How Fats and Sugar Can Cause Upper Right Quadrant Pain
Health ConditionsDigestive Health

Upper Right Quadrant Pain? It May Be From Your Diet

Upper Right Quadrant Pain? It May Be From Your Diet
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Updated on August 6, 2025
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Pain in the upper right quadrant of your abdomen may come from your biliary system, or the organs that produce and distribute bile to help you digest food.

 It may originate in your gallbladder, liver, or pancreas, or may be referred pain from elsewhere in your body.

Eating foods high in fat and sugar can cause pain in those organs or make existing pain worse. Understanding how your dietary choices may interact with organs in your upper right quadrant can help you avoid and manage pain in this area. It’s also wise to contact your doctor if you have abdominal pain, to understand the cause and treatment options.

Gallbladder

If you have upper abdominal pain after eating, it may be the result of issues with your gallbladder.

Your gallbladder is a sac-like organ that stores and concentrates the bile your liver makes. When your stomach is full, your duodenum releases a hormone that causes your gallbladder to release bile.

A high-fat meal will cause your gallbladder to release more bile. This can cause pain if you have gallbladder problems that may include:

  • Cholecystitis, or an inflamed gallbladder
  • Gallstones, or hardened deposits that may block bile ducts
  • Bile duct strictures or similar blockages

Research also has shown that sugary and processed foods can lead to gallstones and gallbladder disease, which also can contribute to right upper quadrant pain.

Contact your doctor if you are concerned about pain from your gallbladder or if additional serious symptoms develop. To diagnose your issue, your doctor may conduct an ultrasound or sometimes a hepatobiliary iminodiacetic acid (HIDA) scan to measure gallbladder activity.

Liver

Your liver is a large organ located in your abdomen, mainly on the right. It serves many crucial functions, such as helping your blood clot, metabolizing medications, and aiding digestion. Your liver secretes bile to help you digest fats.

If you have a problem with your liver, a diet high in sugar or fat may trigger upper right quadrant pain. Although your liver itself has no pain receptors, numerous liver conditions can cause upper right quadrant pain. These include:

  • Hepatitis
  • Cirrhosis
  • Bile duct blockage and infection
  • Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD)

  • Liver cancer, in less common cases
When you contact your doctor about suspected liver issues, you may receive blood tests to see how your liver is functioning and if it is in distress.

Pancreas

Your pancreas is located in your upper abdomen behind your stomach. It is mostly in the center of your abdomen, but it can cause upper right quadrant pain when it is inflamed. In addition to releasing hormones such as insulin and glucagon into your bloodstream, your pancreas plays a key role in helping your body digest sugars, fats, and proteins.

Upper right quadrant pain can come from your pancreas as a result of a high-fat or high-sugar diet. Often, this pain could result from pancreatitis, or inflammation of your pancreas. Most common triggers include alcohol, gallstones, and some medications.

 Research also has shown a link between fat and sugar intake and pancreatic cancer.

Pancreatitis symptoms vary, but chronic pain may indicate complications. When diagnosing you, your doctor may order blood tests or stool samples to pinpoint the issue.

When to Call the Doctor

If you are concerned about your symptoms, or your upper right quadrant pain gets worse or does not go away, contact your doctor. You also should call a healthcare professional if your symptoms include:

  • Abdominal swelling
  • Bloody stool or vomit
  • Confusion
  • Dizziness
  • Fever
  • Jaundice, or yellowing of the skin and eyes
  • Pain when exercising
  • Trouble breathing

Adjusting Your Diet

Cutting down on saturated fats and sugary foods can be a good move regardless of if you have upper right quadrant pain or do not. It’s important, as well, to ensure that your diet contains enough nutrients to keep you healthy.

Consider a balanced diet that includes:

  • Fruits
  • Vegetables
  • Whole grains
  • Low-fat and fat-free dairy products
  • Lean beef
  • Poultry

Always talk to your doctor about which dietary changes might be best for your situation.

The Takeaway

  • A diet with too much fat or sugar could cause pain around your gallbladder, liver, and pancreas.
  • Pain in your upper right quadrant may be related to serious issues such as gallstones, liver disease, and pancreatitis.
  • Ask your doctor about the best ways to reduce fat and sugar intake for your health situation.

Resources We Trust

EDITORIAL SOURCES
Everyday Health follows strict sourcing guidelines to ensure the accuracy of its content, outlined in our editorial policy. We use only trustworthy sources, including peer-reviewed studies, board-certified medical experts, patients with lived experience, and information from top institutions.
Resources
  1. Biliary Tract. Cleveland Clinic. September 19, 2023.
  2. Gallstones. Mayo Clinic. April 16, 2025.
  3. Biliary Stricture. Cleveland Clinic. October 16, 2023.
  4. Uche-Anya E et al. Ultraprocessed food consumption and risk of gallstone disease: analysis of 3 prospective cohorts. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. September 2024.
  5. HIDA Scan. Cleveland Clinic. May 10, 2022.
  6. Upper Abdominal Pain. Cleveland Clinic. February 15, 2023.
  7. Huneault HE. The Impact and Burden of Dietary Sugars on the Liver. Hepatol Commun. November 6, 2023.
  8. Lian C-Y et al. High fat diet-triggered non-alcoholic fatty liver disease: A review of proposed mechanisms. Chemico-Biological Interactions. October 2020.
  9. Common Liver Tests. Johns Hopkins Medicine.
  10. Pancreatitis. Mayo Clinic. September 23, 2023.
  11. Dooley J et al. Heterogeneous Effects of Calorie Content and Nutritional Components Underlie Dietary Influence on Pancreatic Cancer Susceptibility. Cell Reports. July 14, 2020.
  12. DASH Eating Plan. National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. January 10, 2025.
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Yuying Luo, MD

Medical Reviewer

Yuying Luo, MD, is an assistant professor of medicine at Mount Sinai West and Morningside in New York City. She aims to deliver evidence-based, patient-centered, and holistic care for her patients.

Her clinical and research focus includes patients with disorders of gut-brain interaction such as irritable bowel syndrome and functional dyspepsia; patients with lower gastrointestinal motility (constipation) disorders and defecatory and anorectal disorders (such as dyssynergic defecation); and women’s gastrointestinal health.

She graduated from Harvard with a bachelor's degree in molecular and cellular biology and received her MD from the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. She completed her residency in internal medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, where she was also chief resident. She completed her gastroenterology fellowship at Mount Sinai Hospital and was also chief fellow.

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