The Most Common Causes of Abdominal Pain and when to Seek Medical Attention

Symptoms of gastroenteritis include abdominal pain, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, swollen lymph glands, fatigue, and fever.

The Most Common Causes of Abdominal Pain: Menstrual Pains
Abdominal pain felt during menstruation is commonly due to menstrual cramps, which are caused by the contraction of the muscles of the uterus brought on by hormone changes. Menstrual cramps may range from mild annoyances to strong pains that interfere with daily activities.

For some women, the pain is severe or continues after menstruation. In these cases, there may be other health conditions involved, such as pelvic inflammatory disease, endometriosis or fibroids.

The Most Common Causes of Abdominal Pain: Food Poisoning
Food poisoning may cause mild abdominal pain or a severe life-threatening infection, depending on the type of bacteria or parasite involved. There are over 250 food and water borne illness that can cause food poisoning symptoms, including the commonly known Salmonella, E. Coli, and botulism.

Symptoms of food poisoning include abdominal pain, abdominal cramps, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, fatigue, weakness, and fever. The severity of the symptoms will vary depending on the bacteria or parasite involved with the infection.

The Most Common Causes of Abdominal Pain: Food Allergies and Food Intolerances
A food allergy is an immune system response to a certain compound in food, usually a protein. Between 2 to 4% of adults and 6 to 8% of children have true food allergies. Food intolerance, which is much more common, is a digestive response to foods, often due to the digestive system being low in a needed enzyme or sensitivity to a chemical additive. Both food allergy and food intolerance can lead to abdominal pain.

Symptoms of a food allergy occur every time the food is consumed and include abdominal pain, nausea, diarrhea, rash, hives, shortness of breath, chest pain, and anaphylaxis.

Symptoms of food intolerance increase depending on how much of the offending food is consumed and include abdominal pain, nausea, gas, abdominal cramps, bloating, vomiting, heartburn, diarrhea, headache, and irritability.