How I cured my gastritis

You sound far worse of than me, I jsut have persistant belching and occaisonal burning in my throat. my average day consists of

Yoghurt and cereal for breakfast, sandwich, usually ham salad for lunch, and grilled meat either beef or chicken with veg and potatoe or salad... im very simple. Fruit wise I eat bananas and blueberries.

When I do eat fast food, i have no extra symptoms than when I eat IBS friendly food, doctors really havent a clue what to do with me. 

Im not on any meds now because they did nothing for me.... well metaclopramide actually got rid of the stomach issues but the side effects were to negative... i was lethargic, anxious and my i felt like a zombie with no focus.

My bloods are all normal, my response to gluten is below the average person on the scale of I think its on 0 - 7 i measure 0.7 so gluten isnt an issue. Im not laxctose intolerant either. But I have a lfie time history of bowel issues froma traumtic birth. I read domperidone is better than metaclopramide for side effects however it is not safe with risk of cardiac issues.

However I wanted a gastroparesis examination as the metaclopramide helped and was prescirbed for a possibilty of this disorder but as there would be no reason for nerve damage, based on my age and lack of other symptoms such as anemia or wieght loss they reckon it isnt that. 

So to summarise,

I eat healthy, I fairly active, there are no physical signs of problem, no H pylori, no hiatial hernia, my esopgeal sphincter is normal. 

No gastritis, no other symptoms that effect my overall health jsut 2 simple ones of occaisonal reflux and persistsnt gas (belching not the other end ;P). They want me to see a dietician next but as I eat the fodmap diet I really dont see what it will ahcieve. Onr other group suggests low stomach acid can cause the same symptoms as excess stomach acid... and buy presumption we are given inhibiots which worse the situation rather than give HCL which for some has proven to work. When i mentioned this however it was dismissed immediately, with no testing of course!

So other than manage best I can Im baffled as to whats wrong with me, but that is the case from birth. I am in the duchess of york record book as unsolved.... as the same thing then as now, all physcial tests proved negative but things jsut werent functioning right... 6 years later like a light switch I was fine..... a fiurther 23 years later and I have issues again.

Hi Irene,

Dairy and cheese increase the production of acid by the stomach. This is due of the effect of the protein in dairy as well as the calcium content. You can find more information online. I started gettting significantly better when I stopped eating them.

I think I had better results when I took dexilant on an empty stomach but my doctor said it does not matter because it is slow release.

Hi Lee,

It is hard to tell about your diet like that because sometimes problems are in the details: too much fat in seasoning, too much sugar in cereals, some other foods you don't mention. I suggests you read the book "Fast track" by Norm Robillard and the other book by Dr Koufman (dropping acid). Dr Koufman has a more recent book too I have not read about silent reflux.

Hi Lee,

Regarding your diet, there are some things I was told not eat, like bread, cereal or ham. Also canned foods should be avoided. When I began the FODMAP diet (nutritionist gave me a list), I was told to pay attention to the labels, because some foods contain other things that have to be avoided. For instance corn syrup, agave, honey, all sugars ending in 'ol', inulin, corn starch and others...after reading many labels I found only one type of cereal which is made out of rice sweetened with rice syrup, only one that in theory, I can eat. For instance, when I began that diet, I bought me a delicious organic cereal, gluten free, in theory harmless. I was having estomach pain and lots of gas after eating it. The reason is that it contained inulin, which should be avoided. Nowadays I keep reading labels, there are plenty of gluten free crackers and cookies/bread/pancakes/muffins that contain ingredients that are high FODMAPs. Also, I had to avoid eating veggetables like broccoli, eggplant, asparagus and others. These are high FODMAP foods as well. Based on your message above, I don't think that you are avoiding completely high FODMAP foods. My humble opinion, make an appointment with a nutritionist.

I'm 33, and my physician thought that I may have gastroparesis. My gastroenterologist performed a test (actually loved it! I had to eat a radioactive egg and they were watching in a screen the egg being diggested in my estomach ). The result of the test is negative, my estomach works perfectly, no gastroparesis.

Lee, you've covered basics...good...don't need to ask a lotta questions ....

Youve have digestive issues since birth.....we inherit our digestive flora from our mother..if born "non C section"..otherwise we must begin to develop our own with whatever goes into our stomach..and it then evolves.

I suspect you've had a flora war in your digestive tract...good bacteria fighting bad...the biggest army usually wins.

Probiotics have helped...and so prebiotics..but in the recent past, good microbia was transplanted into one of the nooks and cranny's

of the intestine...and within a short time the implanted morphed into the native. they did not elucidate numbers, time, nor overall intestinal condition..

We respond differently to inflammation...a small one might be far more irritating to me than you or vice versa.

The inflammation at your duodenum while small may be part of the cause of your symptoms...inflammation causes swelling...chyme must pass thru it to get to the small intestine....stuff left behind begins to ferment.....

Some GI's will call this Gastroparesis...slow emptying and prescribe

muscle relaxing type meds? not good..while it might relax the pylorus it may also relax your 2 LES muscles...

M1 immune response is "inflammation"...M2 is the anti inflmmation...its being hampered/blocked...? infection?...bacterial/viral? lingering medications (withdrawal)?

I would think to give my duodenum a break from anything that might

slow the passing of chyme..shouldn't take long...your young and

apparently little or no other issues. My 95 year old Chinese Medicine Dr suggested No Roughage period...meaning...nothing raw...no fiberous meats...no fresh fruit juices except papaya...coat the stomach with marshmallo, (slippery elm might work too) and a root...in Japan its called Naigamo (terrible texture) pre meals...His protocol was for a few weeks...again your youth...probaly 4 days..then bombard your intestines with pre and probiotics....not all at once...several times a day...

Perhaps another 4 days while gradually back to your normal diet but add stuff slow....I'd avoid fresh juice too quickly...but a handfull of your blueberries surely are OK...and start with 1/2 banana...extra ripe. Chicken before beef/pork

You might need to do something similar a few times a year merely to tell the bad bacteria you mean business...

I have a protocol I used recently for a 36 year old (friend) regarding pre and pro biotics...if you want, request via private mail.

There is an excellent 8 herbal coctail that has been studied and reported in our Medical Journals...I cannot mentiion it or my post will get censored or go into limbo?...you can private memo me and I'll have it and links to some of the studies...In Japan it was initially used for anorexia but the more recent studies illustrated a very good improvement in gastroparesis. There is another similar with 6 herbs...None of the studies I've read have these 6. I prefer only Japanese because of their strict compliance with "ingredient quality...precise amount of each...and approved and tested prep or compounding...government regulated and sample testing for compliance.

claudio

Hi Lady,

hmm one egg eh?

Inulin...while I rarely suggest this due to its possible flatulance....I do have it in pure organic form...and have used it in very small amounts."as a prebiotic in combo with other stuff"......One of its medical uses is in "pre biotics"...here is an abstract...

Abstract

Symbiosis between host and gut bacteria can be optimized by prebiotics. Inulin-type fructans have been shown to improve the microbial balance of the intestinal ecosystem by stimulating the growth of bifidobacteria and lactobacilli. These changes have been associated with several health benefits, including the prevention of gastrointestinal and systemic infections in animal models and human studies. Inulin-type fructans induce changes of the intestinal mucosa characterized by higher villi, deeper crypts, increased number of goblet cells, and a thicker mucus layer on the colonic epithelium. Bacterial antagonism and competition of bifidobacteria and lactobacilli with pathogens, as well as the trophic effects on the intestinal epithelium, may explain the protective role of inulin against enteric infections. In contrast, studies with rats fed a low-calcium diet suggested a negative effect of prebiotics on intestinal barrier function. However, the adverse effect was clearly ascribed to the strong reduction of dietary calcium, as it could be reversed by oral administration of calcium. The adverse effect of a low-calcium diet on intestinal permeability has not been observed in humans. Inulin and oligofructose are now being tested in human studies aimed at prevention of bacterial translocation in critical health conditions. Mixtures of probiotics and prebiotics including inulin or oligofructose significantly reduced the rate of postoperative infections in liver transplant patients. Finally, inulin and oligofructose have proven useful to prevent mucosal inflammatory disorders in animal models and in patients with inflammatory bowel disease

Excellent info therre thank you!!!

Interesting rread therr, i shall look deeper into it. I have a nutritionist appointment in 8 weeks!

Ill certainly try to look at labels harder!

I was a C section 2 month prem intensive care for quite a while... so my flora and development was probably not the best! my mum suffers from IBS since age of 27 after carrying my brother who weighed a ton.

I take dairy eaze prior to eating my yogurt.  Yogurt actually soothes my stomach .

Lee , for your mum...there is process for most IBS...Maurice in the IBS thread has used a protocol that worked 100% ...others have followed(116 followers)...and found the same success rate....He preloaded with an antibiotic pre "rebooting" his digestive system while others did not....this "concept" has been used by a brilliant Brit living down under for a PALS (patient with ALS) with success. The only difference was the addition of Inosine and Minocycline. instead of the antibiotic Maurice used. claudio

Dairy in particular milk is soothing immediately after you drink it but later on, it makes your stomach produce more acid and aggravates gastritis.

hi ines6375,

i was reading somewhere that acid reflux or gastritis (don't remember which) can be caused by either having too much acid or too little acid in the stomach.  What do you think of this?  So I was trying to determine which one was the case.  Sometimes when I drink a little lemon with water, I seem to feel better.  But I drank some milk with coffee this morning and I noticed that my stomach did not feel that well.  If you are saying that milk produces more acid, would that mean that my stomach has too much acid instead of too little acid?  I think I read that most people have too little acid in their stomach.  thx

How old are you?

Low stomach acid is more common as we age.

I believe it is acid reflux that can be caused by low stomach acid. If you don't have stomach pain, you can try the supplements for low stomach acid. Some people say it helped them a lot.

If you have stomach pain (and gastritis), it helps to reduce your stomach acid to heal your stomach lining.

There can be many different problems with milk. There is the increase of stomach acid production, allergies to casein (milk protein), lactose intolerance, ...

Also, I am not lactose intolerant either, or gluten intolerant. But the idea of the Low FODMAP diet is to avoid foods that cause gases (due to bacterial overgrowth, IBS or other reasons). One of the charts I was given was this one:

https://lowfodmapsdiet.com/low-fodmaps-foods/comparison-chart-of-good-and-bad-fodmaps-foods/

However, I recommend you to do it with the help of a professional nutritionist, do not do it by yourself. You could end up with nutricional deficiencies. Also, without doubting good intentions, before treating yourself for gastroparesis or something else, Iyou should check first whether you have it or not. In my town, someone who claims to be a GI, told me I have gastroparesis (without testing me) and gave me medication and a horrible diet (consisted of bouillon, gathorade and crakers for 3 days, after 3 days, vanilla puddin and other nonsense). I did the diet but I took the medicine only for 2 days, somehow I was thinking he was not right. I read about gastroparesis and there was something that caught my attention: people with gastroparesis feels full/satisfied very quickly and loose appetite. In my case it was the opposite, I was feeling real hungry the whole day, I was eating practically every 2 hours! At the cleveland clinic they found that my estomach empties normally, just imagine if I have taken the medicine for gastroparesis, I could have really messed up with my estomach! Also because of the diet I ended up with lots of nutrition deficiencies, I had to buy expensive nutritional supplements to recover from that. My humble advice, go to nutritionist and try the diet first, it is a hard one, but try to be estrict for one month at least and see how you feel.  In my case, because I didn't read labels, and active social life, I haven't been able to be estrict.

Lee I also had lots of estomach/intestines problems when I was a kid, and continued having problems when 24 years old, but I think that it is possible to recover with good professional help. The problem is that the number of real good physicians out there is small, one just have to keep looking for a good one and always follow your inner gut. Good luck!

Don Claudio, I do blame the inulin, but the pain and belching could have been also caused by the corn or something else in that Cereal. I was given a list of things I shouldn't eat including inulin and corn. Precisely Oligofructuose has to be avoided when having bacterial overgrowth or IBS.

I do believe the nutritionist is quite good. Also I have been reading a lot about bacterial overgrowth and IBS. There is plenty of literature and other forums about it.

Cereals as the worst....My last bout was with a Kashi and then find out it contains GMO wheats etc....bad stuff....the fatigue was unbelievable after that bowl of Kashi....threw it out.

I walk very fast past the cereal isle..and there are TONS of cereals ...

My naturopath dr told me that yogurt, cottage cheese and hard cheese, are good dairy to have because the proteins are broken down, I can't drink milk, it makes me nauseous. When I build up with acid around 3pm, I take 1/2 cup of yogurt and I put one Pepzin GI and mix it, it soothes my stomach.

 

Hi ines,

I am 36.  Thanks for the distinction you make between acid reflux and gastritis.  The article that I read was indeed on acid reflux that can be caused by little or too much stomach acid.  So, strictly speaking about gastritis, is this caused only by too much stomach acid?  I feel my stomach is stronger after the DGL, zinc carnosine, and acid ease.  Do you think that once the stomach lining gets strong enough that one can go back to one's original diet?  I did not have gastritis until a couple of months ago.

36 is young to have low stomach acid.

Gastritis can be caused by many things: medications that are irritating to the stomach (pain-killers), too much alcohol, too much stress (causes the stomach to produce more acid), auto-immune problems, lots of irritating foods in the diet...

But once you have it, excess stomach acid (any stomach acid really) keeps the gastritis going by continuously irritating the stomach lining. That is why doctors recommend taking PPIs to get cured, and that is why I recommend to follow a diet that minimize the consumptiion of foods that stimulate the production of stomach acid (like dairy).

I can't say for sure what you can do and not do once you are cured. Some people have more sensitive stomach and must stay careful forever or they will have stomach problems again in the future. There is a balance they must find. Once they are better, their stomach will tolerate a little bit of irritating food, but it is important that they stay aware of how they feel to not overdo it and fall sick again. I think it is my case. I feel good now but I know I must be reasonable. I am eating some dairy, I am not very careful with fat anymore, I eat some fruits that are a bit more acidic like apples and grapes but I still avoid tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, garlic, spices, lemon and all citrus, chocolate, tea, coffee, sparkling water.

So does that mean my 100% acid free decaf coffee I out? Coffee has helped my serotonin levels as feeling good, cause I'm always depressed over my condition been suffering with this illness since April, all started with a sinus infection and lots of antibiotics and ibuprofen., never had a problem with my digestive stomach, I also had chemo 3 yrs ago, it may hve damaged some of my stomach lining then too. I also have gastroparesis, so I'm taking Domperidome prior to each meal, but that doesn't help gastritis, I follow a very strict diet, chicken, white fish, and cook all my vegetables.

i just ordered the DGL tablets you mentioned, and slippery elm, I take a digestive enzymes recommend by my naturopath, it has DGL and slippery elm in it, I take with my meals, I eat cooked cabbage, but have thyroid problems so I can't drink the juice. Drink bottled water, and coconut water, that it, chamille tea, irritates my stomach, I drink warm homemade ginger and lemon tea, every morning before breakfast, gets the bowels moving.

how am I doing, I'm trying to plan a trip in December on plane, I don't know what I could take on the plane to fill my stomach, when it gets empty starts filling with gas. I take b12, d3 , blood levels are good.

do you live in the US?

 

Exercise is very helpful against depression and anxienty. There were a few interesting articles in the New York Times about it. If you are interested, type in google "depression exercise nyt". You might not be able to do intense exercise but even walking if you can is helpful.

I don't have experience with your acid free coffee. Even though I appreciate the kick it gives, my stomach never tolerated coffee well so I stayed away from it. But you should feel it quickly if it is irritating, try it once your stomach feels good, first a small quantity. If you feel ok with it try a cup.

I found that ginger, lemon and vitamins, especially vitamines B, irritates the stomach too. It helped that I stayed away from them for a few months. But if you need them, I guess you have to do with them. Just stay aware that you keep improving and not the opposite because of them.

When I travel I prepare my meal in advance: rice, tofu/tempeh and vegetables in a cooler bag. I take a little bit of nuts, rice cakes, low-fat crackers made of spelt like the ones they sell at pain quotidien, bananas, cut melon and a lot of water (I fill my bottle after I pass security). Recently I have found a protein bar made of whey protein, almond paste and honey only but I don't know if I would have tolerated it when I was very sick, probably not because of its high content in fat.

Yes I live in the US

I think I saw some people talking about acid free coffee on the healing well forum. You could ask there maybe? I don't really agree with what most people are saying on that forum though. They seem to be very much against PPIs as I used to be but I must be honest that this is what cured me most efficiently in the end (with the diet).

Ines, thanks for your quick reply, I walk everyday at least a mile 2 to 3 times a day, I read it was good for the digestion. Prior to my gastritis diagnosis, I always drank my ginger and lemon tea, when it was going to chemotherapy and radiation 3 yrs go, it helped my stomach from all those harmful chemicals. When I'm drinking my homemade brew, I don't have any pain, it feels good, I take before I eat my breakfast. All my vitamins I take are thru a dropper I swich it around my mouth then swallow. I need to take my B12, and my D3 cause I hve Osteroporious.

im going to try my acid free decaf coffe, but I can't take milk, it makes me nauseaous, so I don't know what to use as a creamer, all those artificial creamer are all fake fats,  my sister said she saw on dr Oz show how people use coconut cream, any suggestions.

when you travel, do they let you take a cooler on the plane, I can eat ground chicken patty sandwich with my glutenfree free bread. I could eat that for lunch, and I can eat my Greek yogurt between or a banana, I do like rice cakes with avocado. Have you ever heard of aloe vera water, not the gel, my neighbor drinks it everyday and she had a mild case of gastritis. Have you tried. I ordered some slippery elm non alcohol liquid, cause I have a problem swallowing those big capsules. I've been taking Pepzin GI drs best for a month now, and the capsules are real small, no problem with them, I take 2 between meals, I feel the difference. I see an accupuncturist twice a week, she's also a chiropractor, I feel so good when I go there, she said the needles real ease endorphins, which is like a feel good drug. Been going for 2 months now. 

What's the name of those crackers, cause I'm gluten free, I could have them with mild cheese to nibble on. My flight will be 3 hrs long to Florida. I'm hoping and praying I will be well enough for December. No protein bars for me.

welll, I think I've said enough.LOL

Yes you are right some of those other sites are down on PPI's, my GI specialist told me, my body will tell me if and when I don't need my dexilant anymore, you can cause more damage from the acids. I have a friend my age 66, she's been on Nexium for 30 yrs, if she doesn't take she has a bad history of ulcers, and she healthy works as a waitress and watches what she eats, even with the PPI, she's nothing like us, but she was in her early years.

my sister who's 72, been on PPI for 8 yrs, and she drinks 5 cups of regular coffee a day. Medication and diet is the most important.

 

Dr Oz, said today that Greek yogurt is very digestible due to the probiotics in the yogurt to prevent bloating, gas, etc. but, milk is a different story, hard to digest, hard aged cheeses are better than the soft cheeses are easy to digest also.

Brie contains the most biotics - then edam and gouda - - followed closely by cheddar. Avoid those with fruit in. All live yoghurt without sugar is easily digestible and good for you, inclouding turkish and the best is goats, kefir is better than yoghurt, and home made is easy and better still. You can also make your own fermented vegetables and water kefir and other kefirs at home, just google them. They all contain different bacteria that are beneficial. One of the most beneficial things you can do to help yourself is to stop washing all the time, stop cleaning, have some healthy dirt and germs around you.

You should have the yoghurt everyday, it contains more biotics than the capsules, even though they claim to be crammed with them. It is not just about preventing boating and gas. When your gut is balanced right it helps stop you getting aches and pains, sinus problems, ear aches and much more.

The problem with cheese, yoghurt,... Is not that they are easy or hard to digest, it is that the casein, one of the milk proteins, and the calcium stimulates the stomach lining to produce excess acid. When you are healthy, that is fine, when you have gadtritis, it aggravates it.

Joy, I use rice puffs all organic with almond milk digests well, sometimes when I'm to full to eat a big dinner I'll have a bowl of rice puffs and 1/2 banana fills you enough until morning.