During digestion, stomach acid can get as low as a pH of 1.  This is the acidity level of battery acid!  There are many reasons that this acid level is important.

First, the enzymes that begin the breakdown of proteins in your food work best in this acidic environment.

Second, the acidity protects us by killing the bacteria and other pathogens that we ingest with our food. Remember our food is not sterile! We need many protective features throughout the track to ensure that we don’t get sick from the critters that come in with the food we eat.

Thirdly, the acidity in the stomach is necessary for beginning the process we need for vitamin B12 and mineral absorption.  This is why people on acid blockers can get more infections, are more prone to osteoporosis (weakened bones) and can have much lower levels of B12 which results in fatigue.

We begin treatment of IBS/SIBO with the GI Janel Digest A supplement because it is a perfect clinical trial to determine the strength of the stomach lining.

Backing up a little, THE pH OF THE STOMACH SECRETIONS CAN BE AS STRONG AS BATTERY ACID.  If this is the case, we need to have a lot of protection lining the stomach so that we don’t burn a hole right through it (this is what an ulcer is). This protection is in the form of a mucous layer.

If you take the GI Janel Digest A and feel a burning or GERD (gastrointestinal reflux) then you are either experiencing hyperchlorhydria (high stomach acid secretion) which is very rare, especially in IBS/SIBO or the protective lining of your stomach is not strong enough to handle even normal acidity. This is much more common. If this is the case, then what needs to occur is a lot of healing of the stomach lining as a part of your protocol.

If on the other hand, you take the GI Janel Digest A and do not experience burning or GERD, then keep taking it with your meals.  You are replacing the initial phase of digestion, which triggers the subsequent phases as your food moves through the tract. You are improving your ability to absorb minerals, B12 and you are improving your protection from infection.

References

Stiefel, U., R.L.P. Jump, and C.J. Donskey. 2006. Suppression of gastric acid production by proton pump inhibitor treatment facilitates colonization of the large intestine by vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus and Klebsiella pneumoniae in clindamycin-treated mice (Abstract B-1123). 46th Interscience Conference on Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. Sept. 27-30. San Francisco . Abstract .

Dial S, Delaney JA, Barkun AN, Suissa S. Use of gastric acid-suppressive agents and the risk of community-acquired Clostridium difficile-associated disease. JAMA. 2005 Dec 21;294(23):2989-95.

Laheij, R.J., et al . 2004. Risk of community-acquired pneumonia and use of gastric acid-suppressive drugs. Journal of the American Medical Association 292(Oct. 27):1955-1960. Available at http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/292/16/1955 .

Yang, Y.-X. . . . and D.C. Metz . 2006. Long-term proton pump inhibitor therapy and risk of hip fracture. Journal of the American Medical Association 296(Dec. 27):2947-2953. Abstract available at http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/abstract/296/24/2947 .

Ann Pharmacother. 2002 May;36(5):812-6.

Vitamin B(12) deficiency associated with histamine(2)-receptor antagonists and a proton-pump inhibitor. Ruscin JM, Page RL 2nd, Valuck RJ.

J Clin Epidemiol. 2004 Apr;57(4):422-8. A case-control study on adverse effects: H2 blocker or proton pump inhibitor use and risk of vitamin B12 deficiency in older adults.