Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsMechanics and Symptoms of GastroparesisHow Is Gastroparesis Diagnosed?Managing the Symptoms of Gastroparesis
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Mechanics and Symptoms of Gastroparesis
How Is Gastroparesis Diagnosed?
Managing the Symptoms of Gastroparesis
If you have an eating disorder such asanorexia nervosaoravoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), you may experience thesymptomsofgastroparesis. You may not feel hungry and may constantly feel that your stomach is full even when you’ve eaten very little.
You may feel uncomfortably full after eating only a small amount of food. This can feel confusing and make eating for recovery even harder. People around you may be frustrated and tell you to “just eat” and either dismiss your complaints of fullness or attribute your lack of appetite to disordered thinking.
If you are supporting a loved one with an eating disorder who is always full and complaining about stomach pains, you may struggle with how best to support them. You may be tempted to give in to their pleas not to require them to eat. You may even fear continuing to feed them when it seems to cause so much physical distress.
Health professionals who have not been trained in eating disorders often fail to identify gastroparesis as a sign of the eating disorder.
The Different Causes of Eating Disorders
When you swallow food, it travels from the mouth through the esophagus and into the stomach. The stomach has two primary jobs: first, to expand to accept food and liquid until you feel full, and second, to render the food and liquid into a semi-liquid mixture that continues into the small intestine where it will be digested.
Food typically spends about two hours in the stomach before contractions move it into the small intestine. In the case of gastroparesis, a good portion of one’s meal may remain in the stomach for four hours or even longer.
But here’s the rub: when you’re following aneating disorder recovery meal plan, guess what you do within four hours after eating? You eat another meal!
This is whyfrequent eating for recoverycan be so challenging: the person in recovery is likely still literally “full” from the last meal. Understanding this problem is a crucial step for knowing how to manage it.
Symptoms of Gastroparesis
The symptoms of gastroparesis can include:
It is also the case that gastroparesis can exacerbate symptoms of an eating disorder—or even trigger one—if it were not there previously. Patients who report gastrointestinal (GI) complaints, including gastroparesis, are found to have high rates of ARFID.
This can become a self-reinforcing cycle: fear of GI symptoms causes them to avoid eating, which in turn intensifies the GI symptoms.
Other Causes of Gastroparesis
It should be noted that gastroparesis can occur in people for reasons other than restricted eating and weight loss.
These include disorder of gut-brain interaction—which is recurrent indigestion with no apparent cause—and diabetes. Gastroparesis can also be a side effect of certain medications including opiates and someantidepressants.
Gastroparesis is formally diagnosed through a gastric emptying study conducted at a radiology center. The patient first eats a meal, usually scrambled eggs or oatmeal that has been mixed with a safe medical radioactive material that emits protons.
However, because gastroparesis is a common occurrence with weight loss and restricted intake,the diagnosis is often made presumptively in people with eating disorders who exhibit symptoms of early fullness, bloating, and nausea without a formal gastric emptying test.
Fullness after eating very little can be very confusing if you have an eating disorder. It may also be very distressing. The primary treatment for gastroparesis in the case of an eating disorder is—not surprisingly—more food.
While eating must continue, there are strategies that can reduce discomfort. Liquids will move more easily from the stomach into the intestines, so including more calories in the form of liquids, includingnutritional shake supplements, can be helpful during the early phase of nutritional rehabilitation. High fiber foods including fruits and vegetables are harder to digest and may increase bloating and fullness so should be limited.Say “yes” to more fats and protein. It also helps to eat smaller and more frequent meals.
It should be emphasized that these medications are not laxatives—rather, they may help the stomach more rapidly empty food into the intestines. Laxatives are not recommended treatment for gastroparesis.
Keep in mind that these symptoms will get better with better nutrition and weight gain. Resist the temptation to reduce intake.
How Long Does It Take to Improve from Symptoms of Gastroparesis?
Research shows that delayed gastric emptying can often be significantly improved in about 8 weeks with nutritional rehabilitation—even without medication— if significant weight is gained. It can recur if weight is lost again.
A Word From Verywell
It’s not just in your head; the fullness is real! Gastroparesis often complicates recovery from eating disorders following decreased intake and weight loss. Nutritional rehabilitation and weight restoration are necessary to resolve gastroparesis that occurs in the context of an eating disorder.
7 Sources
Verywell Mind uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Terrie, Yvette C. 2018.Recognizing and Effectively Treating Gastroparesis.US Pharmacist.
Norris ML, Harrison ME, Isserlin L, Robinson A, Feder S, Sampson M.Gastrointestinal complications associated with anorexia nervosa: A systematic review.Int J Eat Disord. 2016 Mar;49(3):216-37. doi: 10.1002/eat.22462. Epub 2015 Sep 26. Review. PubMed PMID: 26407541.
Fikree A.Mistakes in gastroparesis and how to avoid them.UEG Education2021; 21: 18–22.
Murray, Helen B.; Jehangir, Asad; Parkman, Henry P.History of Eating Disorder in Patients With Gastroparesis Symptoms: More Severe Postprandial Fullness and Delayed Gastric Emptying.American Journal of Gastroenterology.2018; 113:S701-S702.
Murray HB, Bailey AP, Keshishian AC, et al.Prevalence and Characteristics of Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder in Adult Neurogastroenterology Patients.Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2020;18(9):1995-2002.e1. doi:10.1016/j.cgh.2019.10.030
Rosen, E.Gastroparesis.Gaudiani Clinic Blog.2019.
Meet Our Review Board
Share Feedback
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is your feedback?HelpfulReport an ErrorOtherSubmit
What is your feedback?
