From nausea and flatulence to diarrhea and abdominal pains, gastrointestinal issues are often under-discussed, but they can be a tell-tale sign of health for people with lupus.
The gastrointestinal (GI) tract is in charge of processing food to extract nutrients and dispose of waste. The digestive process works like this:
The gastrointestinal tract begins with your mouth where food is masticated (chewed). After food is swallowed, it travels down the esophagus. This is the only part of the digestive process that is directly under control. The rest of the process is involuntary.
When the esophageal sphincter relaxes, food enters the stomach. The stomach secretes digestive enzymes and gastric acid to help digest the food. From there, the partially digested food, known as chyme, passes through the pyloric sphincter into the duodenum, which is the first part of the small intestine. The small intestine then takes over, mixing food with digestive juices from the liver, pancreas, and intestine while also absorbing nutrients into the bloodstream.
Digestive muscles continue to work and they push waste into the large intestine. Waste can include undigested parts of food, fluids, and older cells that line the GI tract. The large intestine absorbs the remaining nutrients and water then changes the remaining material into stool. The rectum, located at the lower end of the large intestine, stores the stool until it is excreted during a bowel movement.
Anybody that has stomach upset and has heartburn should try papaya fruit ectract. Its sometimes called papain. Its a natural enzyme that is chewable. They have a great flavor and you can chew several. If you are still uncomfortable without it causing anything harmful like the antiacids are. You can find it in the natural pharmacy area. Health food stores. You can order from a. Vitamin internet store. It’s very inexpensive. I always buy several bottles at once because I give them to people having stomach issues. I also gave it to my kids 5+ when they have stomach ache.
Thank you , very informative. Great information that you provide for us battling this disease.
Debra Kendrick
Thank you for this article! I have been battling my doctors and my GI tract along with Lupus/RA overlap and many other auto immune diseases. I have not yet been able to get my issues resolved (such as not absorbing some medications along with some of the issues in the article) but it is nice to see these articles and know I am not alone or crazy! <3
Thanks so much for reading and for sharing your experiences, Carol. Glad you are part of the LupusCorner community! 🙂
Very interesting article.I have suffered with Gastrointestinal issues for years.Been to dietitians and had all sorts of investigations.Diagnosed with Lupus 3 years ago but my ‘irritable bowel issues never connected to it by my medics!Now I know the connection I will raise it with them.Thank you..
Thank you, this was a great article, I’ve been dealing with GI issues for 16 years, was diagnosed with Lupus 15 years ago, no Dr. ever made the connection that they go together, except, I always New it or suspected it, I’ve always been told by my Drs. That Lupus doesn’t effect the GI tract, so your article has helped me a lot, my food nor medications get absorbed anymore, I’ve lost 40 lbs in 7 months which for me is a lot of weight. But nobody’s concerned. . So I thank you for your article I wish I found it years ago. Now I can move forward with battling this diseases, it only gets better from here,
God Bless you
Thank you for the article, sheds a lot of light for us suffering with Lupus, I have irritable bowl for years now, it helps to know what’s happening in your body
Well, learn something new every day! I knew a lot of my medical conditions were related to my lupus. But it didn’t occur to me that my GERD was. Now I know! Thanks.
Thank you for this article I have been having Some symptoms of all the above. I even had a upper GI to make sure I’m ok. And a colonoscopy to make sure that I’m doing good. And I am I just have to really watch what I eat.
I didn’t know that the GI tract went all the way up to the mouth. I need a doctor to see if I have any internal bleeding. I’ll have to consider getting a doctor to make sure that I can get a couple of medicines to make sure I don’t get bad heartburn