Normally, food is moved through the digestive tract by muscular contractions of the stomach and other walls lining the system. When these muscles don't function correctly, your stomach cannot empty properly and can disrupt different phases of digestion. This is known as gastroparesis. This can cause nausea, and make it difficult to absorb nutrients properly and trouble blood sugar levels. Gastroparesis causes are still unclear, but nerve damage to the stomach muscles are believed to play a factor as damaged nerves cannot send or receive the signal to contract the stomach muscles. Nerve damage can be caused by diabetes, or even result from stomach surgeries.
Symptoms of gastroparesis include nausea, feeling full after eating very little, heartburn, low appetite, malnutrition, weight loss, and abdominal bloating. Pain medications and antidepressants can increase the risk of gastroparesis, as well as diabetes, anorexia, bulimia, and cancer treatments.
On this page you can find user submitted natural treatments for gastroparesis. While we are still actively interested in obtaining more remedies for gastroparesis, some of our Earth Clinic readers have reported success with apple cider vinegar, aloe vera, exercise, and use of coconut oil and digestive enzymes. Let us know what you try!
