Avoid drinking with your meal as this can cause you to swallow excess air. Eating regular meals will reduce the build-up of wind. Do not chew chewing gum and avoid smoking, as both these activities increase the amount of air we ingest.
Ballooning occurs when gas expelled through the colon collects inside the bag causing it to inflate. Most bags have a filter which allows this gas to escape.
Drinking carbonated beverages, smoking, chewing gum, and chewing with your mouth open can all increase the amount of air you swallow. If you are concerned about gas, you can use a pouch with a filter. Some medications or nutritional supplements may make good hygiene a little more challenging.
What Causes Ostomy Pouch Ballooning? Accumulation of gas in the ostomy pouch occurs due to two main factors. First is the swallowed air and second is the gas formed by the bacteria in the colon (which depends on individual's eating habits and the motility of the bowel). Certain foods are known to increase gas.
Foods that are reported to help thicken the stoma output include apple sauce, bananas, buttermilk, cheese, marshmallows, jelly babies, (boiled) milk, noodles, smooth creamy peanut butter, rice, tapioca pudding, toast, potatoes and yoghurt.
Burping your stoma bag
“Burping” your bag can help let the gas out. This allows the gas smell to escape the bag and is best done in the bathroom. If you use a two-piece system, this can easily be done by gently lifting the edge of your pouch away the flange which can help let the gas escape.
If your current stoma bag has a filter and you are still experiencing ballooning problems, it may be suffering from excess wind. Spicy foods, some particular vegetables (onions, cabbages, peas, and beans) and fizzy drinks have been known to increase wind, so we would recommend avoiding these in your diet.
Air from the stoma causes the bag to expand and detach from the skin (ballooning) Ballooning occurs when air from the stoma inflates the bag and cannot escape through the filter. The resulting air pressure can cause the adhesive to detach from the skin.
Drinking carbonated beverages, smoking, chewing gum, and chewing with your mouth open can all increase the amount of air you swallow. If you are concerned about gas, you can use a pouch with a filter. The filter lets gas out of the pouch, but keep odors at bay.
Drinking throughout the day, or consuming water-rich foods like watermelon, tomatoes, or cucumber will help keep your hydration in check, but it will also aid in loosening your output. If you find that certain meals (i.e. starchy meals) cause your output to thicken too much, consider drinking water with your meal.
Many people enjoy leaving their skin uncovered for 15 to 30 minutes after taking their pouching system off. This is called a skin break. Taking a skin break can help with irritation or keep it from happening. You can decide if you want to take a skin break.
Depending on the severity of the prolapse, a referral can be made to the Surgeon for review, but is often not deemed as urgent, unless the prolapsed stoma changes to a very dark/dusky colour, stops functioning or causes pain. Pain may suggest bowel strangulation which is treated as an emergency.
Every day your body produces a large amount of fluid which is normally re-adsorbed back into you system. If you have a short bowel this fluid can increase your stoma output – drugs to reduce this fluid can help reduce your stoma losses. These are called Omeprazole (Losec) Lansoprazole (Zoton) or Esomeprazole (Nexium).
Keeping hydrated with an ileostomy, colostomy and urostomy
Keeping hydrated is an important aspect of living with a stoma. For many people it is just making sure you are drinking plenty throughout the day. You should try to drink 6-8 glasses of water each day along with any other drinks such as tea or coffee.
You can bathe and shower as normal with your stoma and, unless you have been specifically advised otherwise, you can do so with the stoma bag on or off. It won't fall off in the water if you choose to keep it on and if you bathe with the stoma bag off, soap rinsing over the stoma isn't a problem.
If you normally eat later in the evening or soon before you go to bed, this could be increasing your night time output. If this sounds like you, then varying your meal times could help to reduce stoma bag leakages during the night as your stoma is less active.
Foods and drinks high in sugar can dehydrate you and increase ostomy output. ✓ Add extra salt to your meals and eat salty snacks. The extra salt helps your body absorb water better. ✓ Sip on oral rehydration solutions all day.
If you have an ileostomy
Especially right after surgery, you may lose some fluid due to the relatively large amount of stool (750-1300 ml). Thus it's recommended that you drink at least 2 litres of water per day plus the equivalent of what you lose via the stool.
Stoma blockage
Some people develop a blockage in their stoma as the result of a build-up of food. Signs of a blockage include: not passing many poos, or passing watery poos. bloating and swelling in your tummy.
Skin irritation
This is the most frequently observed complication with all stoma types [2, 7, 12].
Signs of Skin Problems Around a Stoma
The skin around the stoma appears infected and/or is red and "angry" in appearance. There is a pus-like discharge. The skin color suddenly changes. The skin is irritated by the stoma appliance, causing redness, chafing, or a raw or "burned" appearance.
The BBC Radio 1 presenter had a stoma bag, which she refers to as Audrey, fitted last October after being diagnosed with bowel cancer. The operation diverts one end of the colon, which is part of the bowel, through an opening in the abdomen called a stoma.