Silent reflux from low stomach acid?

Hey art,

I think you're on to something. I had trouble swallowing, and my doctor put me on a PPI. I evaded it and tried Zantac for a bit, and my symptoms got worse, so I moved to a PPI out of fear, and my symptoms got way worse (mucus, bloating, not digesting). I've taken myself off after a month, and the mucus disapeard, as did the bloating. Feeling full really quick has not gone away, but I think it takes awhile for the stomach to recuperate.

One theory is the acid is a trigger for the lower sphincter to keep closed, but if you have low acid, the sphincter stays open and the acids/pepsin rises up.

I went to a natralpath and she recommended AOR - Gastro-Relief . It's got Vitamin C to add acid to your stomach, plus Zinc, and an algae/seaweed ingredient that forms a raft so pepsin and acid don't rise into your throat. It's in a capsule so it might be safe to swallow if you are on the low acid diet (as it won't aggravate the pepsin). I haven't tried it yet as I can't swallow capsules at this point and don't want to risk it as I'm on the low acid diet as well. I ordered Gaviscon Advance off Amazon from the UK instead as it's just pretty much the seaweed ingredient and not the anti-acid component of the American/Canadian version. It takes a month or so to get here, so I'm still waiting on it.

She also recommended drinking a bit of bitters as they promote acid production. She recommended one to me called Canadian Bitters. You just put a few drops in a shot glass of water and work your way up to the desired amount over time. In Itallian culture they drink a lot of bitter beverages (Campari) and eat bitter food as starters (like Arugula Salad) as they feel it helps with digestion.

Maybe you should supplement with a vegan protein powder if you are worried about protein. Mix the powder in with your almond milk, add some spinach/alkaline veggies and enjoy.

Hey Art,

I don't think the alkaline food matters once it's in your stomach. Your body will signal enough acid to digest it, and that acid will help signal to keep the valve closed. In my case, I believe the Zantac and PPI were the source of my low stomach acid and made my LPR/GERD worse as my stomach was unable to figure out the correct amount of acid. It wasn't until I started medical treatment that my bloating, slow digestion and mucous started. When I got off my PPI, all of those symptoms vanished over several days.

Also, I think you want to swallow alkaline food as acidic foods aggravate the pepsin in your throat/esophagus on their way down. If you want more acidic foods down there, you can try blending acidic and alkaline foods together, like blueberries on your oatmeal.

The low acid diet seems to be helping as my symptoms are slowly fading. I'm having more good hours in a day vs bad ones. I still can't swallow solids, but with a little water, everything goes down good.

The low fat is making it hard to get calories in. But fat definitely makes my GERD flare up. We also need fat to help absorb our food's nutrients, so you can always add a bit of olive oil or coconut oil to your food for those extra calories, and then just take note how it made you feel.

There's other diets that have helped people like the fast tract diet, or whole 30 diet. There's so many different ideas and trains of thought, and it's enough to make you doubt yourself and make you go crazy.

I get what you're saying about the inflamed esophagus, because it's LPR and how do you know if it's making a difference? But I also believe managing LPR/GERD starts with managing stress, and having the structure of the diet certainly makes me feel like I'm taking positive steps.

Hi all, just like to say I empathise with everyone on here. I've been suffering with some breathing problems for around 6 months now, globus feeling in chest, very dry sinuses, bloodshot eye which went on for ages. I was taking 30mg lansaprazole but we'd just got back to the UK from the far east where these breathing difficulties had started which was mid March. I put it down to the high heat and AC all over the place in Bangkok but when we got home it never improved. Wake up with a feeling of mucus to my upper chest, get a shower which would go someway to clearing the mucus away then I'd be fine. I then go up the gym, come home and shower again, still fine then have a sarnie and a bag of crisps and then it starts all over again, build up of mucus and creating difficulty breathing, dryness in sinuses and throat.
Anyway, I went to see the GP and he says we better stop the lansaprazole @30mg and gave me Omeprazole @ 20mg to be taken twice a day.Well, I think things improved for a bit but I'm back where I started really. Been back to a new GP now as old one has left and she gave me a steroid nasal spray. Again, slight improvement for a bit but back to square one again.
Then I came across a website called "Bottomline Clinic", I think it's in America if I remember correctly and this Doctor talks about airway reflux and its symptoms and how it's mainly due to low stomach acid. The way he describes everything is exactly how i feel. Now if i'm suffering from low stomach acid then the omeprazole would be exacerbating my problem wouldn't it? Anyway, he goes on to recommend some pills to boost the acid or at least help it along. So, i've cut out the 2nd omeprazole that I should be taking, I have just been taking one in the morning for about 3 days now and although I'm not 100% I do feel there's some improvement going on, I feel not too bad at all at the moment, fingers crossed of course,LOL
I'll be away to see my GP later on this week to see what she thinks. Just thought i'd put it out there so please, by all means take on board what I've said, visit the Bottomline clinic website and have a read and make sure you consult with your GP before you do anything, onwards and upwards, good luck.