Does anyone else find that pickled vegetables give them indigestion and that the indigestion sets off AF or am I the only one?
indigestion and Af: Does anyone else... - Atrial Fibrillati...
indigestion and Af
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southkorea
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Indigestion sets my arrhythmias off. Gastric and cardiac issues interact badly for some of us. Hope you can some ease from it. Be extra careful with your diet and cut out anything which is a trigger for you. Best wishes.
Thank you . No more pickled vegetables for me!’
It will be the vinegar in the pickled vegetables that gives you chest discomfort. Best to avoid that and fatty food. Oddly yogurt makes my stomach sore too, so I have to avoid that as well.
Thank you !
Fatty food? Anything specific?
Not really it's all trial and error. I go careful with the batter on chips and things like pork crackling are out. If you get soreness, then eating some almonds can help but they must be really well chewed.
Thank you
Hiya southkorea,
Way back in the day - about 13 years ago - I discovered all/any manner of food would trigger my AF, it didn't need to be indigestion either. I experienced any of the following symptoms - burping, intestinal gurgling - loud and embarassing, diahorrea and intense pain under the left ribs under the heart diaphragm area. Not all at the same time, only one at pure random. It would be the pain that would trigger the AF.
May I suggest you read up on the Vagal Nerve - a nerve in the central nervous system - like an information superhighway connecting the brain, heart and gut .
Over a considerable period of time I found a whole range of foods would kick off these symptoms by causing an irritation/inflammation of the Vagal Nerve. My GP back in the day, had me checked for IBS and Coealiac Disease but was all clear. I then consulted a Nutritionist who advised me on diet and haven't looked back. If I'm stupid, forget my diet rules etc etc then even these days it'll all kick off.
So, at a pure guess it is something in those pickled veggies that is kicking things off. It might be nothing to do with veggies either, it might be in the pickling liquid. No science here .... just sayin' - is all. Maybe reconsider your whole diet.
John
Yup me too…no matter what I eat sometimes AF can kick in.. I watch what I eat and when.. had a fried egg and toast…then AF, bowl of oatmeal A F kicked in,,, cheese sandwich etc etc…don’t know much about the nerve thing but I’m sure it’s related…
Hi, that's it ... eggs ! the only egg I can eat is scrambled. My list of forbidden foods would equal the size of a Delia Smith Cookbook.
Fer instance, if I have a nice bit of pork with crackling or roast duck ... I have to occupy bathroom for half a day if I don't cop AF first. Grrrrr 😱!
So interesting
Look at the York cardiologist on YouTube,many easy to understand videos on gastric and vagus nerves and af.
I thought mine was diet too. 8:episodes in 16 days..after lunch. Lunches were so varied so no idea. Got to the stage I was becoming paranoid eating lunch. But have since had a Chinese, fried eggs….who knows. Give up. I just carry on and eat what I want. I don’t seem to have triggers..
Haven’t had an episode now since the last one 9 days ago. So frustrating not even knowing the triggers
Thank you good advice! Must find a good nutritionist
look at the York cardiologist on YouTube, explains in easy to understand English gastric, vagus nerve and diet.
Thought mine was diet…but have had such varied lunches..sometimes it kicks off and other times not so I’m just carrying on as I want. And that was after having 8 episodes in 16 days after lunch . Can’t find a trigger. A fantastic huge Chinese I was fine..fried eggs(drained) and chips….no problem. It’s certainly a mystery..for me anyway
Good thinking!!
Hi there in South Korea.
Just got back from a holiday in JAPAN.
Pickled veges usually have VINEGAR. I find depending on solution I will get pains in stomach and sometimes painful wind.
Your gall bladder may not be working effectively. Do you have influx?
Gherkins are fine but any vinegar in cooking a no no.
Hubby put vinegar on a dish with mussels. I couldn't eat it.
As for AF I have persistent without symptoms.
cherio JOY
Pickled usually means fermented.
Thank you joy
Tyramine is a thing found in aged and pickled foods. Look it up. Has a range of issues. I have had AF from pickled foods and cheddar cheese. As well as other triggers. I am very delicate. Lots of info on the interweb.
Thank you! I love pickled food but never again! It gave me the first AF attack for a year!
But be careful of “the Web”. Any joker could put up a podcast and get it paid for by a sponsor and make money on disinformation. The scarier the better. With my medical background, I can easily parse out garbage. You have to look at the source. It should be a university or a really licensed doctor not a fake one. Chiropractors are not trained to give this type of information. I actually go to the medical literature for deeper information. For the layperson, WebMD is a good start or patient information from a university or medical school..
From WebMD. Tyramine can trigger nerve cells to release norepinephrine, a hormone that increases blood pressure and heart rate. People who already have high blood pressure need to be careful when consuming foods with high tyramine levels.
I always know when my Afib is about to start as I have continuous very heavy belching. This usually starts as soon as lay down in bed. 90% of my Af is between 2300 and 0400hrs. If then sit upright for a time I stops, lay down and starts again. My problem is 100% digestion related but my consultant does not seem to take it seriously.
So interesting as I to start with belching then AF . The last two episodes ( I have only had two this year ) have been caused by spicy food
My AF begins exactly the same. As soon as the gas and belching start, l check my pulse and sure enough it’s arrived. There is definitely a connection with the stomach and heart despite your consultant’s opinion. I think it needs to be taken very seriously if we are to be treated properly don’t you?
Yes indeed.
There’s a specialist in York who does a lot of videos on YT. He seems to say to find the digestive problem and you will solve your AF, in cases like ours.
Im unable to even get a consultation via telephone until April next year…….its very frustrating!
How intersting
Ohmygosh I cannot believe this, it's exactly how I am, you've just totally explained what happens to me but my cardiologist just won't have it. It happens after every meal unless I eat very, very slowly, and even then it can come on, why won't any cardiologist at least acknowledge that it's related??. My AF happens at least twice a day, usually after food.
You’re not. Me too. I gather that the oesophagus and stomach lie in very close proximity to the heart. Peristalsis is what they do, (i.e. they squeeze food and what's left of it along) and this can push and stretch the heart physically. Stretched heart cells are more likely to beat ectopically. This can start an AF episode in those prone to such.
It’s not the food, nor the vagus, simply the natural movement of food through the digestive tract. Some foods will cause stronger peristalsis owing to spiciness, acidity, bulk and similar.
Steve
Thank you Steve!!
thank you. My doctor said the same! I
Agreed, tried every combination of foods zero food etc after 1800hrs but alas I’m unable find the cause! Consultant is telling me to have a Cyroablation saying I’m an ideal candidate!!
It seems to me it’s more digestion related than heart, in my case
All ideas welcome
I have said the same. Digestive issues and the heart go hand-in-hand. In my case, I have a hiatus hernia and a weak stomach sphincter so need PPI tablets daily. This has been "giving me gip" for two months now with nausea and feelings of "pulling" or a “knot” in the centre and left side just under the rib cage: just where the AF and ectopics hit. Digestive issues take an age to settle with me. Why? I don't know. I have IBS, too, with diverticulae in the large bowel, sprinkled all over I was told after my last colonoscopy, with some large ones. Well - that can be ever-lasting at times, or so it seems.
Chicken or egg? I think the answer will never be found out. A reduced blood flow from the heart caused by the arrhythmias (in my case bradycardia, LBBB, ectopic beats and AF) will surely hit the digestive area and affect it, much as it hits the brain and causes fogginess or dizziness; much as it hits the legs and turns them to jelly, and so on.
There are worse things. Some people really suffer. I feel some luck that I cope well.
Steve
Steve
I agree totally
I feel very “lucky “ as my AF (at the moment) gives me very little actual problems other than the fact it’s there in my subconscious or somewhere and it stops me sleeping unfortunately. My consultant keeps telling me my heart is in great shape and that is why AF shows itself in the manner it does.
I would however be quite happy without it……
Keep trusting
A lot of problems then. Good luck
Oh it can sound so online in a thread but I have a pleasant life compared with some - and many compensations! A six-year-old grandson (“But I’m nearly 7, grandpa!”) is one and a happy family life another.
Steve
I get that pulling sensation too just after eating, or sometines during if I eat too fast. Sometimes it's more of a fluttering right where the diaphragm joins onto the Xiphoid process. I'm guessing that's because the stomach has popped through into the diaphragm. I have to really pay attention- stop what I'm doing, sit up straight and breathe slowly. Then I'll get up and walk around a bit. Usually I can see it off if I do this. As you say Steve, could be worse. Most of the time I manage well and still enjoy my food!
Bulky foods are my enemy - a healthy bowl of oats or mueseli for breakfast and up goes my HR, so I avoid any form of bulk - I eat small meals and commit the cardinal sin of snacking between meals - I'm only 50kg so I don't worry about my weight, just my disgracefully unbalanced diet - in mitigation, I only drink water !
What a lovely weight. Goodness, I’m twice that (but 190cm so look “slimmish”!). I am slowly but surely trying to get down to 96kg!
Steve
Small meals are fine!!
Large meals make the heart work harder. I have porridge oats for breakfast and not much until an evening meal. I notice that after breakfast and snacking at lunch time, l can start to get palpitations, so it is when my body is “filling up” with food for the day that l can have problems with digestion and ectopics etc. That to me is evidence that there is a link between AF and the stomach,
When I feel “empty” is when mine often start.
Steve
This really is so complex Steve isn’t it? When my stomach is empty the acid has a free run and l get lots of burning in my gullet. so l snack, even if it’s only a dry biscuit, just to calm the acid down. I am also an anxious person which also adds to the acid production. I have just had a course of antibiotics which have upset my stomach and given me even more ectopics than ever, just on bending. I have an appointment on Wednesday with my Cardiologist, who l haven’t seen for a long time. I am really going into this …..,.
Have you considered this might be a blood glucose response? I tracked high HR post my porridge oats or bircher muesli. Oats quickly turn to sugar in the body so if you like them for breakfast it's good to have plenty of nuts and seeds with them, and even some oat bran, ad these offset that effect. When I changed my breakfast routine my morning heart spikes stopped.
Gosh that's so interesting, I must look for more info.
Pickled items are usually a high sodium load For the. Body that can impact the heart.
Thankyou
I had to give up pickles and citric fruit years ago because of the same problem. I have gastric problems. Anything acidic is a no no. There are three things that accompany AF. Food intolerance, indigestion and anxiety. All intimidation for the vagal nerve to flare up and cause AF.
Interesting thankyou
no
Nope, you're not the only one! Digestive distress is a trigger for many of us, though I think we all respond differently to different foods. For me it's about not eating too much, or too heavy.
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