bigcat@meeow.co.uk (N. Thornton) wrote in message
news:<a7076635.0202100857.5142e6cb@posting.google.com>...
> Hi Martin.
>
> The problem was one of dreadful intestinal pain after eating
> most foods. The only way to avoid the pain was a diet of
> cooked grains and yogurt. Conventional medicine had only
> provided antispasmodics and acid reducing drugs
> (omeprazole), which had only a limited effect.
Hi N, thanks for replying. Conventional medicine deals with
symptoms rather than the cause because the cause is not known
for most cases of indigestion (acid reflux).
> The solution was a course of mixed digesting enzymes, a
> plant source pancreatic enzyme replacement. It contained
> lipase, amylase, protease, and I think lactase. I can't
> remember off hand if there were one or two others in there
> as well.
Okay, you found something that worked.
> My conclusion had been that lack of pancreatic enzymes was
> one of the possible causes, and from the successful results
> I take it that it was. A normal diet is now possible with no
> further supplementatin, with the one exception of nuts,
> which are still a problem to some extent. 150 GDU of
> Bromelain taken when eating nuts resolves the remaining nut
> problem.
Nut protein is highly undigestable, even for a "normal"
person. Bromelain is a stable protease from pineapple that
appears to be able to work in the stomach and small intestine.
> I personally believe in using methods that are proven to
> work. For me the science is in the results, not in the
> theory. So I believe in treatments for which there is good
> evidence. Note this is not necessarily the same as proof.
> Double blind trials are not the only source of evidence.
What worked for you may not work for someone else. That's
where science comes in.
> But in serious cases, when all the proven treatments have
> been exhauseted, there is sometimes a place for a small
> number of unproven ones, where there is evidence (not proof)
> that they may work.
You can find literature supporting the efficacy of some plant
enzymes. My Aunt was just diagnosed with acid reflux disease.
At her age, too little acid rather than too much acid should
be her problem. The diet that her doctor prescribed was
basically the same as I sent to my Mother. Proton-pump
inhibitor drug therapy is what is being used. Again physicians
will treat the symptom rather than the cause.
There are very good natural treatments for acid reflux with
many of the components having been tested in human clinical
trials. Digestive enzymes don't really have the potential to
handle the true cause of acid reflux but they can help and
do not decrease mineral absorption like proton-pump
inhibitors do.
> I am interested to hear what you are doing with enzymes, I
> have the feeling it might be something quite different to
> what's mentioned here.
>
>
> Regards, NT
My interest is human nutrition. Acid reflux has been a problem
for humans since recorded human history. Ancient healers found
a way to deal with it. Modern medicine is confirming that many
of these ancient healing approaches work.
I don't know if Steve Harris will jump into this thread or not
but I just spent a lot of time in medline going over acid
reflux to see if what IBIS uses has any validity.
The most likely cause of acid reflux is a spastic duodenum.
Lowering the acid level of the food coming out of the stomach
will help but that lowers mineral absorption. Ginger works a
lot better.
Licorice also helps but it's action is in the stomach, not the
small intestine. Protein is a buffer but if you improve
protein digestion in the stomach (bromelain) you improve the
buffering action of protein.
I've not found a digestive enzyme supplement that I liked.
That does not mean that some can't help but if you understand
what is going on you have a better chance of using something
better designed for the problem.
Personally, I think that the only people who need animal
digestive enzymes are patients with cystic fibrosis.
Plant enzymes and herbs have been used to treat acid reflux
for thousands of years. Neither conventional nor alternative
medicine have it right (in my humble opinion).
Conventional medicine has completely forgotten the past (food
and herbs to treat human disease) and alternative healers have
fallen into the same trap (do not go back far enough to find
what did work in ancient medicine).
For every disease I always go back and try to see if modern
science can show any effectiveness for these ancient
treatments.
Bromelain, licorice and ginger should work very well for
acid reflux but I have yet to find a supplement company
producing this mix.
There are other causes of acid reflux beside a spastic
duodenum and these other potential causes need to be ruled out
by a physician before any alternative treatment is attempted.
Once a doctor rules out all the known causes, a proton-pump
inhibitor is often prescribed. If this did not decrease
mineral absorption, I would not be indicating that there is an
alternative treatment.
I'm glad that you got relief. I don't have a problem with
people saying that this is what worked for me. From a medicine
(science) perspective it has no real meaning. If you were
practicing alternative medicine or trying to sell digestive
enzyme supplements, my response would be different.
My goal is to try to understand why some alternative
therapies may work. Most of these "healers" say that it makes
no difference why their treatment works, they know that it
works so they will continue to use it. If you understand the
area of alternative medicine you know that it is ripe with
fraud and quackery.
I try to cut through the fog and see if there is any validity
(is there published data supporting an action?).
Good old John says that this makes me a science geek. I kind
of like the label. I am a science nut trying to see if the
past holds the key to our current health.