Is your gas and bloating due to a bad pizza, gluten allergy, food intolerance or is it IBS or SIBO? WAIT! What if it’s all due to endometriosis?
A condition called endometriosis can cause gastrointestinal (GI) or bowel symptoms as well as bad menstrual cramps, painful sex and more misery. Why is this critical to know? Because, even though bowel symptoms can be even more common than gynecologic pelvic pain, gastrointestinal discomfort can be shrugged off as something like food intolerance or gluten allergy. Also, bloating can be a symptom of something even worse, especially if you are older.
Ovarian cancer can also produce symptoms such as bloating, gas pain, pelvic pressure, constipation, diarrhea and things like that. Endometriosis increases the risk of certain types of ovarian cancer. While the absolute increased risk is relatively small, when symptoms are present that mimic ovarian cancer, it is prudent to see what may be going on. So, it is critically important to pay attention to gastrointestinal symptoms that might be misdiagnosed as stress-induced irritable bowel syndrome or other medically treatable intestinal disorders.
