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Stomach pain and other gastrointestinal complaints are common among children and adolescents. When symptoms recur over a long period, the cause may be a form of DGBI (disorders of gut-brain interaction), in which communication between the brain and the gut does not function as it should. This can affect both intestinal motility and the way pain is perceived.

"It means that patients can have quite severe symptoms even when a basic medical assessment does not reveal any underlying organic condition that could explain them," says Ola Olén, adjunct professor at Karolinska Institutet and senior physician in pediatric gastroenterology at Sachsska Children's and Youth Hospital in Stockholm.

A common example is IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), which may cause diarrhea, constipation and abdominal pain. Other patients experience recurrent stomach pain without changes in their bowel habits. What these conditions have in common is that symptoms are often influenced by stress and mental health.

"Poor mental health is a well-established and very strong risk factor, but the relationship between psychological well-being and gastrointestinal symptoms works both ways," says Olén.

The foundation of treatment is learning more about the gut and what causes the symptoms. According to Olén, this alone is enough to help many patients feel better.

He describes the intestine as a muscular tube that squeezes food forward. Certain foods produce more gas, and sometimes the process becomes poorly coordinated, causing part of the intestine to balloon out, rather like squeezing the ends of a long balloon.

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