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[continued from part 1]
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Q:  I've tried the HCl before (different brand) and it seemed to irritate
my stomach with pain and heartburn. I've heard HCl is not good for people
with gastritic, which I have, so that leaves me in a quandary.
A: You are in a quandry.  I understand.  But you can get out of it by
eliminating the source of your gastritis, which is probably food
insensitivies & irritating medications.  The stomach in it's healthy
natural state, as in a newborn, is built to handle stomach acid in
quantities down to pH of 1.  That's strong enough to eat a hole through
your living room sofa, but a healthy stomach lining can tolerate it just
fine.  What happens along the way is we develop food
sensitivities/allergies, take anti-inflammatories, eat irritating foods,
etc. that break down the mucous barrier in the stomach & weaken the lower
esophageal valve.  This sets us up for heartburn, reflux, gastritis,
indigestion, malabsorption, yeast & bacteria overgrowth (such as candida
& h. Pylori, etc.).  Once we eliminate the GI irritants, our stomachs
will tolerate the stomach acid just fine.  I doubt I could have tolerated
stomach acid supplements a couple years ago when I was still ingesting
gluten, milk, eggs, and taking some rather harsh medications.  I had to
eliminate irritating foods & medications to get my gut healed before my
naturopath put me on stomach acid replacement.  I highly recommend the
book, WHY STOMACH ACID IS GOOD FOR YOU by Jonathan Wright MD.  It
explains the whole thing better than I can.
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Q: Val, can you eat some of the foods that were bothering you now?  I
have been gf for 5 years and still can't eat carbs or beans or eggs and
dairy. I have been pretty much on the Specific Carbohydrate diet which is
good but more limited than I would like.  mc
A:  MC, yes.  I too was on the SCD (specific carbohydrate diet) a year
ago & I nearly starved to death!  I was allergic to all the staples --
lima beans, navy beans, almonds, eggs, milk (even 24 hour yogurt),
bananas, avacadoes, summer squash, etc.  But when I tried to add potatoes
& rice, I bloated like a balloon.  But, since adding the HCl, I can
tolerate potatoes, brown rice, corn & other starches.  [Thorne BIO-GEST
contains starch digesting enzymes that really seem to help.]  I'm still
very strict about avoiding sugar.  I only endulge in that stuff every
couple of months.
        I'm still allergic to plenty of foods, though.  I haven't been able to
add back any of the ones I'm allergic to, but at least I can say I
haven't developed any more food sensitivities. At one point, it seemed I
was finding a new food intolernace every week.  But now I seem to be in a
holding pattern.  (KNOCK ON WOOD!) ~Valerie
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Q:  With all the reading I've done on celiac, I was not aware that low
stomach acid is a common problem of celiacs.  Do you know why that is?  I
mean, is there permanent damage to the gut?  I've been GF for 2.5 years
and have progressed quite well, but cannot get beyond the intestinal
yeast.  I'm hoping this is the piece of the puzzle I've been looking for.
 Thanks again. Lati
A: Anything that irritates the stomach, such as gluten sensitivity, food
allergies, some medications, even stress, etc. impairs it's ability to
function normally.  A normal stomach produces enough acid to eat a hole
in your couch, BUT a healthy stomach also produces anough mucous to
protect it from the acid.  An impaired, irritated stomach produces low or
no stomach acid as well as digestive enzymes & components.  An impaired,
irritated stomach also loses it's ability to keep stomach contents
tightly locked up in the stomach where they belong.  No one knows quite
why, but low stomach acid production is almost always associated with
reflux, GERD and heartburn.  A healthy stomach produces tons of acid &
keeps it tightly contained w/i the stomach.  Food allergies &
intolerances weaken the lower esophageal valve, but no one knows why.  It
just does.  There are only a couple known conditions that actually cause
excess stomach acid production (Zollinger-Ellison Syndrome & duodenal
ulcer), but these are rare.  (Gastric ulcers are actually associated with
LOW stomach acid production.)  When food allergies/intolerances are
removed & acidity corrected, the stomach's abililty to keep it's contents
from refluxing improves.  Some people regain their ability to produce
adequate stomach acid.  Some do not.  Age can be a factor.  The older we
get, the less stomach acid we produce. That's why grown ups as a rule
have more heartburn & gas than kids.  It's because we produce less
stomach acid, not more.
        My naturopath told me that it is very uncommon to restore complete
gastric function once it's lost, but it's possible to improve it.  He
predicted that I will probably need HCl for the rest of my life.  (I hope
he's wrong!)
        I hope you are successful with replacing stomach acid.  If it is not
satisfactory at first, it is probably that you still have hidden food
allergies/intolerances or you're taking medications that are irritating
your stomach.  I strongly advise getting professional help.  I would
never have been able to figure the whole thing out on my own.
~Valerie


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