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Betaine HCL + Digestive Enzymes For GERD (Acid Reflux)

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GERD & Acid Reflux
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Posted 8/27/2016 5:04 AM (GMT 0)
My Background:
I had GERD for 3+ years. Tried PPI and antacids with no avail.
Gaviscon Advanced kind of works but never healed me.


Anyways, I researched online about GERD on recent studies or theories on why acid would go up into the esophagus. To make the story short, your stomach actually needs to be very acidic. If the stomach is not acidic enough the LES or the valve from the esophagus to the stomach will not close. The reason it will not close is because it's triggered to close only if the stomach is around at least 3 PH in acidity other than that it will not close. which means you will get bloated with undigested food laying in your stomach with an open valve. The reason people even get low stomach acid is age, being malnourished (need nutrients to produce acid), and stress (need energy to produce acid). Other factors can also effect the acid production in your body like hypothyroid, food allergies, and H. Pylori infection.


MY CURRENT RESULTS / TEST:

I bought Betaine HCL w/ Pepsin 650 mg and Super Enzymes.
Took 1 pill each in the middle of my meals (never after meals). I started to notice I don't get uncomfortable GERD after eating. I am currently on Keto Diet where you only eat mainly proteins. I don't feel 100% but I definitely feel better. Before I would get bad symptoms even when drinking water. All I need to do is try to gradually increase 2 or more pills each meal to see if I feel better. I actually feel like my LES is closing and I don't feel bloated as much... at least for now.

I'll try to update soon... 8/26/2016
Posted 8/31/2016 6:42 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for sharing! I have gerd and esophagitis and I'm pretty desperate for some kind of relief. I'm going to be trying slippery elm soon to see of that helps. I would like to try what you have tried too. Hope something helps soon.
Posted 9/4/2016 11:51 PM (GMT 0)
I'm still continuing 1 hcl w/ pepsin and 1 enzyme pill during meals. I still dont get hard gerd symptoms much any more. I occasionally eat some carbs and then I get moderate gerd but to note I use to get bad symptoms when I eat carbs but now I dont really after taking the pills. Maybe I need to up my intake on the pills if I eat carbs. Other than that, I dont really get gerd if I eat protein only meal (keto diet).

Im still not really sure if this is a cure but it seems promising.
Posted 9/11/2016 10:50 PM (GMT 0)
HCL + Enzyme TEST UPDATE: 9/11/2016

For the past days Iv'e been eating mostly protein, fats, and low carbs (keto diet). I've been taking 1 HCL w/ pepsin and 1 enzyme in the middle of my meals (not after or before). I also Try not to drink to much water when I swallow the pills or when I eat food in general. The reason I try not to drink too much water is because water dilutes acid. Iv'e been drinking only half a cup (half a water bottle) when eating.

Anyways, for the past few days Iv'e started to take multivitamins every other day because I learned that your body needs minerals and/or vitamins to create acid. Also, Eating high protein and fat foods doesn't have all the necessary vitamins while on keto. I also, barely started to lightly work out. I just recently started to take 2 HCL and 1 enzyme during meals.

SO HOW DO YOU FEEL UPPING THE HCL DOSE?
well, I actually feel better. Surprisingly, I did not have any noticeable burn yet. I'm actually not having bad symptoms of GERD for once in my life! I'm not 100% but I feel better than when I only took 1 HCL. Maybe I need up the does to 3 HCL + 1 enzyme. I will stay with 2 HCL + Enzyme and multivitamins every other day regimen though for a while though.

MY THOUGHTS:
I have hope! Iv'e been having bad GERD for 3+ years. I can actually lay down and sleep. Yes, I have mild symptoms here and there but its way better back then when I was on PPI's (omeprazole). Upping the dose made me feel a bit better. I woke up today without feeling a bit nauseated. Also, I don't really feel the dizzyness after eating anymore. Plus I can stand up longer without feeling uncomfortable for once. Is low stomach acid really the root cause? It seems like it right now but I cant jump into conclusions until I feel 90-100%

MY Current REGIMEN:
1) Eat a Keto Diet or a protien, fat, and low carb diet / eat small meals every 3-4 hours
2) Take 2 HCL 650 mg tablets + 1 Super Enzyme Tablet in the middle of a meal and take 1 multivitamin every other day.
3) Drink only half a bottle of water (that includes liquid foods) do not dilute your stomach acid
4) Light exercise every other day to reduce body stress
Posted 9/15/2016 5:59 PM (GMT 0)
Just to add - I started taking the Betaine HCL pill ~22 months ago (along with an enzyme pill). For the first ~2 months I thought Betaine HCL was a miracle for my GERD because the symptoms went away, but eventually, their effectiveness started to decline. I still take them, but at this point, it's hard to say if they make a difference anymore. I'm not sure why it played out this way, just wanted to relate my experience.
Posted 9/22/2016 3:36 AM (GMT 0)
UPDATE: 9/21/2016

I've been watching Dr. John Bergman on youtube about gerd which helped me better educate myself about health. The reason I brought him up is because he pointed out in more detail on why the body even gets gerd, anxiety, and sibo.

Anyways, Iv'e stop taking 2 650 HCL tablets during a meal and reverted to just 1 tablet per meal because I felt like 1 is starting to do the job. I still take enzymes but only for every other meal. The reason for that is because I started to introduce or eat foods that have natural enzymes in them like fruits. I started to find that I don't get bad symptoms when I eat high enzyme foods like fruits. The only time I take HCL and enzyme is when I eat meat with fruits / vegetable. I haven't been eating too much carbs but when I do I eat in small amounts (carbs as in breads, rice, etc.. NOT fruit carbs). I just recently found out that carbs make me sleepy and causes me to have a mild gerd flare up. How I found out was by mistake. I did not eat carbs for 1 week and one day I decided to eat a small tortilla to see how my body will react. Immediately after an hour I felt very sleepy and started to yawn alot all of a sudden. Also, I started to get mild gerd which is weird because for the whole week I had my gerd in control. Is my body sensitive to carbs? I tried it again this week and ate another tortilla and what you know the same exact symptom happened. I'm still on keto diet and I think it is helping me tremendously. Maybe I developed a carb sensitivity or maybe I've always been been sensitive to carbs? All I know is that carbs DO make me sleepy and effect my gerd.

SO, HOW DO I FEEL?
so far so good. The hcl + enzyme is helping me reduce gerd. The keto diet helped me because apparently I am sensitive to certain carbs. I have been exercising every other day and I see some improvement in energy. I don't feel as sick when I stand up although sometimes I would feel a small headache but maybe that is because I lay down a lot. In terms of laying down, I don't really get bad gerd when I lay flat anymore. Matter in fact, today I did not eat for more than 8 hours! which is a big deal because usually I get very dizzy if I pass the 2-4 hour mark. I feel like my body is slowly starting to get its nutrients again and is producing its own acid. To note, I am not 100% but its promising so far. I feel like im 70%, 2 months ago I felt 40% sick to my stomach everyday.

OTHER COMMENTS?
Watching Dr. John Bergman videos on youtube has really helped me understand my body and why it is reacting the way it is. I highly recommended seeing his presentations because its such an eye opener to the health system. He has good videos on how to restore your body out of gerd or sibo and also others things!

heres one of his videos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iq4mvgFIUb8

Post Edited (k1m11) : 9/21/2016 9:52:04 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 9/28/2016 3:47 AM (GMT 0)
UPDATE 9/27/2016

Okay, its been a week since my last post. I try to update at least Bi-Weekly but I forget sometimes.
Anyways, Iv'e been strictly on keto diet and have not been eating wheat carbs. I still eat fruit based carbs though. I had not gotten the really tired feeling when I ate wheat based carbs since last week. I am more convinced that I am sensitive to wheat based carbs (carbs without fiber, enzymes, etc) and that it makes me sleepy/tired. I stopped eating eggs 2 weeks ago because I am allergic to them. I recently read that if your allergic to eggs you are also more likely to be sensitive to wheat. Although for years I knew I was lactose intolerant, I have been eating cheese all my life even though I dont get diarrhea consuming them. Well I decided to stop eating cheese because I read that you don't have to have extreme symptoms like diarrhea to be sensitive to cheese. Basically, just because you don't notice anything doesn't mean its not hurting your digestive tract (I'm a big cheese eater). I also noticed my GERD feels better when I don't drink too much water. Iv'e been trying to drink less and less water when I eat to the point that I sometimes drink 1/4 of a water bottle. I only drink water 30 minutes to 1 hour after eating. I read that our ancestors never really drank water when they go eat. It makes sense because when they hunt the food they eat it there and they drink water later. They dont have both at the same time. I still feel okay. I still have occasional GERD but it is not severe. At WORST my symptoms would be mild gerd,mild dizziness, and slight anxiety which is an improvement because I used to suffer severe symptoms on the daily. I can actually manage my symptoms now. In regards to the HCL 650 mg tablets. I have not been taking too much or needed them. The other day when I took 1 HCL tablet with a meal my stomach started to mildly burn. Since it was uncomfortable, I stopped taking it immediately because that is a sign that I am having enough acid for the first time! I occasionally take the enzyme tablets with food but I forget sometimes. for the past 2 days, I have been eating without taking HCL tablet and I am not getting any bad GERD symptoms. I will try to continue taking enzyme though because that tablet has small amounts of HCL in it. Basically, I'm trying to taper off HCL slowly.

MY BASIC DAILY ROUTINE FOR GERD:

1) Eat Keto diet > I mainly eat chicken, butter, and fruits like banana, water melon, avocado
No dairy, No wheat > No eggs, breads, pasta. I do consume carbs from fruits though because its healthy carbs
Only drink 1/4 water bottle during a meal, drink 30 minutes to 1 hour after a meal
Write down how many calories I'm taking per meal, make sure I'm getting my daily calories
Take HCL or Enzyme tablet in middle of a meal

2) Light exercise every other day (I'm starting to exercise daily now since I'm getting energy for some reason)

3) Watch ASMR videos on youtube to calm my anxiety (Actually works surprisingly LOL) need headphones BTW

This is what I do for GERD and it usually changes if I find something isn't working
Posted 10/11/2016 2:21 AM (GMT 0)
10/10/2016 UPDATE

For the past few days I have not really been taking HCL tablets anymore (havent taken it for a 1.5 weeks+) since I believe I will get a burning in my stomach for just taking one 650 mg. I also don't have a lower dose tablet like a 250 mg to take anyways. For enzymes, I sometimes take them every other meal but I tend to take them if im eating fats with proteins and some carbs (on diverse meals).
I admit I was not sticking to my diet this week and I felt a few mild symptoms but I'm coming back on track. In terms of gluten sensitivity, I only have eaten a few foods that "may" have contained gluten like corn taco shells and rice but I heard they do not have gluten in them. Wheat, barley, and rye contain gluten while corn and rice are not in that family of plant and don't contain gluten from what I read.
So far I'm feeling not much better or at least the same 2 weeks ago. I do not notice a big difference.
I'm still mainly on my keto diet and if I do eat carbs its very low probably <50g of carbs per day.

MINOR things I've noticed:
I don't really need HCL 650 mg anymore (or maybe this is a major thing, not sure)
I don't take enzymes as much (although, I think they are helping).
My gerd symptoms got a little bit better but not by much.
Anxiety levels went down a little

CURRENTLY:
I'm in the process of trying to eliminate the hcl and enzyme tablets. Right now, I am not taking any of them. I also will not drink water at all 30 min before, during, and 30 min after eating a meal. So far I have not gotten a bad gerd symptom! when I do its minor. The reason I am not drinking any water is because I'm following DR. John Bergman advice to not drink water so it wont dilute the stomach acid. Surprisingly, it seems to be working but I'm not too sure yet. Also, I'm trying to avoid watery foods like watermelon or soup. In terms of constipation because of not drinking water, I eat banana with almost every meal.

I HIGHLY RECOMMEND WATCHING THESE CHANNELS IN YOUTUBE:

Alot of doctors these days are not up to date with science specially about GERD

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8RPuonNxq2lMb8zMvo7Xxw

https://www.youtube.com/user/drericberg123
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