It's not what you might think....
Did you know that most people who have heartburn, actually have TOO LITTLE stomach acid? You heard me right. In fact, the symptoms of hyperchlorhydria (too much stomach acid) and hypochlorhydria (too little stomach acid) are the same. Any and all stomach contents allowed to migrate back into the esophagus can cause pain (heartburn) and damage to the esophagus, whether those contents are more acidic or more alkaline. Furthermore, "acid" reflux is but one symptom that you may or may not experience if you have low stomach acid. Others include bloating, indigestion, constipation, diarrhea, fatigue and weight gain.
For most heartburn sufferers, the issue with heartburn is not all about acid production, as we are led to believe by pharmaceutical commercials and ads, as well as by our healthcare providers. It’s also about inappropriate relaxation of the LES (the sphincter that separates your esophagus from your stomach), which should only allow food INTO the stomach FROM the esophagus—not the other way around.
What causes LES dsyfunction?
LES dysfunction or relaxation can be caused by emotional stress, as well as physical stressors that cause inflammation, such as food allergies and sensitivities, high sugar intake, poor sleep, gut microbe imbalances, infections, autoimmunity, etc. Also, caffeine, chocolate, overeating and obesity (abdominal fat puts pressure on the stomach and causes the LES to relax/open when it shouldn’t) can contribute to LES dysfunction.
So, why even talk about stomach acid, if LES dysfunction is the root cause of heartburn? Well, because they often work together and share many of the same root causes--especially inflammation. Also, I'd like to point out that while most docs are not helping patients treat the root causes of LES dysfunciton and low stomach acid, they are also CAUSING more issues by inappropriately prescribing medications like Proton Pump Inhibitors and H2 Receptor Antagonists that further reduce/block essential stomach acid production. And since the advent of over-the-counter acid blocking meds, a lot of people are out there inappropriately treating themselves and putting themselves at risk.
Here's the issue:
We need stomach acid to break down proteins and other food components, as well as to properly use nutrients like B-vitamins, calcium, iron and zinc. Reducing stomach acid causes nutrient deficiencies and therefore inflammation, leading to chronic disease over time. We are not only what we eat, but what we can DO with what we eat.
Stomach acid is also our first line of defense against microbes in our food, preventing food borne illness from infections like salmonella, c. difficile ("C-Diff"), giardia, candida albicans, e.coli and more. Stomach acid is also crucial for breaking down food allergens. One study showed that 25% of subjects given a 3-month course of acid blockers developed food allergies or experienced worsening of pre-existing food allergies (FASEB J 2005; 19:656-8).
That said, don't just stop taking your acid blocking medication, whether it's prescription or over-the-counter. Seventy to 80 percent of those stopping acid blockers develop rebound hyperacidity. Trust me, you don't want feel that kind of burn. Coming off of acid blocking meds should be done very slowly and with digestive support to help protect the lining of your esophagus and increase stomach acid production, if needed. You can certainly talk to your doc about the best way to do this, but don't be surprised if he or she doesn't know how to help you. Working with a Functional Medicine physician or nutritionist is your best bet.
**Remember that while coming off of the medication, you also MUST treat the root causes of LES dysfunction AND support your body's ability to make proper amounts of stomach acid. Otherwise, you'll just end up back where you started--with heartburn and other digestive symptoms and systemic issues. If you work with a Functional practitioner or Functional Nutritionist like myself, don't expect to just talk about your primary issue. Expect to have a look at how all of your systems are working together to create your current state of health. The Functional approach is about connecting all of the dots to support optimal vitality.
7 Tips to Improve Stomach Acid Production and Stop Heartburn:
For most heartburn sufferers, the issue with heartburn is not all about acid production, as we are led to believe by pharmaceutical commercials and ads, as well as by our healthcare providers. It’s also about inappropriate relaxation of the LES (the sphincter that separates your esophagus from your stomach), which should only allow food INTO the stomach FROM the esophagus—not the other way around.
What causes LES dsyfunction?
LES dysfunction or relaxation can be caused by emotional stress, as well as physical stressors that cause inflammation, such as food allergies and sensitivities, high sugar intake, poor sleep, gut microbe imbalances, infections, autoimmunity, etc. Also, caffeine, chocolate, overeating and obesity (abdominal fat puts pressure on the stomach and causes the LES to relax/open when it shouldn’t) can contribute to LES dysfunction.
So, why even talk about stomach acid, if LES dysfunction is the root cause of heartburn? Well, because they often work together and share many of the same root causes--especially inflammation. Also, I'd like to point out that while most docs are not helping patients treat the root causes of LES dysfunciton and low stomach acid, they are also CAUSING more issues by inappropriately prescribing medications like Proton Pump Inhibitors and H2 Receptor Antagonists that further reduce/block essential stomach acid production. And since the advent of over-the-counter acid blocking meds, a lot of people are out there inappropriately treating themselves and putting themselves at risk.
Here's the issue:
We need stomach acid to break down proteins and other food components, as well as to properly use nutrients like B-vitamins, calcium, iron and zinc. Reducing stomach acid causes nutrient deficiencies and therefore inflammation, leading to chronic disease over time. We are not only what we eat, but what we can DO with what we eat.
Stomach acid is also our first line of defense against microbes in our food, preventing food borne illness from infections like salmonella, c. difficile ("C-Diff"), giardia, candida albicans, e.coli and more. Stomach acid is also crucial for breaking down food allergens. One study showed that 25% of subjects given a 3-month course of acid blockers developed food allergies or experienced worsening of pre-existing food allergies (FASEB J 2005; 19:656-8).
That said, don't just stop taking your acid blocking medication, whether it's prescription or over-the-counter. Seventy to 80 percent of those stopping acid blockers develop rebound hyperacidity. Trust me, you don't want feel that kind of burn. Coming off of acid blocking meds should be done very slowly and with digestive support to help protect the lining of your esophagus and increase stomach acid production, if needed. You can certainly talk to your doc about the best way to do this, but don't be surprised if he or she doesn't know how to help you. Working with a Functional Medicine physician or nutritionist is your best bet.
**Remember that while coming off of the medication, you also MUST treat the root causes of LES dysfunction AND support your body's ability to make proper amounts of stomach acid. Otherwise, you'll just end up back where you started--with heartburn and other digestive symptoms and systemic issues. If you work with a Functional practitioner or Functional Nutritionist like myself, don't expect to just talk about your primary issue. Expect to have a look at how all of your systems are working together to create your current state of health. The Functional approach is about connecting all of the dots to support optimal vitality.
7 Tips to Improve Stomach Acid Production and Stop Heartburn:
- Eat in relaxed state. Try taking 5 deep breaths before you eat, and get into a state of deep gratitude for your meal (and anything else you’re thankful for). Avoid stressful conversation. Keep it light. Getting and staying relaxed actually helps to improve your production of digestive secretions.
- Eat fermented foods, like kim chi, sauerkraut or fermented pickles, chutney or salsa with meals as a condiment. If these give you major gas and bloating, however, you may have a condition called SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth), which you will need to treat, preferably using a Functional Medicine approach.
- Drink herbal teas like ginger, peppermint, chamomile or fennel throughout the day and after meals.
- Eat real, whole, chemical-free food (and don’t destroy the nutrients by using a microwave). Whole, real foods provide the nutrients your cells need to make energy, and the production of stomach acid is a very energy-intensive process. Chemical stressors (pesticides, herbicides, plastic derivatives that leach into foods, food additives, etc.) can drain your body of the necessary nutrients for cellular energy production.
- Take a magnesium supplement, such as magnesium glycinate or magnesium malate, at 300-600 mg per day, as magnesium is critical to the manufacturing of stomach acid, as it support energy production. Remember to take magnesium along with equal or up to double amounts of calcium.
- Avoid inflammatory foods, which you can identify with an elimination diet. Inflammation impairs stomach acid production, and if you are inflamed you need to figure out WHY you’re inflamed. That’s one of the things I love about the Functional approach to healing—solving problems at their ROOT! An elimination diet is the best place to start. Now, not all elimination diets are created equally. I have my clients remove all potential inflammatory foods, PLUS gut irritating foods, so that we not only reduce inflammation in the gut, but irritation as well, so that the tissue actually has the chance to heal properly. I also simultaneously take them though my Functional Nutrition Gut Healing Protocol, and the elimination diet is only a part of that. Being thorough from the outset is more restrictive and takes more work, but it yields BETTER & FASTER results. And by results, I mean increased energy, minimal or no digestive symptoms, clear skin, weight loss, reduced or obliterated seasonal allergies, headaches and pain, restful sleep and more!
There is a lot that goes into healing your body to feel better, and it starts with healing your digestion--the root of all health. Healing your body also requires healing your emotional state by adopting new thought patterns and mindsets. This takes work, and I find it to be essential to the healing process, which is why I provide a unique combination of Transformative Coaching and Functional Nutrition.
If we don’t know how to say, “yes” to ourselves, and we always put our own needs on the back burner, how is that going to translate into good health and our fullest expression of living? It doesn’t.
I know it can seem as though we have to choose between good health and being the best at our roles in life, but that is just not true.This is a dysfunctional belief pattern that you've learned and have accepted to be true. What if you could actually have everything you want? What if you could take the best care of yourself and support those around you, without anyone losing out or getting hurt? You absolutely can, and that’s what Transformative Coaching helps you to discover.
You can learn as much as you want about gut healing, functional nutrition, exercise, time management, meal planning and so on, but if you can’t find it within yourself to make the space in your heart and all areas of your life to lovingly apply the information, you may make changes for a short while and see some results, but they won’t last. It’s the changing of your mindset and learning to listen to and honor your body’s (and your spirit’s) cues that makes it all stick.
As you can imagine, there’s no way I can teach you all of this in one or even a few sessions. That’s why I offer my Enlightened Wellness 90-Day Intensive. This program gives you the time you need to change your diet and develop the best way of eating for your unique physiology. It also allows for the consistent and expert guidance and support that you need to turn your health around and get unstuck in all areas of your life.
In case you’re wondering, I don’t offer lesser programs, because I’m in the business of transformation. Transformation takes time and a deep level of readiness to not only make some big shifts in your diet, but in all areas of your life. Can you do this on your own? Some of you can, but most of you would be best served by a guide to show you the way, as well as to hold space for you. You need the right support and the right accountability to make this leg of your personal healing journey highly effective and transformative. Will you be totally transformed in 90 days? Listen, we’re never done growing and fine-tuning, but give me 90 days, and you will look back to yourself on Day 1 and see a very different person; and I promise you, you won’t want to go back to the way things were before.
If you’re ready to make the most of this opportunity we call Life, let’s take a no-strings-attached test spin with a FREE 30-45 minute Enlightened Wellness Clarity Session. The purpose of this session is to help you get clear on how you want to feel and why, as well as what’s holding you back, so that you can make an informed decision about how to get started on your healing journey. This session will also give us both a chance to explore how it feels to work together, with no expectations regarding the outcome. All I ask is that you only schedule this session if you are already open to working together.
Remember--I don’t need clients. I want ideal clients, because the healing work that I do is not just about having a career or a livelihood. It is my life’s purpose. It is supportive of the way I want to feel when I wake up in the morning and when I go to sleep at night. So,if we’re not a good fit, or one or both of us isn’t fully on board, I won’t try to keep you. If we ARE a good fit, it’s still your choice.
Here’s to your Enlightened Wellness and being fully alive on all levels!
Health and Happiness,
Angie
If we don’t know how to say, “yes” to ourselves, and we always put our own needs on the back burner, how is that going to translate into good health and our fullest expression of living? It doesn’t.
I know it can seem as though we have to choose between good health and being the best at our roles in life, but that is just not true.This is a dysfunctional belief pattern that you've learned and have accepted to be true. What if you could actually have everything you want? What if you could take the best care of yourself and support those around you, without anyone losing out or getting hurt? You absolutely can, and that’s what Transformative Coaching helps you to discover.
You can learn as much as you want about gut healing, functional nutrition, exercise, time management, meal planning and so on, but if you can’t find it within yourself to make the space in your heart and all areas of your life to lovingly apply the information, you may make changes for a short while and see some results, but they won’t last. It’s the changing of your mindset and learning to listen to and honor your body’s (and your spirit’s) cues that makes it all stick.
As you can imagine, there’s no way I can teach you all of this in one or even a few sessions. That’s why I offer my Enlightened Wellness 90-Day Intensive. This program gives you the time you need to change your diet and develop the best way of eating for your unique physiology. It also allows for the consistent and expert guidance and support that you need to turn your health around and get unstuck in all areas of your life.
In case you’re wondering, I don’t offer lesser programs, because I’m in the business of transformation. Transformation takes time and a deep level of readiness to not only make some big shifts in your diet, but in all areas of your life. Can you do this on your own? Some of you can, but most of you would be best served by a guide to show you the way, as well as to hold space for you. You need the right support and the right accountability to make this leg of your personal healing journey highly effective and transformative. Will you be totally transformed in 90 days? Listen, we’re never done growing and fine-tuning, but give me 90 days, and you will look back to yourself on Day 1 and see a very different person; and I promise you, you won’t want to go back to the way things were before.
If you’re ready to make the most of this opportunity we call Life, let’s take a no-strings-attached test spin with a FREE 30-45 minute Enlightened Wellness Clarity Session. The purpose of this session is to help you get clear on how you want to feel and why, as well as what’s holding you back, so that you can make an informed decision about how to get started on your healing journey. This session will also give us both a chance to explore how it feels to work together, with no expectations regarding the outcome. All I ask is that you only schedule this session if you are already open to working together.
Remember--I don’t need clients. I want ideal clients, because the healing work that I do is not just about having a career or a livelihood. It is my life’s purpose. It is supportive of the way I want to feel when I wake up in the morning and when I go to sleep at night. So,if we’re not a good fit, or one or both of us isn’t fully on board, I won’t try to keep you. If we ARE a good fit, it’s still your choice.
Here’s to your Enlightened Wellness and being fully alive on all levels!
Health and Happiness,
Angie
No comments:
Post a Comment