Causes
The causes of abdominal cramps and diarrhoea can be divided into different categories. First of all, a distinction is made between: Infectious causes are primarily the pathogens that cause gastrointestinal infections (gastroenteritis). These are usually viruses such as adeno-, rota- or noroviruses.
Bacteria can also cause abdominal cramps and diarrhoea, more rarely fungal diseases or parasites are the origin of infectious gastroenteritis. Autoimmune diseases and inflammations are caused by changes in the mucous membrane of the intestinal wall. For example, due to these inflammatory changes, less fluid can be absorbed from the food pulp, so that the bowel movement becomes more fluid.
At the same time, cramps of the intestinal muscles occur. Such inflammatory diseases can occur acutely; autoimmune processes in the gastrointestinal tract usually result in chronic diseases (chronic inflammatory intestinal diseases). Metabolic causes of abdominal cramps and diarrhoea occur when the metabolic state of the body is out of balance.
The food-related abdominal cramps and diarrhoea occur either in connection with food intolerance or spoiled food. – Infection
- Autoimmune disease
- Inflammatory processes
- Metabolic cause
- Food related causes
Abdominal cramps and diarrhoea, which occur a few hours after eating, can be an indication of spoiled food. The spoiled food often has to pass through the stomach and into the intestines first to trigger these symptoms.
Since the average time the food remains in the stomach is about 2 hours (especially solid food also longer), the first symptoms often appear after this period. Usually spoiled food leads to short-lasting severe diarrhoea with abdominal pain and abdominal cramps, and nausea and vomiting are usually also part of the spectrum of symptoms. If the abdominal cramps and diarrhoea occur immediately while eating or only very shortly afterwards, this often speaks for other diseases.
A chronically irritated gastrointestinal tract (e.g. in chronic inflammatory bowel diseases) can play an important role here. Irritable bowel syndrome or irritable stomach syndrome and related illnesses are also often manifested by complaints such as abdominal cramps and diarrhoea immediately after eating. The interaction between psychological stress and discomfort with the irritated digestive tract plays an important role. These articles could also be of interest to you:
- All about food poisoning
- Sympoms of food poisoning
- Stomach ache after eating
- Diarrhoea after eating
Other symptoms
In addition to abdominal cramps and diarrhoea, other symptoms of the digestive system often occur. For example, the symptoms are often accompanied by nausea and vomiting. Fever can also frequently occur in the context of infections or inflammations.
As a rule, affected persons are flabby, tired and less able to perform. Acute abdominal cramps can also be accompanied by sweating and even fainting. If the disease causes damage to the intestinal mucosa, changes in the colour of the bowel movements (e.g. reddish or dark discolouration of the stool due to blood deposits) can often occur.
Flatulence is a common symptom, which can be observed together with abdominal cramps and diarrhoea. The trigger for this is the bacterial colonisation of the gastrointestinal tract. These bacteria are present in every person’s intestines and play a major role in digestion.
Particularly through certain foods but also through a disturbance of the bacterial colonisation (for example through infectious germs) the intestinal bacteria get out of balance. Their digestion changes so that more digestive gases are produced. These gases inflate the intestine and can lead to a feeling of fullness.
In addition, affected persons get flatulence because they have to let the increased intestinal gases escape. Nausea is a common symptom in connection with chronic and acute diseases of the gastrointestinal tract. First of all, it can occur due to various moods of the digestive tract as well as the symptoms abdominal cramps and diarrhoea.
In the case of an acute illness such as an infection, the symptoms persist for a few days until the body has eliminated and fought off the pathogenic substances. Chronic diseases, on the other hand, lead to permanent damage to the intestinal wall, for example, and often occur in phases. Nausea in particular, which occurs intermittently without a specific identifiable trigger, can indicate chronic irritation of the stomach or oesophagus.
Vomiting is a symptom that reflects a protective mechanism of the digestive tract. This protective mechanism plays a particularly important role in diseases with gastrointestinal germs of all kinds or spoiled food. By vomiting, the body tries to transport the harmful substances out of the digestive tract again.
Thus, vomiting has a similar effect to diarrhoea, which also enables an accelerated passage of the spoiled substances in the body. This means that fewer harmful substances and pests are absorbed into the body by the intestines, and in addition the substances only remain in the digestive tract for a short time and are quickly excreted again. Fever is a general symptom of the body that indicates a reaction of the immune system.
With the help of this mechanism, the body tries to kill off foreign germs. Fever therefore often occurs in gastrointestinal infections caused by bacteria or viruses. But chronic gastrointestinal diseases caused by autoimmune processes also activate the immune system.
Often the fever in these cases does not rise as much as in acute infections. Pain in the limbs is a classic symptom of influenza, which is why these complaints associated with abdominal cramps and diarrhoea are particularly common in the case of gastro-intestinal flu. In addition, there are often complaints such as nausea and vomiting as well as fever, loss of appetite and fatigue.
Often gastro-enteritis is caused by viruses, so there is no causal treatment. Therapy therefore usually consists of symptom relief through pain and fever reduction as well as sufficient fluid intake and physical rest. Blood in the stool can make itself felt in two different ways.
If the blood comes from the rear sections of the bowel, it is usually fresh blood and appears in the form of light red deposits on the stool. However, if the blood comes from the front sections of the intestine or from the stomach, it is digested during the intestinal passage, which is why it takes on a dark brown to black colour, thus darkening the stool. Bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract can be caused by infectious damage to the mucous membrane.
Chronic inflammatory bowel diseases also attack the mucous membrane and are therefore often accompanied by blood in the stool. If there is blood in the stool, it is important to consult a doctor and clarify the cause of the source of bleeding. – Blood in the stool with diarrhoea
- Blood in the stool and abdominal pain
When back pain is associated with abdominal cramps and diarrhea, it is usually a radiation of pain from the abdomen to the back.
The feeling of pain can also be interpreted by the brain in the back through nerve connections. In addition, the abdominal cavity borders directly on the back and the spine. Therefore, complaints of the gastrointestinal tract, which are associated with diarrhoea and abdominal cramps, can also affect the muscles of the back and surrounding structures.
Abdominal pain often causes a reflex tensing of the back muscles, so that back pain occurs at the same time as abdominal cramps and diarrhoea. Sweating is in most cases a sign that the autonomic nervous system is in disarray. The autonomic nervous system can be divided into two antagonists: the sympathetic nervous system and the parasympathetic nervous system.
The parasympathetic nervous system in particular becomes active during digestion and can therefore be easily addressed in the case of gastrointestinal tract complaints. Excessive irritation of the parasympathetic nervous system leads to a reaction of the opposite partner (sympathetic nervous system), which drives the production of sweat. Typically, the sweating occurs at the same time as the abdominal cramps.
Mostly affected persons become cold sweaty. The outbreak of sweating can be a warning sign of an impending fainting spell. Fainting fits (syncope) are usually characterised by reduced blood flow to the brain.
Various mechanisms lead to a short-term undersupply of oxygen and other nutrients to the brain. This deficiency triggers the fainting. In the context of diseases that cause abdominal cramps and diarrhoea, the nervous system of the body can become muddled.
The gastrointestinal tract is very well supplied with nerves that both send information from the abdomen to the brain and carry instructions from the brain to the digestive tract. If, for example, inflammation occurs and associated abdominal cramps and diarrhoea, the nerves can become overloaded. This leads to a circulatory collapse. Pain during the course of the disease can also cause such a dysregulation and thus temporarily worsen the blood flow in the brain. Cold sweat as well as indisposition and dizziness often precede fainting.
