Inflammation and Low Stomach Acid

In order to discuss this, we are going to need to go places where traditional medicine never treads. It is, however, a place where many natural health practitioners live. It is likely that you are not producing enough HCl in your stomach (called “hypochlorhydria”). There is not a lot of research supporting the idea, but there is some. [click to read more about stomach HCl].

The Problem with GERD May Be the Opposite of What You Think

Medicine usually focuses on reducing stomach acid, but ironically, people who suffer from GERD, aka acid reflux [according to many of us in natural healthcare], do not produce enough stomach acid. It seems counterintuitive because the medical treatment focuses on shutting down acid production. In natural healthcare, we realize that the problem is not too much acid. The problem is that the acid is in the wrong place.

The food in your stomach must pass through the pylorus to get into the intestine. In order to do this, you need to have enough stomach acid [this is not a ‘whacky’ holistic health idea—it is in physiology texts]. If the pylorus does not open, pressure builds up and the contents of the stomach [including some acid] are forced into the esophagus, causing GERD.

The stomach lining in people in this situation is usually irritated. Bacteria may even be present. Chronic irritation and inflammation of the stomach lining can make the problem worse and may explain why supplements, medications, and even certain foods cause discomfort. When they take vitamin supplements, the pills do not break down and move on. They sit there and cause more irritation to the stomach lining. Many practitioners who work with hypochlorhydria consider stomach irritation from vitamin supplements to be a strong clue that low stomach acid may be present.

Stomach Acid Is Testable

Stomach acid is measurable with a device called the Heidelberg Gastric Analyzer. There are other clues and symptoms in hypocholrhydria [click to read more] and many doctors simply pay attention to symptoms. The treatment is HCl supplements taken with meals, but do not do this on your own. If the inflammation is bad enough [especially in people who have been taking some of the newer anti acid medications], the HCl supplements can cause burning and distress. Practitioners commonly take steps to reduce the inflammation before giving HCl.