Healthy Living

It's time for Eid, the Eid of tongue teasing beefs and muttons. The Eid of high protein feasts. It's a time when bulk of patients come to our doorsteps with complaints of indigestion, constipation and abdominal pain. People like to have a lot of red meat. Starting from beef-rezala at breakfast to mutton curry at supper, you find meat in every little snack of the day at every house you visit. But it may so happen that your mouth waters but you can't eat, as there's a tsunami going on in your stomach.
The feeling of discomfort or burning of stomach or in some instances bloating, belching or gas, heartburn, nausea or vomiting are all symptoms of indigestion.

Causes
Indigestion itself is not a disease; it is rather a symptom caused by diseases such as gastritis, peptic ulcers, gallstones, pancreatitis, etc. But all these are rare causes of indigestion. Often indigestion is related to lifestyle and is triggered by food, drink or certain medications. Common causes include:
Excessive caffeine, alcohol, chocolate or soft-drinks
Fatty, greasy or spicy foods
Overeating or rapid gulping of food.
Smoking, stress
Certain medications- antibiotics, pain killers and iron supplements

Treatment
If it's too uncomfortable, medications such as Antacids or Milk of Magnesia are helpful. These suspensions should be taken after meal and work like magic. PPI (omeprazole) or H2-receptor antagonist (Ranitide) can be taken before meal, as preventive means in patients who are usual sufferers of heartburn and indigestion.
Home Remedies
Drink Peppermint tea- it's an excellent stomach soother, but patients have serious gastritis problems can opt for Green tea instead. Green tea is an excellent idea to keep you going after heavy meals.
Ginger tea is also helpful. If not possible, try chewing ginger itself, its also a healer in cases of indigestion
Drink lots of water. Your stomach needs lots of water to break the high protein foods, so keep your selves hydrated.
A small gloss of a soft-drink or a carbonated beverage can help to comfort you, but that should be taken in small amount. Drinking a lot can make matters worse.
Probiotics are great for indigestion as well as desserts. Have sweet or sour yogurt after a heavy meal. Yogurts contain stomach friendly bacteria in them. They help to break down the beef you gulped down.

Some Takeaways
Chew your food properly
Avoid late-night eating
Try to relax after meals in an upright position. Even if you feel sleepy, after a heavy meal, Don’t sleep!
Go out for a walk in a relax manner with minimum pace. Standing upright helps digestion.
Avoid spicy foods if you experience a heartburn.
Diabetic or patients with hypertension should be extra careful during this festive season. Overeating or  avoiding food, both can be fatal. Have a controlled diet; I won't say don't eat beef/mutton at all but just keep it within your limits.
Relatives will force you to eat. It's Eid, so don't hurt them plus it's a custom. Just have little instead and follow the above tips.
After all if your stomach gets upset you won't be able to taste all the scrumptious food. Also, red meat contains a lot of fats, it will upsurge your cholesterol levels, hence try to control your diet.

The writer is Research Physician, Centre for Child and Adolescent Health (CCAH), ICDDR,B