Content

• Steps
• Advice
• Warning

Ulcers are lesions that appear on the skin or body lining. Ulcers that occur in the stomach or small intestine are called peptic ulcers or stomach ulcers. Stomach ulcers are caused by factors related to lifestyle such as diet and stress or due to excess stomach acid. However, gastric ulcers occur mostly due to an infection with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). The symptoms of a stomach ulcer can have different severity levels from person to person. Sometimes a peptic ulcer has no symptoms, meaning that the person with the ulcer does not have any symptoms of stomach ulcers.

Steps

Part 1 of 2: Symptom Recognition

1. 

   Pay attention to pain in the abdomen between the sternum and the navel. The severity and duration of pain can vary from person to person, and pain can last from a few minutes to a few hours in any location. The pain usually appears between meals, when your stomach is empty. You will feel a burning pain or a knife stab.
   • Sometimes the pain from a stomach ulcer is temporarily relieved by eating foods that help buffer the acid in the stomach or taking an OTC antacid (over-the-counter medicine).
   • If you have a stomach ulcer, the pain can happen at night and when you are hungry.

2. 

   
   
   Watch for other symptoms of peptic ulcers. Not all of these symptoms appear in everyone, but you may experience some of them:
   • Flatulence and heartburn.
   • Feeling full and unable to drink much water.
   • Feeling hungry a few hours after eating.
   • A little nauseous, especially when you first get out of bed in the morning.
   • Tired and unwell.
   • Loss of appetite.
   • Weight loss.

3. 

   
   
   Recognize the symptoms of severe stomach ulcers. Having a stomach ulcer without treatment will lead to internal bleeding and other problems that will require you to go to the emergency room.
   • Vomiting, especially vomiting of blood, can be a sign of the severity of a stomach ulcer.
   • Loose, dark, and tar-like stools are also a sign of serious stomach ulcers.
   • There is blood in the stool.

4. 

   
   
   See your doctor if you experience any of the symptoms of peptic ulcer disease. Stomach ulcers are a serious illness and require medical treatment. OTC medications can only provide temporary relief, but cannot cure the disease completely.

5. 

   Know if you are at risk for an ulcer. Although stomach ulcers are caused by many causes, those at high risk include:
   • People infected with H. pylori bacteria.
   • People who regularly take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen, aspirin, or naproxen.
   • People with a family history of stomach ulcers.
   • People who regularly drink alcohol.
   • People with liver, kidney, or lung disease.
   • People over 50 years old
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Part 2 of 2: Quick Pain Relief Tips for People with Stomach Ulcers

1. 

   Make an appointment to see your doctor. Most peptic ulcers can repair on their own. However, for severe ulcers you will need to be diagnosed and treated endoscopically. An endoscopy is a method of inserting a small, lighted tube down your esophagus and only your doctor can perform a colonoscopy. As you wait for your appointment, take these quick pain relief tips.

2. 

   Take an acid blocker. Peptic ulcers are caused by an imbalance between digestive fluids in the stomach and duodenum. Therefore, acid-blocking medications are sometimes recommended by doctors if the symptoms of a stomach ulcer are more severe.

3. 

   Change some habits. Stop smoking, drinking, and taking NSAIDs. Smoking and drinking alcohol can both cause an imbalance in digestive juices, while taking high doses of NSAIDs can disrupt it. Stop all 3 of these bad habits while waiting for your doctor's diagnosis.
4. Eat a balanced, healthy diet. Eating more often or focusing on a certain food group like dairy can help you feel temporarily comfortable, but in the end it will cause your body to produce more stomach acids. Focus on a healthy, balanced diet rich in protein, unsaturated fats, and complex carbohydrates. Try to incorporate fruits and vegetables into your meals, choose whole grains whenever possible, and eat lean protein.
   • Avoid foods that make you uncomfortable. For many people, these foods include coffee, caffeinated drinks, oily foods, chocolate, and spicy foods.
   • Try to eat and drink regularly. Avoid late night snacking.

5. 

   Do not drink milk. Drinking milk may help temporarily soothe a stomach ulcer, but it feels like you are taking one step back but two steps back in the treatment of peptic ulcers. Milk may fill the stomach for a short period of time, but it will also stimulate the production of more stomach acids and worsen stomach ulcers. advertisement

Advice

• A significant proportion of peptic ulcer disease is not caused directly by stress or from diet but by the bacterium Helicobacter pylori, and it is not a virus at all. The Nobel Prize was awarded to two Australian scientists, Barry Marshall and Robin Warren, for this discovery.
• Another common cause of peptic ulcers is that the body's mucous membranes are so thin and so sensitive that they are susceptible to it break. The break This exposes the stomach wall to acids that were removed by the mucous membrane. There are many prescription and OTC drugs that can thin the mucus membranes. Aspirin, NSAIDs, and some synthetic blood thinners are among the corrosive agents of mucous membranes.
• Before discovering a link between H. pylori bacteria and stomach ulcers, doctors still advised patients to control ulcers with a healthy diet and unhealthy lifestyle changes. Although most stomach ulcers are caused by bacteria, an unscientific lifestyle and diet can make the condition worse. Regular stress management with prayer, yoga, meditation, exercise, eating a balanced and healthy diet, low in fat and spices can help you manage stomach ulcers symptoms. thick.

Warning

• The following factors may increase your risk of stomach ulcers: drinking alcohol, smoking, taking aspirin, ibuprofen or other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), excessive stress, and radiation therapy. . All of the above factors have been identified as possible abrasion mucous membranes of the body including the lining of the stomach.
• If left untreated, the ulcer can erode the walls of the stomach and small intestine, causing internal bleeding, perforation or obstruction of the digestive system.