Are you experiencing chest pain after eating greasy food don’t worry keep reading in this article you will find everything related to it.

Chest Pain After Eating Greasy Food

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Some times after having a heavy full fat greasy meal one can experience chest pain. It is most common causes are acid reflux, pancreatitis, Choleocystitis, ulcers. Only in rare cases it can be due to heart attack.

What are greasy foods?

Greasy foods are those food items that are high in fat content. These are usually the obvious foods that one can think of at first e.g. French fries (fried in hot oil), fried chicken, all forms of hot dogs i.e. sausage, potato chips, pizza, burgers. There are also some healthy food items that have  high-fat content, for instance avocados, cheese, eggs, and nuts.

Greasy foods are typically  those food items that are fried in oil or have been fried in oil at some point in the cooking process. When they are cooked , even in an oven, they would also have grease come out e.g. most meats besides chicken. Grease also known as fat, flavors your food, so most people enjoy eating this type of food.

Why is greasy food bad for body?

Fatty foods are bad for the body because they are an actual serious , physical strain on digestive system. This strain is caused by the fact that it is very difficult for body to digest fat by itself, it’s requires alot of energy.

Out of any food , fat always takes the longest time to digest. Which means it takes extra enzymes and digestive juices to digest fat,which strains your body more than usual, causing chest pain or stomach pain.

Overall, chances of developing a heart problem, Or discomfort in  abdominal and other related diseases rise the more when  greasy foods are consumed.

How can greasy foods cause chest pain?

Heart burn:

Chest, stomach or heart pain after eating greasy foods implies how difficult it is to digest fatty or oily foods . Chances are the more you eat this type of food regularly, the more you will experience this problem pain after eating.

Chest pain occurs when the greasy food that has been consumed did not digest fully, or at all, moves through digestive tract, and when it goes to the intestines, acid reflux is triggered – which becomes the source of your chest pain. During an acid reflux attack, acid from stomach goes into the esophagus, it’s called heartburn.

Heartburn has nothing to do with heart, besides its name. It is caused when acid in stomach backs up into the esophagus. Mostly it comes from eating greasy spicy foods, overeating, or eating too late in the evening. Its not life threatening or dangerous– at least not immediately. Indigestion usually causes  chest discomfort for sometime not the continuous one or can cause burning anywhere from the upper abdomen to the throat. Heartburn usually hits after eating spicy  greasy foods, but can happen with  too much caffeine, feeling stressed, or eating too much as well. Symptoms may worsen while  taking deep breaths or coughing, but the pain is often relieved by taking a simple antacid medication.

Symptoms are usually following:

  • Feeling pain, burning, and discomfort in upper abdomen
  • Feeling full too soon while eating
  • Feeling bloated

Heart attacks:

Heart attacks, on the other hand, are very serious and dangerous. Chest discomfort, shortness of breathfatigue,  nausea and  even sweats are all signs of a heart attack. It is important to know family history and pay attention to eating right, getting exercise, sleeping well, and keeping stress low . Below are few points which can help in Differentiating heartburn and heart attack

Heart attacks usually produce a continuous discomfort or pressure sensation in the centre of the chest. The pain that occurs with heart attacks may be experienced as a burning, aching, squeezing, or heavy sensation that can spread to other areas of the body like the arm, shoulder, upper back or jaw.  During a heart attack, there are symptoms and signs present that are not generally felt during episodes of indigestion. Symptoms of a heart attack may include following: shortness of breath, sweating, light headedness, dizziness, and even nausea. While heart attacks can happen at rest, heart attack-related chest pain occurs more commonly during or immediately after exertion. Heart burn generally hits shortly after having a heavy meal.

Pancreatitis:

Pancreatitis can also be a reason that a person suffers chest pain after eating greasy food. Pancreatitis is the inflammation of pancreas. The pancreas is a long, flat gland that is located just behind the stomach in the upper abdomen.

The pancreas produces enzymes that help in the process of digestion and also produces hormones that help regulate the way body processes sugar.

Pancreatitis can occur in two ways one is acute pancreatitis  which means it appears suddenly and lasts for days, or pancreatitis can occur as chronic pancreatitis, which is a type of pancreatitis that occurs over many years.

Mild cases of pancreatitis mostly  get better without treatment, but severe cases can cause life-threatening complications and require emergency care.  Symptoms of pancreatitis may vary, depending on which type one experiences.

Acute pancreatitis signs and symptoms include following:

  • Upper abdominal pain near chest
  • Abdominal pain that radiates to the back
  • Abdominal pain that feels worse after eating
  • Fever
  • Fast pulse
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Tenderness on touching the abdomen

Chronic pancreatitis signs and symptoms include following:

  • Upper abdominal pain
  • Losing weight without even trying
  • steatorrhea

Choleocystitis:

Gallbladder pain that happens after eating may have many  causes, such as gall stones, Choleocystitis from a trauma or infection and other causes. Gallbladder is a pear-shaped organ located underneath liver that stores bile, a fluid that helps the body to break down fat in the food.

An inflamed gallbladder  called Choleocystitis is mostly  caused by infection or injury to the gallbladder that results in swelling and  pain.

Bile that is up in the gallbladder may cause the gallbladder to swell, and people can feel pain in the ride side of the chest blow the rib cage, pain in the back of the right shoulder blade, and nausea, vomiting, or gas all these can be felt too.

Pain can be sharp or it can be dull which usually lasts several hours. Pain may happen especially after eating a greasy, fried, or fatty meal.

Gastric ulcer:

The two most common causes of peptic ulcers are infection with  Helicobacter pylori  and long-term use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen  and naproxen sodium . Stress and spicy foods are not the direct causes of peptic ulcers but they can make  symptoms worse. They can make pain come after having a meal.

Symptoms are following:

  • Severe Burning stomach pain
  • Feeling of fullness, bloating
  • Intolerance to greasy or fatty foods
  • Heartburn
  • Nausea

Duodenal ulcer:

A duodenal ulcer is a sore that forms in the lining of the duodenum which is the first part of  small intestine, the part of digestive system . The main cause of this ulcer is h.pylori infection and NSAIDs. If one has a duodenal ulcer, he might:

  • have pain in the abdomen (this might come and go and is either relieved by eating or worsens by a greasy meal)
  • have indigestion
  • feel full and bloated
  • feel nauseous
  • Or even lose weight

Diagnosis

To determine if this heartburn is a symptom of GERD, doctor may recommend following tests:

  • X-ray, to see the shape and condition of  esophagus and stomach.
  • Endoscopy, to check for any abnormality in  esophagus. A tissue sample  may be taken for further analysis.
  • Ambulatory acid probe tests, to see when, and for how long, stomach acid backs up into your esophagus. An acid monitor that is placed in esophagus that connects to a small computer that is wore  around the waist of patient or on a strap over  shoulder.

For the diagnosis of pancreatitis Doctor takes full history and does physical examination. For further investigation and confirmation of diagnosis endoscopic USG, CT of abdomen and MRCP may be performed.

For the diagnosis of Choleocystitis  tests performed  in hospital include blood tests, an ultrasound scan of abdomen to check for gallstones or other problems. Other scans, such as an X-ray, CT scan or MRI scan, can be done as well to rule out other problems.

 If doctor suspects a gastric ulcer or a duodenal ulcer based on your symptoms.

He will check if you are taking non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and may also test you for an Helicobacter pylori infection. To rule out ulcer Gastroscopy and h. Pyloric test will be performed.

Treatment

For GERD doctor may Recommend following medications:

Antacids, that neutralize stomach acid. Antacids usually provide quick relief, But they can’t heal an esophagus if it’s already damaged by stomach acid. H-2-receptor antagonists (H2RAs), help in reducing stomach acid.

H2RAs don’t act as quickly as antacids, but can provide long term relief. Proton pump inhibitors, such as lansoprazole , Pantoprazole and omeprazole, which also can reduce stomach acid.

If you have ulcer and is caused by H pylori, the usual treatment is ‘triple therapy’. This involves taking 2 antibiotics usually amoxicillin and clarithromycin to kill the bacteria, and a medicine to reduce the amount of acid made by stomach.

If you don’t have an H. pylori infection, and you have been using NSAIDs  doctor may recommend you to stop taking them  and to start taking a drug to reduce acid production by your stomach.

Initial treatment for pancreatitis is fasting, IV fluids and pain medications. For long term pain management can be done by certain medications and few diet changes are necessary.

Treatment for Choleocystitis is fasting, iv fluids  pain medications , and antibiotics. If stones present stone removal.

When to see a doctor if you have chest pain after eating greasy food?

Seek emergency medical care if chest pain, is present with shortness of breath, or jaw or arm pain and sweating . These can be signs and symptoms of a heart attack which requires immediate care.

Make an appointment with doctor if severe or frequent GERD symptoms are present or if one takes over-the-counter medications for heartburn more than twice a week.

Make an appointment if you have Epigastric pain that doesn’t go away soon.

Make an appointment if you have black stools or GI bleeding.

Ways to avoid chest pain after eating greasy food:

One should reduce the amount of greasy foods consumption , if not entirely do away with them from your diet. There are many  high-fat content foods one can eat, that are healthy additions to your diet. Eggs, nuts, and avocados, for example, are excellent examples of a healthy, high-fat content addition to your diet also they don’t cause diseases as such if taken in right amount.

When cooking , try to cook without oil, cook with water or broth if you have to Sautee food in the pan. Try to bake foods, instead of deep frying them it’s way healthier.

Eat several small portions, low-fat meals instead of 3 large meals

Reduce spicy, greasy, or high-fibre foods

Limit the amount of coffee, alcohol, and soda you drink or any other carbonated drink

Quit smoking

Get enough rest and add a little exercise to routine

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