The stomach is an amazing organ that breaks down the food we eat into essential nutrients. But the modern diet is packed with ultra-processed foods, refined sugars, and inflammatory oils. These unhealthy eating habits, coupled with high stress, are leading to digestion issues and stomach pain these days.
In Texas, we see a huge number of people who are not able to break down food properly and end up suffering from great discomfort.
Anyone can develop stomach ulcers, but some individuals are more likely to suffer from them, including those older than 60, those who take NSAIDs regularly, smokers, heavy alcohol drinkers, those who have an existing H. pylori infection, and those with a family history of ulcers.
The challenge is that stomach pain is vague by nature. A stomach ulcer can feel like heartburn. In very special cases, however, the first symptoms of stomach cancer can be almost like a normal ulcer during its first few weeks.
What is a Stomach Ulcer?
A stomach ulcer, also called a gastric ulcer, is an open sore with pain that forms in the lining of the stomach.
It is one of the types of peptic ulcer disease, which is also known as an ulcer in the upper part of your small intestine. The onset of symptoms of stomach ulcer damage indicates that the thick layer of mucus that normally protects stomach tissue from its own aggressive digestive enzymes is compromised.
Stomach ulcers fall under the broader term peptic ulcer disease, which also includes duodenal ulcers, sores that form just past the stomach. In the first part of the small intestine. Both types have the same causes and most of the same symptoms, and the onset of pain is a bit different.
How do stomach ulcers develop?
Ulcers develop when there is an imbalance between the factors that protect your stomach lining and the factors that damage it. Acid-related diseases are caused by complex mechanisms that lead to increased acid production or decreased mucosal protection.
Step 1: The protective barrier weakens. Healthy blood flow and compounds called prostaglandins, which help maintain the protective lining of your stomach, usually cover the lining of your stomach. This defense mechanism is destroyed by infection or by the use of medicine.
Step 2: Acid starts to go through. When the barrier is broken, gastric juices (your stomach’s digestive juices) begin to directly contact your stomach wall, which is capable of digesting food.
Step 3: Damage to the tissues occurs. The exposed tissue is dissolved by the acid and forms a sore. If left untreated, this sore may deepen, bleed, or, in rare instances, perforate (hole) through the stomach wall over time.
Step 4: Inflammation begins to occur. The inflamed area causes the burning, gnawing pain people experience when they have ulcers.
This whole process is almost always caused by one of two reasons: a bacterial infection or prolonged use of NSAIDs, explained in detail below.
What Causes Stomach Ulcers?
The following are the causes of stomach ulcers.
1. H. Pylori Infection
More than half of the world’s population is infected with Helicobacter pylori, making it the most common chronic bacterial infection in humans. This corkscrew-shaped bacterium penetrates the protective mucus lining of the stomach and erodes it from the inside, leading to damage to the tissue underneath.
The vast majority of people infected with H. pylori will not have symptoms. In those infected with H. pylori, about 10% – 15% will develop an ulcer. The infection is spread mainly through contaminated food and water, and by direct contact with saliva. Therefore, sharing utensils, food, or drinks with an infected person is recognized as a way of transmission.
H pylori is still one of the most common causes of duodenal and gastric ulcers. And current guidelines now emphasize that all individuals with an ulcer should be screened for H pylori, even if no other risk factors exist.
2. NSAID Use
Some nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen, are well known to produce ulcers when taken daily. They inhibit the formation of prostaglandins, which are lipids that serve two essential functions: they mediate the pain, and they help generate the protective mucus coating in your stomach. Blocking prostaglandins in the body prevents the mucus, and your stomach is left completely vulnerable to the acid it produces.
The risk grows with the amount, duration, and frequency of NSAID use, and is substantially greater when people take NSAIDs with alcohol, smoking, or corticosteroids.
People who take NSAID medications every day or for a long period of time are at the greatest risk, especially those who are taking the medications to treat chronic pain or arthritis. Even regular use of over-the-counter medication administered for months can cause a stomach ulcer in susceptible people.
3. Chronic Stress and High Cortisol
Stress is not a direct cause of an ulcer, but it does create the ideal conditions for an ulcer to occur. If you’re feeling stressed out all of the time, your body releases cortisol. This activates the “fight or flight” mechanism and pulls blood away from your gut and toward your muscles.
If the blood supply to the lining of the stomach is limited, the lining can never repair the daily damage that occurs. And the stomach becomes very vulnerable to the acid.
4. Dietary Irritants
A spicy meal doesn’t have to cause an ulcer, but a diet rich in ultra-processed foods, refined sugars, coffee, and alcohol sure does irritate the lining of the gut. This causes chronic low-grade inflammation and prevents the stomach from healing its micro-damage regularly. This slowly allows a full-blown ulcer to form.
5. Other Contributing Factors
- Smoking: It hinders the stomach’s ability to heal existing ulcers and makes it more likely to develop new ones. It also decreases blood flow to the stomach lining and the process by which it naturally repairs itself.
- Heavy or frequent use of alcohol: causes damage to the stomach’s lining, increasing your risk of stomach damage.
- Zollinger-Ellison syndrome: This is an uncommon and rare condition that involves the presence of tumors producing excess gastric acid. This cause should be considered when ulcers are severe or do not respond to standard treatment.
Symptoms of Stomach Ulcer
Typically, stomach ulcer symptoms occur in very predictable patterns. The most prominent symptom is burning stomach pain, usually between meals or at night, when your stomach is empty. The following are some of its other symptoms of stomach ulcer:
- Pain in the upper abdomen
- Pain that temporarily feels better when you eat food or take an antacid
- Feeling unusually full or bloated after eating
- Intolerance to fatty foods
- Burping
- Hiccuping
- Acid reflux
- Nausea
- Mild vomiting
- Unexplained weight loss due to a fear of eating
The following are the key stomach cancer symptoms that warrant urgent evaluation:
- Unexplained weight loss
- Persistent low-grade nausea or early satiety
- Vague pain that is less predictable or gradually worsening
- Difficulty swallowing
- Unexplained anemia
- Fatigue
- Black stools
- Vomiting blood
- Yellowing of the skin or eyes (jaundice)
It is also good to note that the presence of H. pylori is a known risk factor for some of the types of stomach cancer, though most persons infected with H. pylori do not develop stomach cancer. That is why many providers recommend H. pylori testing and treatment to reduce long-term cancer risk.
How Are Stomach Ulcers Diagnosed?
If your symptoms indicate an ulcer, your provider will examine you and test you for H. pylori infection. A full assessment will usually consist of:
- H. pylori testing. This may be accomplished with a breath test (you will drink a solution and breathe into an instrument that will measure a gas produced by the bacteria), a stool antigen test, or a blood test. Breath and stool tests can be more effective for diagnosing current infection.
- Upper endoscopy (EGD). This is regarded as the gold standard in diagnosing a stomach ulcer. A thin, flexible tube with a camera inside is inserted through the mouth into the stomach to be able to directly view the ulcer in the stomach and to assess it.
- Imaging tests. Larger ulcers may be seen on a CT scan or upper GI series, but these are not used as often as endoscopy, because they do not provide tissue samples.
- Blood tests. A complete blood count can identify anemia, which may be present even though there have been no symptoms, such as visible blood in stool or vomit that would signify a bleeding ulcer.
If you have a family history of peptic ulcer or stomach cancer, you might be at a higher risk of having complications from H. pylori. And your provider may suggest that you test earlier.
How to Treat and Heal Stomach Ulcers
Typical treatment includes acid-blocking drugs (PPIs) and wide-spectrum antibiotics to eradicate H. pylori. This may relieve the pain, but it will not always repair the tissue or correct the underlying cause of stomach ulcers.
To truly treat symptoms of stomach ulcer damage, you must follow a functional medicine approach to rebuild the gut and fix your stomach ulcer symptoms:
1. Eradicate H. Pylori Naturally
If you have the bacteria, you need to kill it. You can use specific natural antimicrobials such as mastic gum, bismuth subcitrate, and berberine extract rather than just antibiotics, which kill good gut bacteria. These natural antimicrobials go through the lining of your stomach and destroy the bacteria without destroying your microbiome.
2. Restore the Mucosal Barrier
It is necessary to physically patch the open sore. DGL (Deglycyrrhizinated Licorice) stimulates mucus production to coat the stomach lining. L-Glutamine powder is also crucial. It’s the main fuel supply for cells in your intestinal tract, and it also actively repairs damage in the tissue.
3. Remove the Offenders
Stop taking daily NSAIDs if possible. If you are dealing with chronic stress, you must actively lower your cortisol levels by doing de-stress techniques like yoga, deep breathing, and walking in the garden.
4. Mindful Eating
Do not drink large amounts of ice water with your meals, as this dilutes your stomach acid and slows down digestion. Try to eat slowly and chew thoroughly so that your stomach doesn’t have to work so hard.
Bottom Line
Fixing Stomach pain with antacids will not heal the open sore. And ignoring stomach ulcer symptoms can lead to much more serious conditions. While most stomach ulcers respond to treatment, those that bleed or perforate call for more advanced treatment. Many bleeding ulcers can be treated directly during the same endoscopy used for diagnosis, using techniques to stop the bleeding without surgery.
At Kairos Health and Wellness, Lola, one of our functional nurse practitioners, runs advanced testing to find out exactly why your gut lining broke down in the first place. Whether you are in Sugar Land or anywhere across Texas, we will create a personalized plan to eradicate infections and get you back to enjoying your life pain-free.
If you have questions, reach out to us today!