stomach acid

[fiftyone]

I don't understand this stomach acid 'thing'. I take a proton pump inhibitor for high stomach acid but people insist that as you get older you're stomach acid reduce. I'm 79. Also that doctors erroneously mistake low stomach acid for high!! What is going on? Any thoughts

[greygoose]

Many things can reduce stomach acid production: low T3, low B12, low-salt diets, and of course, age. However the problem is, symptoms are the same whether it's high or low. So, doctors should be testing to find out which it is. Did your doctor test you before putting you on PPIs?

If you are 79, and hypo, it's highly unlikely that you would have high stomach acid. Why did the doctor think you did?

[fiftyone in reply to greygoose]

Several years ago they put a camera in my stomach and told me I had gastritis. Two years ago I had a stomach scan and was told I had acid reflux.

[greygoose in reply to fiftyone]

Acid reflux can be caused by low stomach acid, too. So, those are not really tests for stomach acid levels.

[Buddy195 Administrator]

Forum advice is to leave at least 4 hours between taking Omeprazole and Levothyroxine , as PPI’s can decrease the absorption of thyroid medication.

It's advisable to have a full thyroid function test after starting Omeprazole to see if it has any effect on your levels. We recommend checking FT4 and FT3, in addition to TSH. It’s also very useful to check key vitamins (ferritin, folate, B12 and Vitamin D).

Personally I found that my gastritis issues resolved when I eliminated gluten from my diet. Have you ever trialled being gluten free? Having thyroid medication and key vitamins optimal, in conjunction with being GF, has fully resolved my previous stomach issues.

[fiftyone in reply to Buddy195]

thanks for your reply. No I haven't gone completely gluten free. will have to try it.

[Charlie-Farley in reply to fiftyone]

Hi fiftyone

I too experienced searing heartburn when undiagnosed and then when grossly under medicated. I was trying to sleep upright and doctor’s solution was to put me on omeprazole.

Thankfully I found the forum and they very quickly told me to get off them. It is much more difficult once you’ve been on them a long time I believe. So if you are thinking about this get advice.

Thinking back to that period of relentless heartburn, the omeprazole was making things worse, not better and also, the more I drank, the worse it got. So I think it was a case of low stomach acid in my case as drinking essentially diluted the acid further, and the proton pump inhibitor was inhibiting the production of acid yet further.

There are problems with having low stomach acid as Buddy195 has alluded to with not being able to absorb. People with low stomach acid, often have vitamin deficiencies too by virtue of the fact that nothing has been digested completely, and therefore absorbed.

The thing is, both high stomach acid, and low stomach acid present in the same way.

There is a very good write-up on the NHS about gastritis and they do mention having a H pylori test did they per chance give you one of those?

I went to gluten-free, and I also kept a food diary to identify what was making heartburn for me. It’s not as simple as avoiding spicy food! For me my nemesis, even the gluten-free version was fruit crumble.

It had Copious, amounts of fat, carb, and sugar. I just can’t go near it sadly.

I can, however eat a chicken Jalfrezi covered in green chilies with pilau rice with no side-effects other than a sweaty face. 🤣 link below is one I was given when suffering heartburn.

nutritionjersey.com/high-or...

Hope this helps

[Buddy195 Administrator]

I would try eliminating gluten fully for 3 months and see if you feel any benefit. It may be worth asking for a coeliac test from your GP whilst eating gluten, to see if you are allergic. I actually tested negative for coeliac but am definitely gluten ‘intolerant’ and wouldn’t touch it again.

[Charlie-Farley in reply to Buddy195]

Me too Buddy195 - I didn’t have a coeliac test but the benefits I felt in just over a week fiftyone

[serenfach]

Try the bicarb test (baking powder)

For the test, you'll drink half a glass (4 ounces) of cold water combined with a quarter teaspoon of baking soda, on an empty stomach. Then time how long it takes you to burp. If you burp a lot straight away, high acid, lots of little burbs after a couple of minutes, normal acid, If it takes longer than three to five minutes, low stomach acid.

Mine is low, GP did not test, just gave me antacids which of course made things worse. I now control it by taking a spoonful of cider vinegar mixed with warm water and honey. Works a treat.

[fiftyone in reply to serenfach]

thanks for that. will try it.