Why hydrochloric acid (HCl) is crucial and how it affects the language your body speaks.
Stacy Nichols
I really wanted to work out today, I have deadlines to meet, emails to answer and it is 2pm and I haven't eaten yet. Stress, lack of exercise, bad dietary habits and just feeling like you are being pulled in too many directions can cause a downward spiral of gastrointestinal (GI) health challenges. Your gut feels like it is in knots, maybe you have heartburn or indigestion, and fluctuate day to day with constipation or diarrhea.
I really wanted to work out today, I have deadlines to meet, emails to answer and it is 2pm and I haven't eaten yet. Stress, lack of exercise, bad dietary habits and just feeling like you are being pulled in too many directions can cause a downward spiral of gastrointestinal (GI) health challenges. Your gut feels like it is in knots, maybe you have heartburn or indigestion, and fluctuate day to day with constipation or diarrhea.
Harmony and Balance
Everything our gut encounters outside or inside our body is being interpreted by our microbiome, our most abundant storehouse of genetic material. How we nurture our body inside and out will drive the response of the unique genetic material of our microbiome.Some of the fields of study examining these cleverly orchestrated events are epigenetics and nutrigenomics, and hydrochloric acid (HCl) is a major instrument conducting many reactions throughout the body and influencing your microbiome.
Gastric Disorders
Hypochlorhydria (absent or low HCl) is prevalent in gastroesophageal disorder (GERD), and in 2013 18% - 27% adults suffer with GERD. In the U.S. 60 to 70 million people are affected by GI diseases, and gastric disorders account for 72 million ambulatory care visits, 4.6 million hospitalizations, and 236,000 deaths. Highest occurrence of colorectal cancer in the world—Connecticut, and in 2004 an estimated $142 billion per year was spent on gastric disorders in the U.S., and the number of cases and costs associated with gastric disorders have steadily increased since 2004.
Negating HCl by chronically using antacids like Tums or Rolaids, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) like omeprazole (Prilosec) and esomeprazole (Nexium) and other PPIs, or H2 blockers like famotidine (Pepcid) or cimetidine (Tagamet) and other H2 blockers can have damaging effects on the body. Stress from too much cortisol can also inhibit HCl production.
Hard fact to swallow—much of the world population suffers from too little HCl.
I thought stomach acid was bad for me.
Stomach acid produced from undigested food is due largely to lack of HCl. The undigested contents ferment and cause pressure to build inside the stomach. HCl is needed to digest food, particularly proteins which contain amino acids—amino acids are utilized as catalysts to aid in cellular metabolism and are precursors in the production of many neurotransmitters.
In fact, your gut contains more neurotransmitters than your brain.
If your gut isn’t happy, your brain isn’t happy.
The Good, Bad and Ugly
“Say hello to your little friends—your microbiome”.
The human microbiome—75%— is largely contained in the gastrointestinal tract(GIT) and consists of 30 trillion cells of various bacterial species. Some of these bacterial species are commensal (good bacteria) and some are pathogenic (bad bacteria). The balance between the good and bad bacteria is at work 24/7 in our body. It becomes ugly when the bad bacteria start to outnumber and take over the good bacteria—inflammation, sickness, fever, nausea, vomiting and so much more arises due to this harmful imbalance in the microbiome.
The human microbiome varies between individuals due to biochemical individuality, environment, and diet and contains 99% of our DNA—vastly more unique than our own DNA in our cells. One dose of antibiotics can imbalance your microbiome up to four years if not corrected! Steroids like prednisone and NSAIDS like aspirin, Ibuprofen, or naproxen can damage the lining of the stomach, interfere with HCl production and can profoundly affect the microbiome.
Benefits of HCl
HCl helps absorption of many vitamins and minerals like B12, folic acid, iron, magnesium, calcium and zinc—improving bone density. HCl activates release of pancreatic enzymes needed for digestionwhile simultaneously signaling the gallbladder to release bile. HCl prompts the sphincters above and below the stomach to open and close to allow food in and to push food out. HCl also provides first-line immunity against pathogenic bacteria from wreaking havoc further down in the GI tract. Having the necessary amount of HCl for digestion and protection can improve the efficiency of so many reactions and pathways that occur within in us even without us realizing it. Now is the time to tune your body to hear when the “music being played” [by your gut and microbiome] is off key or music to your ears—or rather to your gut.
B.I.D. (Breaking It Down—no pun intended)
- HCl is a major player in many reactions that occur throughout the body
- Hypochlorhydria is absent or low HCl
- Without the right amount of HCl we cannot breakdown and absorb nutrients
- Gastric disorders affect people worldwide—the U.S. has the most GI disorders
- The microbiome is affected by levels of HCl—influences immunity and much more
- Our microbiome is like our fingerprints—varies from person to person
- HCl can affect neurotransmitter production—important for brain cognition
- “If your gut isn’t happy, your brain isn’t happy”
A.C.T. (Absorb Content Today)
- Consume fermented foods and drinks—caution if you have candidiasis
- Minimize drinking a lot of fluid with meals—fluids at least 30 minutes after meals
- Ginger, peppermint, digestive enzymes,bitters, apple cider vinegar (ACV) and Betaine HCl (if no active ulcers) are helpful digestive aids
- Take a high-quality probiotic—not all probiotics are helpful, some can make problem worse
- Eat in a relaxed, non-hurried manner
Sources
Andrei, M. N. (2015). Intestinal Microbiome, Small Intestinal Bacterial Overgrowth and Inflammatory Bowel Diseases - What are the Connections? Current Health Sciences Journal, 41(3), 197-203. doi:10.12865/CHSJ.41.03.
Arora, S. &. (2016). Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Epidemiology. In S. Huber, & S. Huber (Ed.), New Insights into Inflammatory Bowel Disease (pp. 3-20). Croatia: InTech. doi:10.5772/64313
Beasley, D. K. (2015). The Evolution of Stomach Acidity and Its Relevance to the Human Microbiome. PLOS ONE, 10(7), e0134116. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0134116
Boland, M. G. (2014). Food structures, digestion and health. Waltham, MA: Academic Press.
D’Argenio, V. &. (2015). The role of the gut microbiome in the healthy adult status. Clinica Chimica Acta (2015), 451(Part A), 97–102. doi:10.1016/j.cca.2015.01.003
El-Serag, H. S. (2013, Jul). Update on the epidemiology of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease: a systematic review. Gut, 1. doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2012-304269
Gerard, P. (2013). Metabolism of Cholesterol and Bile Acids by the Gut Microbiota. Pathogens, 14-24. doi:10.3390/pathogens3010014
Greger, M. (2015). How Not to Die. New York: Flatiron Books.
Guggenheim, D. &. (2013). Gastric Cancer Epidemiology and Risk Factors. Journal of Surgical Oncology, 107, 230–236. doi:10.1002/jso.23262
Hawrelak, J. &. (2004). The Causes of Intestinal Dysbiosis:. Alternative Medicine Review, 9(2), 180-197. Retrieved from http://www.anaturalhealingcenter.com/documents/Thorne/articles/intestinal_dysbiosis9-2.pdf
Hullar, M. &. (2014). Diet, the Gut Microbiome, and Epigenetics. The Cancer Journal, 20(3), 170–175. doi:10.1097/PPO.0000000000000053
Jockers, D. (2017, 09 03). 10 Ways to Improve Stomach Acid Levels. Retrieved from drjockers.com: http://drjockers.com/causes-and-symptoms-of-low-stomach-acid/
Lipski, E. (2012). Digestive wellness, strengthen the immune system and prevent disease through healthy digestion (4th ed.). New York: McGraw Hill.
Mandal, R. S. (2015). Metagenomic Surveys of Gut Microbiota. Genomics, Proteomics & Bioinformatics, 13(3), 148–158. doi:10.1016/j.gpb.2015.02.005
Mullin, G. (2011). Integrative Gastroenterology. New York: Oxford University Press.
Nojoomi, F. &. (2016). Effect of Overgrowth or Decrease in Gut Microbiota on Health and Disease. Arch Pediatr Infect Dis., 4(2), e34558. doi:10.5812/pedinfect.34558
Peery, A. D. (2012). Burden of Gastrointestinal Disease in the United States: 2012 Update. Gastroenterology, 143, 1179–1187. doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2012.08.002
Perlmutter, D. &. (2015). Brain Maker, The Power of Gut Microbes to Heal and Protect Your Brain-for Life. New York: Little, Brown and Company, Hachette Book Group.
Quest, C. (2017). The Microbiome and Cancer. Cancer Quest, 1-7. Retrieved from https://www.cancerquest.org/cancer-biology/microbiome
Tollefsbol, T. (2015). Personalized Epiginetics. London: Elesevier Inc.
Wright, J. V. (2001). Why Stomach Acid is Good for You, Natural Relief from Heartburn, Indigestion, Reflux & GERD. Lanham: M.Evans, An imprint of The Rowan & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
Stacy Nichols, RN, BSN, MSHN, ROHP Stacy Nichols enjoys researching and learning about nutritional science, epigenetics and nutrigenomics and how to apply findings in “real-time” physically, mentally and spiritually. She is the owner, founder and health practitioner at H3U Family Fitness & Nutrition.