ABOUT Peptic Ulcer Disease - Causes and Treatment
What Is Peptic Ulcer Disease?
It's the medical term for an ulcer. An ulcer is a break
in the membrane of your stomach or small intestine. The walls of your digestive
tract are typically made up of layers, with mucus that lines them acting as a protective
barrier.
The lining becomes inflamed and starts to break down,
allowing acid to escape into the tissue below. This can cause pain and
discomfort, indigestion, ulcers, bleeding, and infection in the stomach or
intestine.
Peptic Ulcer Disease affects over 70% of Americans at
some point in their lives; it's also one of America's most common causes for
hospitalization (which means it's an ability-impairing condition).
The statistics are staggering; nearly 1% of the
population gets an ulcer every year, and over 200 million Americans have one or
more ulcers.
So What Causes Peptic Ulcer Disease?
The exact cause of PUD is not known, but it's thought
that stomach acid production is your body's attempt to defend itself against
bacteria.
You can think of stomach acid as something similar to
the immune system; it's designed to attack bacteria and make them unable to
"stomach" (make it difficult for them to live, grow, multiply).
The problem is, PUD develops when the immune system can
fight off all the bacteria that would normally cause an ulcer. This leads to an
overproducing stomach acid, which leads to the breakdown of the lining of the
stomach and intestines.
There are some causes for Peptic Ulcer Disease that are
related to the immune system. For example, some people get PUD after having a
viral infection. Or if they have a very strong immune system (such as someone
who is sick with AIDS).
But for most people who get PUD, it's thought that
their body's immune system is working normally enough that it should be able to
get rid of all the bacteria that would cause an ulcer.
It's not fully understood why some people get peptic
ulcers and others don't, but several different factors have been linked to the
development of a peptic ulcer.
Some of these risk factors include: being older than
50, smoking, drinking large amounts of alcohol, being stressed out or having
anxiety/depression, being underweight or overweight, taking anti-inflammatory
medications with bleeding as a side effect (such as aspirin), having Helicobacter
pylori bacteria in your stomach, and taking NSAIDs (nonsteroidal
anti-inflammatory drugs).
So there are a lot of things that can make you more
likely to get a peptic ulcer. If you take any of these things, you're more
likely to get one.
Even if nothing else is happening that might cause your
stomach to hurt, it's still likely that the right amount of stress or other
risks (like alcohol or smoking) will trigger an ulcer.
Also, if you take certain medications—especially if
they contain ibuprofen (Advil®, Motrin®) or aspirin—you're more likely to get
PUD.
So What Can Help?
There are a few things that can help to prevent getting
PUD.
First, you should be eating a healthy diet. Eating well
is so important because it helps to maintain the lining of your stomach and
intestines.
You can get PUD if your body doesn't get the right
nutrients. Good eating habits include eating plenty of fruits, vegetables,
whole grains, and drinking plenty of water.
If you're not eating enough healthy things (like
fiber), you'll be more likely to experience stomach pain or other GI issues
like heartburn or diarrhea.
Secondly, get regular check-ups (like this test) for
food allergies and stress/anxiety disorders (that could make you excessively
nervous).
Frequently Asked Questions
What Is A Peptic Ulcer?
It's a break in the mucous lining of your stomach,
small intestine, or both. Mucus lines the inside of your digestive tract to
help protect it from germs and other foreign substances.
It's made up of layers that keep the bad stuff out, and
it becomes inflamed when there are too many germs or stress.
This causes acid to leak into the tissues around the
ulcer. If you have pain, bloating, nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, or
diarrhea from this irritation, you have a peptic ulcer.
What Causes Peptic Ulcers?
The exact cause of peptic ulcers is not known. It's
thought that an overactive immune system is partly to blame. Overproduction of
stomach acid and/or a change in the lining of your digestive tract may
contribute to ulcers.
Some factors that can increase your risk include: being
older than 50, smoking, drinking large amounts of alcohol, having a strong
immune system (such as someone who is sick with AIDS), and abusing NSAIDs—such
as aspirin, Motrin®, or Advil®—that contain ibuprofen (Advil®, Motrin®).
