The Dangers of Ant-acid Medications.
Most of us have eaten the wrong food at one point or another and experienced the heartburn that subsequently follows it. Maybe it was a big Italian meal on a Sunday, or a Thanksgiving dinner, or chili cheese fries at the amusement park. Whatever it was caused you to be in a lot of discomfort in the hours after eating the meal. You definitely didn’t want to feel this way any longer, and so you searched through medicine cabinet for relief. “Aha! Prilosec. This should do the trick! After all, Larry the Cable Guy said it was ok…”
The story that is told to us by drug company commercials goes like this: Have heartburn? Well, we have a miracle cure for that… just take this pill and it will all go away, and then you can continue eating all the foods that your appetite desires.”
The story told by our body is a much different story. I shall tell you that story.
Once upon a time… When you drop an antacid pill down into the stomach it begins neutralizing the PH of the stomach immediately. The human stomach needs to have an acidic PH of 1.5-3.5. Ant-acids raise that PH. The rest of the story is what happens when you mess with the PH of the stomach.
- Protein Mal-digestion. The neutralization of the stomach’s PH causes the proteins in your food to become mal-digested, which over time, leads to putrefaction. Putrefaction literally means, “to rot”. Gross. This rotting of food in your gut produces toxic byproducts, and over time will lead to toxicity in your gut.
- Non-Activation of small bowel digestive enzymes. A phenomenon known as the “alkaline tide” happens when the acid from the stomach rushes into the small bowels after it leaves the stomach, and triggers the activation of enzymes in the small bowel. In the case of an acid blocker, this alkaline tide never occurs. Consequently, no digestion occurs.
- Mineral solubility. The acid in the stomach allows minerals in your food to be properly absorbed in the body by making them soluble. When the acid isn’t there… you don’t get minerals. That’s not a good situation. Your body needs minerals, particularly your bones.
- First line of defense shuts down. Part of your body’s first line of defense is the acid in your stomach. When you ingest food, you not only take in the food that you are eating, but a variety of bad bacteria and viruses. Taking away this acidity leaves you susceptible to these microorganisms. These pathogens set up shop in your small bowel and ferment the carbohydrates that you eat. So, now you have a problem with protein and carbohydrate mal-digestion. Eventually, when things get bad enough you can throw fats in there with them.
Understanding this may not be enough to put this into perspective. So let’s take a look at the long-term effects.
Protein mal-digestion: Toxic byproducts from rotting food à Cancer, Autoimmune disease, Food allergies, Decreased digestive function, and Chronic fatigue.
Decreased mineral absorption: Osteoporosis (increased risk of hip fracture by 44%), Iron deficiency Anemia
Acid doesn’t kill pathogens: Small bowel overgrowth (fermented bad bacteria), Dysbiosis, Parasitic Infections.
At the end of the day… ant-acids = a recipe for disaster. Now, go tell someone that needs to hear this.