joints, and optimal exercise performance. If you’d like to learn more, feel free to explore our in-depth, 3-part series exploring molecular hydrogen’s beneficial effects on the human body:

Part 1 covers molecular H2’s association with healthy weight management, blood glucose management, and lipid levels
Part 2 highlights molecular H2’s positive relationship with gut, skin, and brain health
Part 3 dives into how molecular H2 promotes vitality plus supports optimal exercise performance and recovery