Note: this is the fifth article in a series about heartburn and GERD. If you haven’t done so already, you’ll want to read Part I, Part II, Part III, and Part IVa before reading this article.
In the last article, we discussed the first two of four primary consequences of taking acid stopping drugs:
- Bacterial overgrowth
- Impaired nutrient absorption
In this article we’ll cover the remaining two consequences:
- Decreased resistance to infection
- Increased risk of cancer and other diseases
Free eBook
Learn More about Heartburn and GERD
You don't have to suffer from heartburn and GERD. Download this free eBook to find how to get rid of it forever.
"*" indicates required fields
I hate spam, too. Your email is safe with me. By signing up, you agree to our privacy policy.
Our First Line of Defense
The mouth, esophagus and intestines are home to between 400-1,000 species of bacteria. However, a healthy stomach is normally almost completely sterile. Why? Because stomach acid kills bacteria.
First, stomach acid prevents harmful bacteria that may be present in the food or liquid we consume or the air we breathe from entering the intestine. At the same time, stomach acid also prevents normal bacteria from the intestines to move into the stomach and esophagus, where they could cause problems.
The low pH (high acid) environment of the stomach is one of the major non-specific defense mechanisms of the body. When the pH of the stomach is 3 or lower, the normal between-meal “resting” level, bacteria don’t last more than fifteen minutes. But as the pH rises to 5 or more, many bacterial species can avoid the acid treatment and begin to thrive.
Unfortunately, this is exactly what happens when you take acid stopping drugs. Both Tagamet and Zantac significantly raise the pH of the stomach from about 1 to 2 before treatment to 5.5 to 6.5 after, respectively.
Prilosec and other PPIs are even worse. Just one of these pills is capable of reducing stomach acid secretion by 90 to 95 percent for the better part of a day. Taking higher or more frequent doses of PPIs, as is often recommended, produces a state of achlorydia (virtually no stomach acid). In a study of ten healthy men aged 22 to 55 years, a 20 or 40 mg dose of Prilosec reduced stomach acid levels to near-zero.
Most of the time these bacteria won’t kill us – at least not right away. But some of them can. People who have a gastric pH high enough to promote bacterial overgrowth are more vulnerable to serious bacterial infections.
A recent systematic review of gastric acid-suppressive drugs suggested that they do in fact increase susceptibility to infections (PDF). The author found evidence that using acid stopping drugs can increase your chances of contracting the following nasty bugs:
- Salmonella
- Campylobacter
- Cholera
- Listeria
- Giardia
- C. Difficile
Other studies have found that acid stopping drugs also increase the risk for:
Not only do acid stopping drugs increase our susceptibility to infection, they weaken our immune system’s ability to fight off infections once we have them. In vitro studies have shown that PPIs impair nuetrophil function, decrease adhesion to endothelial cells, reduce bactericidal killing of microbes, and inhibit neutrophil phagocytosis and phagolysosome acidification.
A Gateway to Other Serious Diseases
As we discussed in the first article in this series, a decline in acid secretion with age has been well documented. As recently as 1996, a British physician noted that age-related stomach acid decline is due to a loss of the cells that produce the acid. This condition is called atrophic gastritis.
In particular relevance to our discussion here, atrophic gastritis (a condition where stomach acid is very low) is associated with a wide range of serious disorders that go far beyond the stomach and esophagus. These include:
- Stomach cancer
- Allergies
- Bronchial asthma
- Depression, anxiety, mood disorders
- Pernicious anemia
- Skin diseases, including forms of acne, dermatitis, eczema, and urticaria
- Gall bladder disease (gallstones)
- Autoimmune diseases, such as Rheumatoid arthritis and Graves disease
- Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), Crohn’s disease (CD), Ulcerative colitis (UC)
- Chronic hepatitis
- Osteoporosis
- Type 1 diabetes
And let’s not forget that low stomach acid can cause heartburn and GERD!
In the interest of keeping this article from becoming a book, I’m going to focus on just a few of the disorders on the list above.
Stomach Cancer
Atrophic gastritis is a major risk factor for stomach cancer. H. pylori is the leading cause of atrophic gastritis. Acid suppressing drugs worsen H. pylori infections and increase rates of infection.
Therefore, it’s not a huge leap to suspect that acid suppressing drugs increase the risk of stomach cancer in those infected with H. pylori (which, as we saw in Part III, is one in two people).
In a recent editorial, Julie Parsonnet, M.D. of Standford University Medical School writes:
In principle, current [acid suppressing drug] therapies might be advancing the cancer clock by converting relatively benign gastric inflammation into a more destructive, premalignant process.
One way PPIs increase the risk of cancer is by inducing hypergastrinemia, a condition of above-normal secretion of the hormone gastrin. This is a potentially serious condition that has been linked to adenocarcinoma – a form of stomach cancer.
Taking a standard 20 mg daily dose of Prilosec typically results in up to a three-to-fourfold increase in gastrin levels. In people whose heartburn fails to respond to the standard dose, long-term treatment with doses as high as 40 or 60 mg has produced gastrin levels as much as tenfold above normal.
In a healthy stomach, ascorbic acid (vitamin C) removes nitrite from gastric juice by converting it to nitric oxide. However, this process is dependent upon the pH of the stomach being less than 4. As I discussed earlier in this article, most common acid stopping medications have no trouble increasing the pH of the stomach to 6 or even higher.
Therefore, it’s entirely plausible that acid stopping medications increase the risk of stomach cancer by at least two distinct mechanisms.
Like what you’re reading? Get my free newsletter, recipes, eBooks, product recommendations, and more!
Gastric and Duodenal Ulcers
An estimated 90% of duodenal (intestinal) and 65% of gastric ulcers are caused by H. pylori. It is also recognized that the initial H. pylori infection probably only takes place when the acidity of the stomach is decreased. In a human inoculation experiment, infection could not be established unless the pH of the stomach was raised (thus lowering the acidity) by use of histamine antagonists.
By lowering stomach acid and increasing stomach pH, acid suppressing drugs increase the risk of H. pylori infection and subsequent development of duodenal or gastric ulcers.
Irritable Bowel Syndrome, Crohn’s Disease and Ulcerative Colitis
Adenosine is a key mediator of inflammation in the digestive tract, and high extracellular levels of adenosine suppress and resolve chronic inflammation in both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. Chronic use of PPIs has been shown to decrease extracellular concentration of adenosine, resulting in an increase in inflammation in the digestive tract. Therefore, it is possible that long-term use of acid stopping medications may predispose people to developing serious inflammatory bowel disorders.
It has become increasingly well established that irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is caused at least in part by small bowel bacterial overgrowth (SIBO). It is also well known that acid suppressing drugs contribute to bacterial overgrowth, as I explained in Part II and Part III. It makes perfect sense, then, that chronic use of acid suppressing drugs could contribute to the development of IBS in those that didn’t previously have it, and worsen the condition in those already affected.
Depression, Anxiety and Mood Disorders
While there is no specific research (that I am aware of) linking acid suppressing drugs to depression or mood disorders, a basic understanding of the relationship between protein digestion and mental health suggests that there may be a connection.
During the ingestion of food stomach acid secretion triggers the release of pepsin. Pepsin is the enzyme responsible for breaking down protein into its component amino acids and peptides (two or more linked amino acids). Essential amino acids are called “essential” because we cannot manufacture them in our bodies. We must get them from food.
Autoimmune Diseases
Low stomach acid and consequent bacterial overgrowth cause the intestine to become permeable, allowing undigested proteins to find their way into the bloodstream. This condition is often referred to as “leaky gut syndrome”. Salzman and colleagues have shown that both transcellular and paracellular intestinal permeability are substantially increased in atrophic gastritis sufferers compared to control patients.
When undigested proteins end up in the bloodstream, they are considered as “foreign” by the immune system. The resulting immune response is similar to what happens when the body mobilizes its defenses (i.e. T cells, B cells and antibodies) to eradicate a viral or bacterial infection.
This type of immune response against proteins we eat contributes to food allergies. A similar mechanism that is not fully understood predisposes people with a leaky gut to develop more serious autoimmune disorders such as lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes, Graves disease, and inflammatory bowel disorders like Crohn’s and ulcerative colitis.
The connection between rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and low stomach acid in particular has been well established in the literature. Examining the stomach contents of 45 RA patients, Swedish researchers found that 16 (36 percent) had virtually no stomach acid. Those people who had suffered from RA the longest had the least acid. A group of Italian researchers also found that people with RA have an extremely high rate of atrophic gastritis associated with low stomach acid when compared with normal individuals.
Asthma
It is estimated that between up to 80 percent of people with asthma also have GERD. Compared with healthy people, those with asthma also have significantly more reflux episodes and more acid-induced irritation of their esophageal lining.
When acid gets into the windpipe, there is a tenfold drop in the ability of the lungs to take in and breathe out air. Physicians who are aware of this association have begun prescribing acid stopping drugs to asthma patients suffering from GERD. While these drugs may provide temporary symptomatic relief, they do not address the underlying cause of the LES dysfunction that permitted acid into the esophagus in the first place.
In fact, there is every reason to believe that acid suppressing drugs make the underlying problem (too little stomach acid and overgrowth of bacteria) worse, thus perpetuating and exacerbating the condition.
Conclusion
As we have seen in the previous articles in the series, heartburn and GERD are caused by too little – and not too much – stomach acid. Unfortunately, insufficient stomach acid is also associated with bacterial overgrowth, impaired nutrient absorption, decreased resistance to infection, and increased risk of stomach cancer, ulcers, IBS and other digestive disorders, depression and mood disorders, autoimmune disease, and asthma.
Is the temporary symptom relief these drugs provide worth the risk? That’s something only you can decide. I hope the information I’ve provided here can help you make an educated decision.
In the next and final article of the series, I will present a plan for getting rid of heartburn and GERD once and for all without drugs.
Better supplementation. Fewer supplements.
Close the nutrient gap to feel and perform your best.
A daily stack of supplements designed to meet your most critical needs.
Hi I was wondering if u could tell me about another medicine that will help me with my heartburn and acid reflux I’ve been taking ranitidine or whatever and I’ve been,taking it for 2 months and starting a month ago I’ve been feeling sick like I have to vomit super nauseated and I’ve been having diarrhea as well
I truly believe your articles. My husband died from stomach cancer in 1997 at 47 which was caused by taking Losec which is the brand name in Canada for Prilosec. He started with the acid reflux, put on Losec & within 9 mos. he was dead. I spent a lot of time in the hospital library reading the trials in which a lot of research trial rats died from stomach cancer. Thank you for putting it out there for all to finally know these acid inhibitors kill.
I found out about a yr ago basically all u say and stopped all antacids I’ve been on nothing since…now my meds don’t absorb well at all in fact some of the time they will come out and not have dissolved in my body at all, I still get wicked heartburn I don’t know what to do to stop it I just suffer through it it’s not as often in fact I would say it only once or twice a month I can’t take any kind of Motrin anti-inflammatories or anything like that at all if I take one instant stomach gut rot like never felt but I’ve yet to find any kind of help not from doctors not from anyone I would love for someone to tell me if there is any help. I have suffered a massive injury in which they would normally give an anti-inflammatory but I, and no joke can’t take any it’s like I ate glass, so they put me on 4 5mg of a drugh called oxycodone, which is basically percoset without the Tylenol, now it worked fine but the manufacturers all are making all these apparently horrible narcotic drugs so called tamper proof, so I now swallow glass if I take even one, they used to be a powdery like pill, I mean if I left them in my bottle to long eventually the last ones would be smaller as they would kind if start to fall apart but now they r either like rubber or hard as a rock and I can’t digest them, drs want me to take an anti acid…they make it worse..I can’t find any help so not only do I have a giant gash in my actual butt muscle and my hip is jammed badly and tendinitis as well as many other horrible problems because of the stupid hip and butt, but I can’t take pain meds unless I want to end up throwing up or like I said feel like I ate glass and that’s really not worth it cuz they no longer work..I mean if it’s coming out of me it’s not even getting into me so taking nething to ease the pain is what? A big fat nothing, and nigh taking anything means I can’t walk or sit or stand or take care of my kids better than I am (for your information I do take care if my kids and I’m a good mom, in many ways a better mom than many even stuck) but I digress, how or is there even a way to fix or reverse the symptoms a. My dr thinks I have chrons disease. Yay…I heard in Europe that taking papaya can actually help and Overthere the doctors are actually perscribing things to help fix stomachs because they have discovered that when you are a teenager you produce more acid than any other age in your life so it is impossible for you to be overproducing acid as an adult so ant acids are not necessary so they’re getting it right why can’t USA get it right…I can’t figure out what they r giving to fix this though…I would love help
I’m not trying to say “Google it” but i am on my phone and it’s hard to type on the tiny keyboard. but please look up abdominal adhesions. I had them from my appendectomy. They were basically killing me and doctors didn’t believe that I could have them or that they would cause me so much pain. I couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t eat. I lost a ton of weight. I was in the worst pain of my life for over 2 years. I wanted to die. Food became the enemy. I had excruciating sharp pain every time I would eat or have food move through my gut. I would get into these nonstop vomiting cycles that would require ER trips. I was at the ER a lot. Doctors were telling me nothing was wrong with me because all the tests they ran came back negative and the ER is for sick people. You could count each and every rib up until my collar bones. I had to chase doctors around and convince THEM I had an adhesion. I finally got one doctor to listen. They cut me open and there was a big, thick adhesion that glued my gut to my hip bone, right where I had been pointing this whole time. After surgery, all the pain was gone. I did have pain from tight muscles from where they cut me but stretching and exercise is making it go away. My life is back, the pain is gone, I don’t want to die anymore, and I really do not trust doctors anymore. Doctors didn’t mention adhesions and then they didn’t believe it was adhesions. This is the short version. I can elaborate more later if you have any questions and I hope this helps. I wish I would have found out sooner.
I also forgot to mention that surgery can cause more adhesions so it can be a gamble. I know it may sound silly but there are types of massage and physical therapy you can get/do to stretch out any possible adhesions or scar tissue to possible avoid more surgery. I did some and it really helped. The massage is Mayan massage or the place I went to, is a physical therapy place called Clear passages.
I would try Castol oil packs to break up adhesions, before undergoing surgery. After my abdominal hysterectomy I used them and successfully got rid of hip thigh pain. I’m going back to using them again as I feel lumps and pain under my ribs. It didn’t ‘to take long before I knew it was working. It’s messy a little bit time consuming, but I prefer the natural way to good health.
Tina –
You are not alone in noticing an alarming trend of non-absorption of other medications after the cessation of PPI usage.
While I don’t have the other issues you mention, I am in the position of stopping the PPI drug Prilosec after around 20 years of use. (Sadly, prescribed to “prevent stomach damage” from the use of some rather stout pain meds which I took for around five years. NOT due to an acid problem, which, of course, I now have in spades!) My last Prilosec was over four months ago and I am seeing a real problem with non-absorption of my thyroid medication. I have Hashimoto’s – an autoimmunity problem wherein my immune system attacks my thyroid gland. This condition requires me to take large doses of thyroid hormone replacement drugs.
After years of no problem with the absorption of these drugs, suddenly my thyroid lab numbers are literally off the charts – as if I am not taking my meds at all. Clearly, the cessation of the PPI is related to the non-absorption of certain meds, as I have changed NOTHING else, with the exception of the use of over-the-counter antacids (see below). The non-absorption issue directly mirrors the cessation of the PPI drugs, and this is clear when looking at my last few blood labs.
Right now, I have no answer for the problem, nor do I know whether this non-absorption issue will mitigate over time. Note that in my case, I discovered that my use of common over-the-counter antacid meds (Tums, Rolaids, etc.) was in direct conflict with my thyroid meds. I had been using these to help alleviate the wicked PPI withdrawal issues. I still use them, but rarely now and keep a “buffer time” of around four hours between the use of the antacids and my thyroid meds. I also use the H2 antagonist (H2 blocker) Zantac. This should avoid the conflict that I see with the standard antacids due to the calcium content. Nevertheless, even with the avoidance of antacids alongside my thyroid meds, I still am seeing a huge non-absorption issue. My lab numbers are still off the charts, and I really do mean “off the charts;” my numbers are not even listed in the scale my endocrinologist uses.
Unfortunately, it seems that doctors here in the USA are quite uninformed regarding the PPI withdrawal issues. Even my endocrinologist – usually very informed – is not even close to being up-to-speed with this. My primary MD is similarly clueless. Much of our doctors’ information is provided by the PPI manufacturers themselves; and these corporations have massive financial incentives to seemingly promote obfuscation in regard to PPI withdrawal – if not outright ignoring the problem.
If I am able to see a trend regarding non-absorption, I will post that information here. Be aware that this PPI withdrawal is a very slow process and it may be months and months before I have anything concrete to report. If I have nothing positive, I may not post at all.
Hi,
H2-antagonists (Zantac) block production of stomach acid. So, really, you are still achieving a high pH in your stomach, just using a different mechanism from proton pump inhibition. Not to mention, you are consuming calcium-rich antacids on top of maintaining a more neutral pH in your stomach. To reiterate, you should not really be having an PPI withdrawls since you are still keeping your stomach acid levels low with the H2-antagonist.
Hope you feel better soon.
Cat
Would drinking alkaline (kangen) water have the same result?
Was the final article written? I’m really curious about ending heartburn. Thanks!
Please be careful to diagnose yourself with heartburn. I thought that is what I had so I ignored it. After a few weeks I got dizzy, was sweating terribly, started passing blood from stools( this is gross: but I mean gushing) also, vomiting blood.
This “almost” started without warning. I could not walk and ended up almost dying within a matter of hours. Had to be put in Critical Care, given transfusions of 9 units of blood (there are only 10 in your body). You know your body and if you think something is not right, get to a Doctor!
What did you have?
I was wondering that too…have you seen it yet?
Geezuz…thanks alot for this depressing article….Now im leary of taking my zantac for my stomach/intestines… You make it clear to us that are taking it, what exactly it does to our body, and with all this you said its all bad….but you offer no solutions to us in distress, if we do stop these antiacids.. Now what? go natural alternatives? geez. this is difficult everyday.
Evidently, the article is here:
https://chriskresser.com/get-rid-of-heartburn-and-gerd-forever-in-three-simple-steps
HI! I always take antacids whenever I experience reflux or acidity and if suffer with lot of stomach aches or different from reflux symptoms I then would take protonpump inhibitor for one week without asking a doctor. I don’t know why I always experience it eventhough I follow my doctor’s dos and donts..I am 17 when I diagnosed with hiatal hernia after an endoscopy and my doctor said it was inborn in my case, and know i’m 18. What would you advice to me sir?.. now I have acnes on my back and some on my face.. And im underweight.
hi! thanks for the infos.. I always take antacid whenever I experience reflux or acidity. and if I suffer from it with lot of stomach aches I then would take protonpump inhibitor for one week without asking a doctor. I don’t know why I always feel it even though I follow my gastrologist do’s and don’t’s, especially because I was diagnosed with hiatal hernia after an endoscopy and It was inborn he said.
If you stop Prilosec after long term use, will some of these issues go away? RA or Leaky Gut, things of that sort?
After 12 years of taking Prevacid, I decided to try and get off it. All previous attempts hard failed as the moment I went cold turkey it became completely unbearable. I moved to a lower over the counter dose about 3 months ago. Initially this was tough, but then all seemed OK again. I thin thought I could and should make the move to stop completely. I can report that after 5 weeks of no prevacid I am struggling. I am taking the natural products people are mentioning all over the web. Nothing is helping. This article that Chris wrote really seems to make sense. I guess it is time to go to the doctor again. I’m sure he will suggest that I get back on the PPI’s. Really would like to try out taking more acid. Maybe I’ll see if that is an option. I’ll report back.
Did it work for you?
It took me three months after going off PPIs cold turkey for the rebound heartburn to settle down to a bearable level. The entire time I was taking many supplements. Over time it got better and better. It is now almost three years later. I still don’t always know when heartburn will strike but for the most part I have it under control with healthy eating and good supplements. You can do this!
I have been on ranitidine for over 3 years, my so called doctor, who I rarely use, suggested ranitodine, saying it had minimal side effects. Like you said, it never goes away. Whenever, I do not use 2x’s/day the acid comes back. I am down to 75 mg each time, but feel like I am destroying my stomach acid. Is this as bad as the name brands? Does it erode acid in the stomach just like Zantac and other popular antiacids?
Hi, Chris,
I got really sick last September and have seen some progress but still remain undiagnosed and symptomatic. One doctor has diagnosed me with Meniere’s. I had been on Lipitor 20 mg for about 8 years straight and had been on Omeprazole 20 mg for about 2 years straight for acid reflux, doctor’s orders. However my reflex was getting worse so I was switched to Dexilant at 60 mg for about 6 months and then Nexium at 80 mg for about 2 months. After getting extremely sick, since doctor’s could not figure out what was wrong with me, I quit both drugs. I developed severe difficulty breathing, post nasal drip, tinnitus, dizziness, anxiety, extreme fatigue, head and ear pressure, tingling in my hands and feet, and blurred vision. I read after stopping these two drugs that taking both of them together can increase their effect. Doctor never told me that, probably never knew. Anyway, I have been off them for awhile. I was found to be vitamin d deficient. I was wondering how long it takes to be off PPIs before the nutrient absorption goes back to normal and if there’s anything I can do to help it along the way, especially for us people who have been on them for years. Anyway advise you can give would be much appreciated. I sure would like to get better, assuming these drugs have anything to do with my problems..
Ok start with sunlight and a good vitimin pack. Diet is the bigest part of stomic issues eat lean meat fish chicken and vegtibles u need too eat blain and stay away from alchol.
Hi Chris
thank you for the informationon GERD. I believe you are correct, I have suffered dramatically with GERD ond and off for 5 years. Weight loss and smaller meals have helped but through books regarding Paleo instruction I was education that the acid level is too low not too high! Wow! I am an RN and work with GI doctors everyday and they will never tell you this – would you be so kind and to tell me what you would suggest for the acid supplements – where to ge them and how they should be used.
thanks so much
Where is the last article on how to treat/correct diet?
https://chriskresser.com/get-rid-of-heartburn-and-gerd-forever-in-three-simple-steps
I am looking for the final article – I couldn’t find it. Help, please.
“In the next and final article of the series, I will present a plan for getting rid of heartburn and GERD once and for all without drugs.”
The reason you have a significant weight gain is because the drug is working and you have started eating again – you’re gobbling food up now.
Get some self control. This PPI bashing is DANGEROUS.
No, Tom. What is dangerous is the massive marketing of PPI drugs by the pharmaceutical industry without the WARNINGS which should accompany this marketing. This entire class of drugs was promoted as virtually “risk free” for well over a decade, when in fact nothing could be further from the truth. Ask anyone who has attempted to cease using PPI drugs just how “risk free” they are.
I just read all the articles about GERD & am shocked that I’ve probably been prescribed medication which worsens the issue I it’s called Omeprazole here in the UK. I’ve been taken this for 2 months & have noticed significant weight gain in that time. I’m heartened to see that there is a way to do this without the need for medication. It is a horrible condition & I will be looking into alternatives / low carb diet more seriously
The acid produced by the disturbances being a targeted individual affected my voice and they put me on prolecec. After reading your article, I have the tools to quit. The “relief” never came regardless, and being a former paramedic, the only thing that really helped was to drink half a bottle of mylanta and get drunk. Your article proves that drugs never help in all cases. I still think my issues came presently as a normal defence mech of the body. When we get upset, we produce acid. Removal of the sorce is better than any med.
I know of a woman whose sphincter is always open she has scarring in her throat from acid reflux, she cannot lay down and everything she eats (which is only honey chicken bananas ow) causes her to have pain bloating and reflux as well as head pressure. She is on Nexium and prilosec 🙁 What in the world can she do? She has tried a few natural herbs to help but her reactions are so severe as well as Nausea Chris, we are very scared for her. Any info to help her START a new diet without symptoms? Any idea HOW to wean off these pharmas that are lowing her acid even further? She still has severe reflux
Hey Chris,
Good article. I have had severe heartburn and acid reflux since I was pregnant with my son at age 18. I have always had severe allergies. At 19 I was diagnosed with asthma. I will be 42 soon. Over the years, I have seen numerous doctors, had countless endoscopies, overnight PH monitoring, testing on the muscles in my esophagus and finally had a nissen fundoplication in 2010. I woke up from the surgery with a mouth full of acid reflux and knew that it was a failure. I have been on Nexium, Prilosec, Prevacid, Xantac, etc., etc., etc. for ages. I now take 40 mg every morning of the generic Prilosec since my insurance won’t cover a more expensive drug. I take my medicine faithfully and it does prevent heartburn but not the acid reflux. I ALWAYS have a mouth full of acid and can literally taste my last meal for hours after I have eaten. People cannot even have a conversation with me because they can smell the food on my breath. At my last endoscopy last year my doctor said that stomach tissue has started to grow in my esophagus and I have Barrett’s. I have been to the top doctors in my big city. Each one just ripped another prescription off of their pad and said there was nothing else to be done. I am at a total loss as to what to do. Any advice would be appreciated! Thank you!
Well all i can tell you is have a strick diet nothing but blain meat anf complex carbs oatmeal brown rice fish chicken. Raw fruits vegtables i know it sucks but it is all in the food and vitmins take s good multi vitimin pack and exercise daily with eating small blain meals for teo months and it will heal i promiss you. Im on ppi right now only because i wont cut back on my drinking and my diet is not consistsnt