What Causes Stomach Pain and Bowel Urge After Eating and Drinking?

If you experience stomach pain and an urge to move your bowels after eating, you're probably wondering what's going on. Many people use the term "stomach pain" not only to describe pain in the stomach, but also in the abdominal area, too. See your doctor if stomach pain and bowel urges concern you.

Constipation

If you have stomach or abdominal pain and the urge to move your bowels after eating, you might be constipated. You might also experience bowel movements that are less frequent than normal for you, or stools that are dry, hard and difficult to pass. It can also result from medications, such as:

• narcotic pain killers
  
• calcium
  
• iron
  
• antacids
  
• diuretics
  
• antidepressants
  
• according to Drugs.com

Irritable Bowel Syndrome

It is suspected that IBS is caused by the way the brain and the gastrointestinal system interact. Treatment -- medications, stress management and behavioral therapy -- typically focuses on the symptoms because the cause is not yet known, according to the Crohn's and Colitis Foundation of America 2.

Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Ulcerative colitis is limited to the colon, while Crohn's disease may involve the entire gastrointestinal tract.

Colon Cancer

Colon cancer, the third most common cancer in the U.S., happens when cells in the colon or rectum grow out of control and affect normal function. Colon cancer is curable 90 percent of the time when diagnosed early, according to M.D 1: Colon Cancer'). Anderson Cancer Center 1. In addition to stomach or abdominal pain and an urgent need to move your bowels after eating, symptoms include:

• rectal bleeding or blood in your bowel movements
  
• a change in the shape or size of your bowel movements
  
• ongoing diarrhea,
  
• an urgent need to have a bowel movement without results