Ulcer Diet Addendum
Updated 6/30/09
The Swedish Study of Spinach
Some people are reading the study and imagining that it says that spinach and
some other vegetables are good for ulcers. What the study says is that spinach
and some other vegetables contain compounds that might make the linings of
stomachs stronger and thus better able to resist ulcers. They are not saying
that after you have an ulcer you should eat high fiber foods like spinach.
That's like recommending putting on a bullet proof vest after you have been
shot.
The potential (it's not proven yet) nutritional benefits are outweighed by the
detrimental effects that fiber has on existing ulcers. Spinach juice ought to be
fine, because that has no fiber. But the fiber in spinach is a problem for most
ulcers.
Back to Ulcer Diet page
Chewing gum
Studies show that chewing gum after a meal can significantly reduce the severity
of heartburn.
Heartburn, or reflux, is fluids in the stomach
traveling up into the esophagus. The saliva stimulated by chewing neutralizes
acid and drives fluids back to the stomach.
In 2005 The Journal of Dental Research published a
study in which researchers fed 31 people heartburn-inducing meals and then had
certain random ones of them chew sugar-free gum for 30 minutes. Acid levels in
them were lower compared to the control subjects.
In 2001 a similar study found the beneficial effects
last up to three hours.
A study published in 2002, by scientists at the
non-profit Oklahoma Foundation for Digestive Research, found that chewing
antacid gum was more effective than chewable antacid tablets after eating.
Back to Ulcer Diet page
Since an ulcer is an open sore, it allows direct access to
your bloodstream for organisms you ingest. That is why raw seafood, like oysters
or sushi, it more dangerous for people with ulcers.
According to
CDC, nearly all seafood-related deaths in the United States are caused by
a bacterium
called Vibrio vulnificus. It is a tissue-destroying disease, actually a
flesh-eating
bacteria.
People
can be infected by contaminated seafood. Raw shellfish, particularly oysters,
pose the greatest risk, the agency says, especially if it comes from the Gulf of
Mexico during the summer months.
Back to Ulcer Diet page
Bile is an alkali that is released intermittently into the duodenum to digest
fat. When it refluxes into the stomach, the symptoms are similar to heartburn,
but treatment with acid-suppressing drugs tends to be ineffective because it is
not an acid.
Misdiagnosis is common and can be serious, but many doctors either do not
believe it exists or mistakenly believe that nothing can be done about it.
The information I am putting on the web specifically is about the effects food
can have on acid reflux. Since bile reflux is not acid and often is not effected
by diet, it falls outside the scope of this page. So for more about it, I
suggest doing a search on the web where, for instance, the Mayo Clinic has
posted information at this link:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/bile-reflux/DS00651
Back to Ulcer Diet page
Find a Registered Dietitian
Go to:
www.eatright.org
and click on
“For the Public”
There is a link to help find a dietitian in your area you can work with in
person. To save you some searching, here is the link:
http://www.eatright.org/programs/rdfinder/
Back to Ulcer Diet page
Home |
Table of Contents |
Search
Peace Poles |
Art made from Baseball Bats
Other Stuff |