ULCERS!!!! OMEPRAZOLE : GOOD OR BAD NEWS??? PART 1

Ulcers are sores on the lining of your stomach or small intestines.

Sores (wounds) also could be on your esophagus (throat)

Most ulcers are located in the small intestines.

These ulcers are called duodenal ulcers.

Stomach ulcers are called Gastric ulcers.

Ulcers in the throat are called esophageal ulcers.

SYMPTOMS OF AN ULCER.

Common ulcer symptoms include :

-Discomfort between meals or during the night (duodenal ulcer)

– Discomfort when you eat or drink (gastric ulcer)

-Stomach pains that wakes you up at night.

– Feel full fast.

– Bloating, burning or dull pains in your stomach.

– Comes and goes days or weeks at a time.

– Discomfort lasts for minutes or hours.

If your ulcer becomes perforated (torn), it becomes a bleeding ulcer.

This can cause the following symptoms :

-Nausea,

– Vomiting blood,

– unexpected weight loss,

– Blood in your stool or dark stool.

– Pains in your back.

WHAT CAUSES AN ULCER :

-Most ulcers are caused by helicobacter( H.  pylori), this is a bacterial infection.

– Acids from the food we eat can make the pains and discomfort worse.

– Long term use of Aspirin or anti-inflammatory medicines (painkiller like ibuprofen) are also common causes of ulcers.

– Stress and spicy food can make an ulcer worse.

Before I continue, I want to point out an important often neglected point.

Ulcer belongs to a bigger family that is called :

Gastroesophegeal Reflux Disease (GERD)

GERD  is a condition in which acid -containing contents in your stomach persistently leak back in your esophagus (throat).

Acid Reflux happens because a valve at the end of your esophagus (the lower esophageal sphincter) does not close properly, when food arrives at your stomach.

Acid backwash the flows back up through your esophagus into your throat and mouth giving you a sour test and even mouth odour.

WHAT CAUSES ACID REFLUX?

Acid reflux is caused by weakness or relaxation of the lower esophageal sphincter (valve).

Normally this valve closes tightly after food enters your stomach.

If it relaxes when it shouldn’t, your stomach contents rise back up into the esophagus.

Factors that can lead to this include :

– Too much pressure on the abdomen (pregnancy)

– Particular types of food.

– Medications (medicines for asthma, high blood pressure, allergies, painkillers, sedectives and anti-depressant).

Now,  let me walk you through what is going on.

Before that, let me briefly introduce their cousin called :

Irritable Bowel Syndrome :

This is a common disorder that affects the stomach and intestines, also called the gastrointestinal track.

Symptoms include cramping, abdominal pains, bloating, gas, and diarrhea or constipation.

So back to what’s is going on:

There are two issues that are involved :

– The presence of H.pylori.

-The weakness of the valve that causes acid reflux.

The final question is this:

What really is the cause of the weakness of the valves and proliferation of H.pylori.

The answer to these two causes of ulcer is really the underlying root cause of GERD ( of which ulcer is just one of the children) and their Cousin -Irritable Bowel Syndrome(IBS)

When you ignore this underlying root cause, and just treat the ulcer pains with Omeprazole, you are just like a man plucking off the leaves and branches of a tree, hoping it dies.

If you want to kill a tree, uproot the roots and the tree will die.

If you really want to get rid of GERD (Ulcer inclusive)  and IBS,then get to the root cause.

This is what we do in Functional Medicine, we identify the underlying root cause, eliminate it, and provide the body with necessary tools, of course the body will repair and heal itself.