Many people are surprised to learn that there are more bacteria in the body than our own cells! (up to a 10:1 ratio!) Most of these bacteria are components needed to maintain human health--the so-called microbiome. The microbiome can affect a person's overall health and weight. The microbiome can also affect the risk of diseases such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity, and stroke. On the other hand, bacteria can also cause various infections that interfere with a person's health. Heliobacter pylori or H. pylori is one of the bacteria that can cause stomach ulcers or duodenal ulcers. H. pylori infects so many people, and causes ulcers in many of them. In fact, although stress, spicy foods, alcohol, and smoking were once believed to cause ulcers, the vast majority of ulcers in the digestive tract are actually caused by these bacteria.
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Method 1 of 3: Natural Treatment
Step 1. Understand the limitations of natural remedies
Natural H. pylori treatment focuses on a nutritious diet, utilizing basic principles of personal hygiene, and the use of medicinal plants, probiotics, and other supplements. This approach has not been shown to treat H. pylori, but it may help prevent and treat the infection. Natural remedies can also help relieve your symptoms.
Step 2. Eat a balanced diet
Whole, unprocessed foods are recommended as a source of nutrients that will stimulate the immune system, stimulate and support the growth of the microbiome, and maintain the acidity of the stomach in your body. A healthy diet includes:
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High quality protein:
- Small to moderate amounts of red meat (preferably from grass-fed animals)
- Poultry without skin in moderation
- Pork in small to medium quantities
- Moderate to large amounts of fish
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Fresh fruits and vegetables (various colors)
In particular, broccoli is rich in the chemical compound sulfur, which is effective in killing H. pylori
- Beans and legumes such as lentils
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Complex carbohydrates contained in:
- Vegetables
- Whole grain foods
- Whole grains like brown rice and quinoa
- Beans and legumes
Step 3. Drink plenty of water
Drinking plenty of water is part of a healthy diet. You should try to drink at least 6-8 glasses of water every day. Increase your water consumption when spending time in the hot sun or doing activities that make you sweat.
Step 4. Avoid processed or packaged foods
Processed and packaged foods do not provide sufficient nutrition. Food ingredients that fall into this group are foods that are processed until they are far removed from their natural form, or contain additives that are not included in the food in them.
- To check if a product is a processed or packaged food, read the list of ingredients. The longer the list of ingredients you read, the longer the process will go through. Processed foods are often sold in the middle of the supermarket. Unprocessed foods, on the other hand, are usually sold on the edge of supermarket shelves, and include nuts, fresh fruit and vegetables, brown rice, bulk foods, and foods that contain only one ingredient.
- Stay away from ready-to-eat "quick and easy" foods. Again, these foods are mostly highly processed and contain preservatives and other chemicals that are not really food.
- The point is to choose foods that are as natural as possible to consume, because some of the building blocks and preservatives in processed foods can at least suppress the immune system response.
Step 5. Get used to living clean and healthy
To reduce your risk of becoming infected with H. pylori, be sure to wash your hands, cooking utensils and eating thoroughly. Use warm water and soap to wash it. Don't lend cooking and eating utensils to anyone, and make sure everyone who cooks your food is accustomed to living clean. Wash all fruits and vegetables with warm water and soap, or a fruit and vegetable wash, then rinse thoroughly.
Step 6. Take probiotics
Probiotics are a source of all kinds of "good" bacteria and yeast that are normally found in the body's microbiome. "Good" bacteria include species of Lactobacillus, Acidophilus, Bifidobacteria, and the yeast Saccharomyces boulardii. You can take probiotics as supplements (following the instructions for use on the packaging) or mix them into your diet.
- Good sources of probiotics are fermented foods such as kefir, sauerkraut, pickles, kombucha (fermented tea), tempeh, kimchi and other foods such as yogurt, miso soup, poi, asparagus, leeks, and onions. Include these foods in your diet at least 2-3 times a week.
- 2-3 times a week, you can also add prebiotics that can support the growth of healthy bacteria in the gut by providing food. Prebiotics are found in whole grains, onions, bananas, garlic, honey, artichokes, and leeks.
Step 7. Try edible medicinal plants
Many medicinal plants are efficacious as antibiotics (bacteria killers) that attack "bad" bacteria. Cranberry juice is able to inhibit or prevent bacteria from adhering to the intestinal wall; One study suggests drinking 250 ml of cranberry juice every day. In addition, many herbs used as cooking spices have been shown to be able to kill H. pylori in laboratory cultures and human patients. Use this herbal seasoning in your cooking to taste according to taste:
- Onions and garlic
- Ginger (ginger is also known to inhibit the formation of gastric ulcers)
- Thyme
- Turmeric/curry leaves
- Cayenne pepper (but not too much)
- Oregano
- Fenugreek
- Cinnamon
Step 8. Take medicinal plant supplements
Medicinal plants that are generally not used in cooking can be taken in capsule form according to the instructions on the packaging.
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The licorice preparation called (deglycyrrhizinated licorice) can be consumed in the form of chewable tablets. You can chew 1-2 tablets three times a day.
There are some reports that licorice can increase blood pressure, however, DGL preparations do not seem to exhibit the same problems
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Scutelleria baicalensis or Baikal skullcap is efficacious as an antibiotic.
- Keep in mind that Baikal skullcap can inhibit blood clotting, so if you are taking aspirin, blood thinners, or have a blood clotting disorder, or are about to undergo surgery, consult a healthcare professional before using this medicinal herb.
- Baikal skullcap can also affect blood sugar levels and lower blood pressure. Again, talk to a healthcare professional before using it.
- Korean red ginseng demonstrated antibiotic efficacy against H. pylori in experimental animals. Red ginseng is different from American ginseng, and has a variety of properties. Although many consider red ginseng to be efficacious in improving memory and sexual vitality, this medicinal plant can also lower blood sugar levels, increase heart rate, and increase or decrease blood pressure. If you are interested in trying red ginseng, talk to a healthcare practitioner who understands it before trying.
Step 9. Try eating other nutritious foods
Green tea, red wine, and manuka honey also have antibiotic activity against H. pylori. However, many of these studies have only been conducted on bacterial cultures or experimental animals, so the dose for humans is unknown. Incorporating green tea and manuka honey into your diet may be safe, but don't overdo it. These foods may be able to help deal with the infection.
Step 10. Combine several methods above
You have a better chance of successfully dealing with the infection by combining some of the methods above. You will feel healthier overall and be able to fight off H. pylori infection better if you combine healthy eating, using recommended medicines and herbs as supplements or seasoning your food, and taking probiotics as supplements.
Check yourself after trying this method for 2-3 months to confirm the presence of infection. At that point, you may need to consider taking antibiotics and acid-reducing medications as recommended by your doctor. Discuss your options with your doctor and have yourself checked to make sure you have successfully managed an H. pylori infection
Step 11. Call your doctor
If the steps in this section don't help you feel better, or if you have severe stomach pain, have blood in your stool (blackish red stools), are vomiting black liquid like coffee grounds, call your doctor immediately! These symptoms may signal a serious problem.
Method 2 of 3: Medical Treatment
Step 1. Take antibiotics
If your doctor says you have H. pylori, he or she may recommend taking antibiotics to treat it. Your doctor may suggest two or more antibiotics to take for at least 2-3 weeks, depending on your body's response to the antibiotics.
Some commonly used antibiotics are amoxicillin, clarithromycin, metronidazole, and tetracycline
Step 2. Try a stomach acid reducer
Drugs that reduce gastric acidity (proton pump inhibitors or IPPs) or a class of drugs known as H2 receptor blockers are often recommended for use with antibiotics. The decrease in stomach acidity will change the environment of the bacteria to be less supportive of their growth while antibiotics kill them.
Step 3. Use a bismuth solution
In addition to the usual acid-reducing medications, your doctor may also suggest a bismuth subsalicylate solution (eg Pepto Bismol TM). Bismuth solutions such as Pepto-Bismol will not kill bacteria directly, but work together with antibiotics and other medications to reduce stomach acidity.
Approximately 70-85% of patients treated with the combination of these three drugs are free of H. pylori infection. There are a number of different combinations of antibiotics, bismuth salts, and acid-reducing medications, so talk to your doctor for recommendations
Method 3 of 3: Understanding H. pylori
Step 1. Understand how H pylori causes ulcers
H. pylori damages the lining of the stomach wall that naturally protects the stomach from acid when digesting food. Once the lining is damaged, stomach acid will peel off the walls of the stomach and duodenum, causing ulcers (open sores) that can bleed and hurt.
- This bleeding can cause anemia, weakness, and fatigue accompanied by severe aches and pains.
- H. pylori is associated with a type of gastric cancer and gastric mucosa-associated lymphoid tissue (MALT) lymphoma. This infection has also been linked to a reduced risk of other stomach cancers and a type of esophageal cancer.
Step 2. Know how you contracted H pylori
You can become infected with H. pylori from infected food, water, cooking utensils, or through contact with the bodily fluids of an infected person. For example, if you share a fork with an infected person, you may catch it.
- H. pylori bacteria are everywhere. This bacterium can be found in about two thirds of the world's human population, even children can be infected. Infection rates in developing countries are higher than in developed countries.
- To prevent infection, be sure to wash your hands before eating, especially after using the toilet. Drink water only from clean and safe water sources, and make sure your food is properly cooked and clean.
- You may not be able to avoid these bacteria completely. But you can reduce your chances of getting infected. If you eat well and keep your body healthy, your immune system will be ready to fight infection.
Step 3. Recognize the early symptoms of H pylori infection
Initial H. pylori infection may be subtle and asymptomatic. In fact, until you're checked, you probably won't know you're infected. But if they do occur, the symptoms are:
- Pain or burning in the stomach (which may get worse when you are hungry)
- Nauseous
- Burp
- Decreased appetite
- Bloated
- Weight loss without dieting on purpose
Step 4. Watch for worsening of symptoms
If H. pylori infection persists for a long time and gets worse, symptoms of peptic ulcers may appear. If you experience any of the following symptoms, contact your doctor immediately, as this may indicate a serious problem. Ulcer symptoms include:
- Severe pain in the stomach
- The presence of blood in the stool--so the stool is dark red
- Vomiting blood or blackness like coffee grounds.
Step 5. Check yourself
Your doctor can make a diagnosis of H pylori infection based on your symptoms and a series of laboratory tests.
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The urea breath test is one way to diagnose H. pylori.
You will be asked to drink a liquid that contains a marker--may or may not be radioactive, depending on the type of test being performed. After some time, your breath will be tested for urea. Urea and ammonia are byproducts of bacterial metabolism, and indicate the presence of H. pylori
- Stool examination can confirm the presence of a bacterial component of H. pylori.
- Although this is rare, your doctor may order you to undergo a biopsy to determine the presence of bacteria. A biopsy is usually used if cancer is suspected, however, it is the most reliable option for diagnosis and is preferred by some doctors.
Tips
- Onions are very beneficial, and consuming 2-4 pieces of raw onions can prevent H. pylori infection.
- Limit your intake of alcohol, chocolate, processed foods, and sugar. In particular, avoid consuming sugar and sugary foods, as they can provide an ideal environment for the growth of "bad" bacteria.
- Avoid consuming raw foods such as sushi, undercooked eggs, and steak rare or medium rare.
