[GeNuInE]

Hey all,
I am a 15 yr. old girl and I have struggled with an eating disorder for about three years. For the past year and a half its been mostly just the occasional starving myself. But my stomach now pops out after I have eaten, and sometimes even when its empty. Why is that?

[Jessa]

This might be a stupid answer, but I'd say it's because you're malnourished. That's why it happens in Ethiopian children. Do you take a multivitamin? I know how it is to restrict, I'm still recovering, but if you can you should try to get in as many nutrients as possible.

Vitamins are usually calorie-free, but are best digested with other food. So try to take them when you're ingesting something else, too, for optimum absorption. Also, some vitamins don't digest as well as others -- you can test this by putting your vitamin in water for a few hours and seeing how well it dissolves. Some won't dissolve for days, which means that even in the acidic environment of your gastrointestinal system, it's unlikely to be absorbed properly.

Sorry for the really long answer to such a short question.

[silver_queen]

I agree with the previous poster (can't remember the name, sorry) that it might be due to malnutrition, but there can be other causes too. Your stomach will stick out when you've eaten because there are things inside it, obviously, so it expands to receive them. And when you haven't eaten... well, liquids take up room in the stomach (drinks), and then gas could also expand your stomach... and also all the things that are squashed up in such a small area - kidneys, liver, intestines, stomach, and whatever else - they all take up space, so I'm not sure it is possible to have a *completely* flat stomach. Unused muscles in the stomach area may also contribute to a stomach which isn't flat, but I'm only guessing at that so they may make no difference to its appearance.

[GeNuInE]

Thanks you guys for the information. It was really puzzling me. LOL. thanks again!