Over 30 percent of us complain of frequent bloating, according to a recent Dartmouth study. While PMS or dietary boo-boos (eating a few too many gassy veggies or drinking carbonated beverages) are often to blame, sometimes it can indicate a more serious health problem, says Sherry Ross, M.D., ob-gyn and Women’s Health Expert at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA. See your doctor ASAP if you notice any of the following along with chronic bloating:
Although rare, it could indicate ovarian cancer, especially if it’s accompanied by other symptoms such as feeling full quickly while eating and suddenly having to pee or eddpoop a lot. “This is caused by an accumulation of fluid in the abdomen, a condition called ascites, and/or pressure from an ovarian mass against your abdomen or pelvis,” explains Steve Vasilev, MD, gynecologic oncologist and medical director of Integrative Gynecologic Oncology at John Wayne Cancer Institute in Santa Monica, CA. But only about a third of all women are aware that any of these symptoms are a sign of ovarian cancer, according to a study published this past April in the journal Clinical Nursing Research. (These are the eight things every woman needs to know about ovarian cancer.)
What to do: Don’t panic, since most of the time these symptoms point to a more benign condition, such as fibroids. But you should see your doctor ASAP to get checked out. The two tests used most often to screen for ovarian cancer are a transvaginal ultrasound (a test that uses sound waves to look for masses on your ovaries) and the CA-125 blood test (if you have ovarian cancer, levels of the protein CA-125 are high).
About 1 percent of the population has celiac disease, a condition in which your body has an autoimmune reaction to gluten that damages your intestinal lining. But it’s estimated that up to 83 percent of Americans with celiac are either undiagnosed or misdiagnosed, according to the advocacy group Beyond Celiac. While the most common signs are diarrhea and weight loss, about half of all adults with celiac have some signs not related to their GI tract, including anemia, skin rashes, headaches, and early stage osteoporosis, says Deevya Narayanan, MD, a family medicine physician at the Medical Offices of Manhattan.
What to do: See a gastroenterologist, who can order a blood test that looks for certain antibodies in your blood that indicate celiac disease. If it’s positive, you’ll need an endoscopy so your doctor can take a small tissue sample from your small intestine to analyze it for damage. If you do have celiac, treatment is a strict gluten-free diet. But don’t try to go cold turkey on gluten before doing this test and talking to your doctor, or you could end up with a false negative.
Credit: Women’s Heath Mag
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