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After digging into a pleasant-tasting meal , you might realize that your pant ' waistline feel snugger than before . But why does that happen ? How much can the stomach expand after a big meal to oblige all that food ?
An empty adult stomach starts as a fold pouch about the sizing of a washing soda can — 0.5 liter ( 16 ounces ) — and during a repast it can grow to the size of it of a 2 litre ( 0.5 gallon ) plastic soda nursing bottle , Dr. Arthur Beyder , an associate professor of medicine and physiology at the Mayo Clinic , told Live Science .
Here’s why you might feel like your stomach is expanding after you eat too much food.
" It will quadruple or more in size , " he said . For most grownup , this entail the stomach can maintain between 0.25 and 0.5 gal ( 1 and 2 liters ) of intellectual nourishment and liquidness , depending on their years and body size of it . In utmost eccentric , such as in competitive eaters , the stomach can exposit to hold 1 gallon ( 4 litre ) , Beyder said .
A 2018 survey publish in the journalGastroenterologyrecorded a militant eater who fare to the emergency room after eating so much food that his stomach distended , compressing his pancreas and labour aside his gut . After five days in the infirmary , the man was able to go through throttle and have gut motility , think he could be exculpate .
More often , though , overeating occurs during social meals like Thanksgiving , or when someone is stress or trouble while observe TV , Dr. Benjamin Levy , a gastroenterologist at University of Chicago Medicine , tell Live Science .
Here’s why you might feel like your stomach is expanding after you eat too much food.
" They ’re lost , and before they bonk it , almost all of a sudden … they ’re too full because of that , " he say .
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Human hungriness is shake by the endocrine ghrelin , which is produce mainly by the stomach , but also in the brain , small-scale intestine and pancreas , according to theCleveland Clinic . This hormone is released when the breadbasket is empty so it can alert the mental capacity that it ’s clip to eat on .
Once someone set out eat , intellectual nourishment travels down their esophagus and into the tummy . The stomach has plication , called rugae , that allow the stomach to thrive and admit incoming intellectual nourishment and liquid state , Levy said . As solid food enters , the stomach releases hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes . The organ also begins to churn , in edict to break down solid food into smaller pieces so that nutrients can after be absorb in thesmall intestine , he enjoin .
The stomach is made of smooth muscleman , which can tighten and hold contractions for an elongated period of time , even after stretching . This earmark it to make room for more and more food .
" It ’s kind of like a rubber band , " Beyder enjoin . " You pull on it and it ’ll bounce back . " This is called myogenic quality , which controls how much tension the venter has . Stomach tension is communicated to the brain via the nervus vagus nerve , which run from the orotund bowel to the learning ability , according to theCleveland Clinic . This is just one pathway by which tum fullness is report to the brain , Beyder said .
There are also hormonal changes that tell your mentality when it ’s time to stop feed . The hunger endocrine ghrelin decreases , while other hormones signal satiety to the wit and reduce your appetency . When someone binge , it intend they may have ignored these signals or eaten so rapidly that the hormones have n’t had enough metre to say their learning ability they are full , Levy say .
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The trick , say Levy , is to slow down . " Sit there and talk for 15 minutes before you go back for seconds , " he enjoin .
But if you do get hold yourself find too full at the dinner mesa , there are a few things you could do to still the irritation of overeating . First , do n’t rest down . That may createacid reflux , Levy suppose . Instead , he recommends going on a walkway . This can stimulate digestion and motility , or the drive of nutrient through the digestive system , according toUC San Diego Health .
While the stomach may be designed to expand and curb a cornucopia of food , you ’ll palpate good if you do n’t overeat , Levy tell .
" Leftover Thanksgiving solid food is awe-inspiring , so you do n’t have to rust everything the first time , " he sound out .
