Your stomach is silent and just keeps growling? Beware of these stomach distress signals!

Experts from the Hunan Women and Children's Hospital said that many people's stomachs make "gurgling" sounds from time to time in their daily lives, which often makes people feel embarrassed. This sound is medically called bowel sounds, and sometimes when people feel hungry, their stomachs will make such sounds.

Bowel sounds, as the name implies, refer to the sounds produced by the intestines during peristalsis. The human intestine is divided into the large intestine and the small intestine. The small intestine is mainly responsible for digesting and absorbing food, while the large intestine is responsible for absorbing water and excreting feces. During the digestion process, the intestines need to constantly peristalsis to push food residues forward. The sound produced by this peristalsis is what we call bowel sounds. Under normal circumstances, bowel sounds occur 4-5 times per minute, the sound is clear and harmonious, and usually requires the use of a stethoscope to hear.

Bowel sounds are mainly caused by the interaction between gas and liquid in the intestine. When we eat, food produces certain gases during digestion, such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen. These gases mix with the liquid in the intestine to form tiny bubbles. During intestinal peristalsis, the bubbles are squeezed and burst, thus producing a "gurgling" sound.

So bowel sounds are actually a normal phenomenon. Under normal circumstances, the "gurgling" of the stomach is a normal physiological reaction and there is no need to worry too much. However, bowel sounds reflect whether the intestinal function is normal or not. If the frequency of bowel sounds is abnormal, and the tone and sound have changed significantly, it may be your body sending out a distress signal.

Abnormal bowel sounds may be a warning sign of disease

1. Acute gastroenteritis

If the bowel sounds exceed 10 times per minute, and you feel that your stomach is always moving and your intestines are moving too fast, this may be a manifestation of acute gastroenteritis. In addition, common symptoms of acute gastroenteritis include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea.

2. Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Increased bowel sounds and high-pitched tones may be a sign of irritable bowel syndrome, because patients with irritable bowel syndrome often have increased intestinal motility and visceral sensitivity, which leads to faster intestinal peristalsis and more bowel sounds.

3. Intestinal obstruction

Due to different situations of intestinal obstruction, the bowel sounds are also different. If the number of bowel sounds increases, and the sound is loud and high-pitched, or even metallic, it is due to mechanical factors that prevent gas and liquid from passing smoothly, which may be mechanical intestinal obstruction.

If bowel sounds weaken or disappear, it usually indicates that the peristaltic function of the intestine is inhibited, causing stagnation of intestinal contents, which may be a manifestation of paralytic intestinal obstruction.

4. Peritonitis

When bowel sounds weaken or even become milder, it may be due to peritonitis, bacterial infection causing inflammation and decreased intestinal motility. When peritonitis occurs, it is also accompanied by symptoms of abdominal pain and abdominal muscle tension.

If bowel sounds appear, how can I improve my intestines?

1. Maintain a good diet

The diet should be light and easy to digest, and avoid excessive intake of greasy, spicy, raw and cold food. At the same time, we should develop good eating habits, chew slowly, maintain regular eating, avoid overeating, and reduce the burden on the intestines.

2. Keep your emotions stable

The stomach is an emotional organ. Excessive emotional fluctuations, such as anxiety, tension, anger, etc., may lead to intestinal dysfunction. Learning to adjust your emotions and keep a good mood is beneficial to intestinal health.

3. Exercise

Appropriate aerobic exercise, such as walking, jogging, yoga, etc., can help promote intestinal peristalsis and improve abnormal bowel sounds. At the same time, exercise can also help reduce stress, improve overall health, and have a positive effect on regulating intestinal function.

4. Keep your abdomen warm

A cold abdomen may cause faster intestinal peristalsis and produce bowel sounds. Therefore, you should keep your abdomen warm and avoid getting cold.

5. Seek medical attention promptly

If abnormal bowel sounds are accompanied by other symptoms, such as abdominal pain, diarrhea, constipation, etc., you should seek medical attention promptly, find out the cause, and receive symptomatic treatment.

6. Regular medical check-ups

Regular physical examinations can help monitor the health of intestinal function and detect potential diseases in a timely manner. Through physical examinations, doctors can evaluate patients' eating habits, lifestyle and overall health, which can help detect problems such as polyps, inflammation or tumors at an early stage.

Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Zhou Xinyi from Hunan Women and Children's Hospital

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(Edited by YT)