Digestive system related diseases such as celiac/gluten intolerance (in varying degrees), Crohn’s Disease, colitis, IBS, heartburn, reflux (GERD), chronic diarrhea, gastro-paresis, diverticular disease, chronic constipation, gallstones and others are really climbing. According to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse (NDDIC) (related to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the National Institutes of Health and the NIDDK), 60-70 million people are affected by all digestive diseases at a cost of $141.8 billion (2004). How much is that today, 10 years later?
The stomach is the root of most all digestive disorders, whether in the stomach or the intestines. When symptoms start, most people control it the best they can, usually with over the counter remedies. These include sodium antacids (the “Seltzers”), calcium antacids (such as Tums), Magnesium antacids (such as Maalox and Mylanta), and Aluminium antacids (such as Rolaids…). These neutralize the acids in your stomach. These seemingly simple fixes can come with a cost. Each of these have their own problems, such as high salt, aluminum or calcium that can be hard on the body, especially the kidneys or brain, but also the bowels. They also just mask the problem. Eventually the symptoms can no longer be controlled by these, so they try something stronger.
This is generally acid-blockers. There are two types: Histamine Antagonists/Blockers and Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPI’s). Pepcid AC, Tagamet HB and Zantac 75 fall in the first category; Prevacid 24HR, Prilosec OTC, and Zegerid OTC fall into the second. These inhibit your body from releasing acid enzymes. When those no longer work, stronger prescriptives are sought after.
Then, when those fail, what’s next? I have an idea…let’s fix the problem! Sure, masking the problem with meds helps symptomatically, but what happened to resolving the issue? Before we discuss this in greater detail, let’s discuss the need for acid.
With all the demonizing we do about stomach acid, we’ve forgotten that the body actually NEEDS stomach acid! Your stomach enzymes (especially hydrochloric acid – HCL) are supposed to be acidic! When the stomach reaches the proper ACID pH of 1.0-2.0), not only does it digest the food in the stomach, but signals are sent to release or convert other enzymes throughout the digestive system. HCL has a very important job of killing any pathogen (bacteria, virus, parasite, mold, fungus, yeast) that doesn’t belong in the body. If HCL is insufficient, we get food poisoning if we consume contaminated foods, and we can’t break down protein or minerals.
HCL, even though it’s almost as acidic as battery acid, does not damage the stomach because the mucus layers in the stomach are protective, plus buffering agents are trapped inside the layer of mucus. Also, the stomach lining continuously regenerates itself. What burns, are the organic acids released as part of the fermentation process the body goes through when there isn’t enough HCL to enzymatically digest the foods. Basically, the food rots in your stomach and burns it!
There are many things that contribute to insufficiency of HCL. First is stress. As part of the stress mechanism, digestion is shut down. To counter that, don’t eat when stressed or on the run. Relax when eating. Don’t drink cold water with meals, as that can decrease enzyme release. Eat plenty of fresh food, full of live enzymes and avoid packaged, dead foods whenever possible.
Consider acupuncture. Acupuncture helps restore digestive balance. It reduces inflammation, stimulates proper HCL release, supports healthy immune functioning, lessens the pain associated with digestive issues, and along with guidance with food and supplements can help stimulate healing of damaged tissues.
© 2009 Holly A. Carling, O.M.D., L.Ac., Ph.D.
