Indigestion, also known as dyspepsia, is pain or discomfort in your chest or stomach. This usually comes on soon after eating or drinking.

You may also have other symptoms, such as:

1. feeling full or bloated
2. heartburn
3. nausea (feeling sick)
4. belching 

Indigestion is a common problem that affects many people, but in most cases it is mild and only occurs occasionally.

Why it happens

Indigestion is caused by stomach acid coming into contact with the sensitive, protective lining of the digestive system. The stomach acid breaks down the lining, leading to irritation and inflammation (soreness and swelling). This causes the symptoms of indigestion.

In most cases indigestion is related to eating, although it can be caused by other factors such as smoking, drinking, alcohol, pregnancy or taking certain medications.

Treating indigestion at home

You may be able to treat your indigestion with changes to your diet and lifestyle, or with a number of different medications, such as antacids. 

If an underlying health condition is the cause of indigestion, further investigation such as an endoscopy may be required (see below).

Symptoms:

Abdominal pain a feeling of undue fullness after eating, heartburn, loss of appetite, nausea or vomiting, and flatulence or gas are the usual symptoms of dyspepsia. Vomiting usually provides relief. Other symptoms are foul taste in the mouth, coated tongue, and foul breath. At times a sensation of strangling in the throat is experienced. In most cases of indigestion, the patients suffer from constipation.

Root cause:

The main causes of dyspepsia are overeating, eating wrong food combinations, eating too rapidly and neglecting proper mastication and salivation of food, overeating, makes the work of the stomach, lever, kidneys and bowels harder. When the food putrefies, its poisons are absorbed into he blood and consequently the whole system is poisoned. Certain foods especially if they are not properly cooked, cause dyspepsia. Other causes are intake of fried food, rich and spicy food, excessive smoking, intake of alcohol, constipation, habit of eating and drinking together, insomnia, emotions such as jealousy, fear and anger and lack of exercise.