What Type of Bloater are You?

Do you have bloating after eating? Bloating can come from different areas in the body. An important first question is the where bloating occurs. Depending on when bloating occurs after eating, it can be divided into three types.

First, there's gastric bloating. This usually starts immediately after a meal and can be associated with conditions such as dyspepsia and gastroparesis.

Second, there is the small bowel bloater, whose symptoms start greater than 30 minutes after or up to several hours after eating. This can be caused by celiac disease, intestinal dysmotility, and small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO).

Finally, there is the colonic bloater who has symptoms suggestive of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) with constipation, slow transit constipation or constipation. Another cause is pelvic floor dysfunction.

We will look into these in detail in subsequent posts.

Medically reviewed by Onikepe Adegbola, MD PhD