Stomach Ulcers: Causes, Symptoms And Prevention

Stomach ulcers are one of the most commonly reported medical conditions in our world today. They are sometimes called names such as: duodenal ulcers, gastric ulcers or peptic ulcers. These sores or rather open wounds, commonly occur either on the stomach lining or anywhere on the intestines, beyond the stomach.

For many years, people harbored lots of beliefs concerning the causes of this medical condition that were simply just myths. They had no scientific backing at all.

For instance the belief that these stomach ulcers often occur as a result of poor diet (skipping meals due to one reason or the other) or as a result of too much stress and habits like smoking.

However, further studies have shown that these long held opinions around the illness has very little or nothing to do with it.

Would you like to know the real causes of stomach ulcers? Discover that in the next section below.

Causes Of Stomach Ulcer

“What truly causes stomach ulcers?” People have wondered for many years.

According to several scientific studies, this medical condition is not directly caused by much stress, too much smoking or poor diet as popularly believed.

As a matter of fact, researchers have discovered that stomach ulcers are caused by the 3 major things below:

•Cancer: As shown by previous studies, the presence of stomach cancer may be seen as an ulcer in that region. This is mostly true especially for elderly persons.

•NSAIDs Medications: Certain types of medications have been linked to about two fifths of this medical condition known as stomach ulcers. Some of those medications include: drugs taken in order to protect the body against stroke, heart attack or to cure arthritis.

About two-fifth of all the cases of stomach ulcers reported, have been traced to these NSAIDs like Aspirin, Ibuprofen etc.

•The Bacteria Helicopter Pylori: More than 90% of all cases of duodenal ulcers and about 60% of stomach ulcers, have been traced to the bacteria known as Helicobacter Pylori.

The micro organism produces chemicals in the stomach lining where it lives. According to researches, these chemical productions usually irritate the lining of the stomach and as well cause inflammations there.

The germs have also been discovered to play a major role in causing gastritis and indigestion as a result of their activities in the stomach.

The discovery of these organisms in the stomach lining in 1983 finally put to rest so many assumptions and myths surrounding stomach ulcers. It also marked the beginning of the success witnessed so far in the treatment of the medical condition.

Signs You May Be Having A Stomach Ulcer

How do I know if I am having an ulcer in my stomach? What are the signs or symptoms to watch out for?

For one reason or the other, some of the symptoms/signs of these stomach ulcers are not always noticeable in the early stages of the illness. That is one reason you should seek for help the moment you start noticing any of the signs or symptoms listed below:

•Severe pains around the abdomen

•Constant indigestion, nausea and vomiting.

•The presence of blood in vomit or excreta

•Inability to eat properly due to lack of appetite

•Unexplainable weight loss and light-headedness.

Helpful Tips For The Prevention Of Stomach Ulcers

Though scientists have been able to identify Helicobacter Pylori as the major cause of stomach ulcers, no one has been able to come up with a strong evidence of how it is passed from one person to the other.

This is the major reason no one can say for sure this is how to prevent stomach ulcers. However, the following practices have been helpful both in the prevention and also the treatment.

•Eat early and avoid going to bed immediately after a meal.

•If you discover that a meal regularly irritates your stomach. The best thing to do for yourself is to start avoiding it.

•Moderate your consumption of alcohol and caffeinated products

•Always take ibuprofen, aspirin and other NSAIDS drugs with enough food. That will help reduce the risk of the drugs affecting your stomach lining by irritating it.

•Start eating only fruits and foods that help reduce the acidity of your stomach.

Final Words

Unlike what is popularly believed out there, gastric/peptic ulcers are not primarily caused by a person not eating constantly or stress alone. Researchers have through rigorous studies discovered that H. Pylori actually is the root cause of over 90 percent of the cases of the medical condition reported.

In this article we have discussed nearly everything you need to know concerning stomach ulcers, including their signs/symptoms, causes and preventive measures.

I hope you find this useful.

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