oxygen level after a meal?

[jimmyw123]

i just wondered if anyone noticed , does your oxygen level drop after an evening meal.? mines seems to,,,,, although im not particularly worried , but just wondered if anyone else noticed this

[Suzy6]

Yes mine does. It is also low when I arrive home from work down to 94 although all I have done is be as passenger in a car.

[Prof-LeeVamDumb in reply to Suzy6]

Probably due to inactivity in the car. In the extra carbon dioxide exhaled by other passengers including driver. Plus she went from possibly an active work state, to an inactive work state.

I'm on oxygen at night and often noticed, while testing my oxygen when I get up the results are favorable. That after eating my oxygen level drops significantly from time to time. Due to the stomach pulling a large amount of blood away from my body to aid in the digestive process. After about 30 minutes. It's pretty much back to normal.

[Hidden]

My husband is really quite bad after eating! He was told it was because his stomach is full, his diaphragm was pushing into his lungs and reducing their capacity and has he only has 27% FEV1 - it leaves him very out of breath and his sats drop pretty low. TAD xx

[MarieW-F in reply to Hidden]

TADAW - exactly what I was told too. If I am going to go for a walk or exercise it always has to be before I eat because I struggle after food.

[Toci]

It is just as TAD said, and I was also told that the digestion of food takes up some oxygen too, further reducing our limited supply.

[rick1]

I've been told to eat small amount's more often, to stop being so out of breath when I've had a big meal !

[Prof-LeeVamDumb in reply to rick1]

Yes. Also try avoiding hot fluids such as tea or coffee, as they can affect both blood pressure and oxygen levels. During morning bills especially. Nothing wrong with a cold bowl of cereal.

[Steph57]

I tend to have more smaller meals rather than a larger evening meal if you feel blotted after food it can make you more breathless.

[maggie44]

I agree with all the above posts. My ability to eat a large meal has reduced dramatically(not a bad thing since I am much less active than I used to be). I have been told the same as Toci and TADAW. I also find that I get tired and my sats drop as the evening progresses, which combines with the above also.

I am determined to continue to do the cooking (my husband does offer), but cooking the evening meal does often take it out of me and so when it comes to actually eating, it seems to take too much effort!

If we eat out now, we go out for lunch rather than dinner - more enjoyable for both of us. I still don't want a large portion and often have fish which seems less filling. Think this may be the aging process in operation as well as the lung issue!

Maggie

[jimmyw123]

many thanks for all the very interesting posts, yes it looks like were all the same, strangely enough my doctor has just called , she was in the area and popped in. but shes coming back tomorrow, i had asked her this question before i saw these posts, she said exactly what has been said in the posts,,, it can effect you, eat little and often.

i was particularly interested in tadows post about her husband,s.diaphram pushing into the lungs reducing their capacity,

one of the reasons my doc was here, was i have a very, very, unexplained enlarged abdomen, although im a thin person, and not a big eater, this is like a blinken beach ball!!, my doc. said this has to be effecting my breathing, and as tadow says its pushing into the lungs causing reduced capacity. .i have had scans, colonoscopes, scans with dye through me, you name it , my doc still cant come up with a difinative answer. she looked at it today and said it looked bigger, i had never even eaten, and my bowels had been open. she says shes going to speak with the hospital doctors and see if she can find out anything.

i wish i could put a picture up, it actually looks like im 7-8 months pregnant, so i will let you know when my water breaks lol,,,,,, mind you i am a male oap, lol,!!! [the docs in the hospital told me there,s nothing "sinister" there]

sorry for going slightly off topic, but it does look like any obstruction,be it an enlarged abdomen!! be it eating a heavy meal, or be it gasses in the stomach or bowel, even fat, can cause problems to the lungs.so it just shows you, we certainly live and learn.

many thanks for your posts, and if anyone can come up with any idea why this abdomen is so big lol,,,, it would be appreciated,,,jw

[maggie44 in reply to jimmyw123]

Jimmy

I presume you are not taking steroids- they can give you a big stomach. Or sometimes retaining water excessively can do the same - that usually down to heart, but this can be related to lung issues, but probably quite rare. Brilliant that your doctor is so much on your case - the best sort of GP to have.

Hope you have a diagnosis soon. Take care

[jimmyw123 in reply to maggie44]

hi maggie, thanks for your input, yes i have been taking quite a lot of steroids during this past year, due to repeated infections. the doc. did mention this, but the belly has been swollen for about couple years gradually getting bigger

, your right what you say about my g,p. she is absolutely marvelous. she really just popped in today as she was in the vicinity, and was in a rush .,but my actual appointment is tomorrow [friday] A.M., so will see what she says then,

you keep well now maggie and thanks again,,,,jw

[wingsoffire in reply to jimmyw123]

Hello, Jimmyw123. May I ask if you have back issues? The reason I am asking, is that after an auto accident in June, my abdomen bloated so badly that I looked pregnant with twins. The Dr.s couldn't figure out the issue, however, my physical therapist solved the dilemma. There are nerves in our spines that attach to our organs and during trauma or injury, these nerves send signals to bloat the abdomen to help protect the organs. (Who knew?!) It took a few months of physical therapy for it to reduce back to normal size. I just thought I'd mention it...this could be why the cause has not been discovered...a chiropractor or neurologist may be able to assist better in this instance. If not, it could be toxins in your digestive tract, that a good probiotic could resolve. Just my two cents....good luck to you, sir! = )

[jimmyw123 in reply to wingsoffire]

many thanks for your later input wingsoffire, you ask if i have back issues ? answer yes, i have fairly advanced ankylosing spondylitis.

i also had an auto accident about 2years ago ? punctured a lung.

my abdomen is as big now as it was.

my consultant [respiratory ] vaguely says "down to my a.s. "

sorry for the late reply,but haven't been at my best of late after hospital treatment.

many thanks for your input

kind regards jimmy

[socalgal]

Goodness.... I asked this of my american doc, she just looked at me like I had a bird perched on my head! Yes, I noticed increased breathlessness after a meal....and especially the next morning....... I get a little relief after I get the crap out...sorry for the visual you may have just gotten...teee heeeeee ho. I cut out red meat, because I know that it is harder to digest than fish or lean chicken. I am currently reading about the Hunzakuts they live in the Himalayas and most live beyond 100 yrs. They live high up in the mountains where the air is very thin, all their crops are grown on terraced land.....maybe there is something here that needs some study. I'm hoping it's never to late to implement changes into our lives that can slow the progression so we can have better days. love the brits

[jimmyw123 in reply to socalgal]

yes you are right socalgal, it seems like a lighter easy digested diet would suit us better, i know heavy meals for me is a no no,,,i will need to look up on the hunzakuts [cant say ive heard of them] if their living until over 100 years, they must be doing something right,. who knows it maybe that someone will study them, and come up with something. thanks for the reply,, kind regards jw

[socalgal]

oh and one more thing, I pray you have a wonderful night. we all know that are words mask the downs, but it's in those moments when we express ourselves to understanding people that makes some of this tolerable.... love the brits

[jimmyw123 in reply to socalgal]

i pray you all have a wonderful night, i am absolutely done in, almost seeing double lol, ive been up since 4am, dozed just a little today, so its off to kip now,, god bless jw

[skv131]

Yes, I observed oxizlgen persentage decreased when ever I eat my lunch or diner. Even I noticed that when ever I lay onthe bed in straight position oxigen level drops by one to two persent for some times and if I bend my legs like a sitting position oxigen level incresed again.