Gastritis

[ImJenno]

I am so frustrated with my Doctor.   She has diagnosed me with gastritis about a month and a half ago.   All sorts of antacids, and blockers (Nexium) but not really trying to figure out what caused my gastritis to start with.  The antacids worked but within several days of being off most of them I break again with excess gas, the horrible bloating, constipation, indigestion and heartburn.   Now with the holidays she keeps putting off see me just giving the nurse instructions for me to try then call her after the first of the year.   Time for a new doctor, but with insurance getting ready to kick over after the first of the year I don't know what to do.   I want to start the program on Jan 2 heck I will even start it tomorrow but with all the antacids I don't know how well the program would go.  In my heart I think whole30 will help my gut heal.  Has anyone dealt with gastritis and if so what best alleviated the symptoms?

[ShannonM816]

I haven't dealt with this personally, but if you want to start Whole30, it's unlikely to make things any worse, and could make it much better. If you need to keep taking the antacids that your doctor has told you to take, that's fine, even if they have ingredients that aren't Whole30 compliant -- doctor's orders trump Whole30 rules.

 

[ArtFossil]

I have gastritis but in my case it's from GERD and the symptoms are severe heartburn during the day and reflux at night. I have a hiatal hernia (but too small to do anything about).

(PPI's can be extremely valiuable drugs AND also can be extremely difficult to taper off of because of rebound indigestion. Until I get a clear endoscopy, I'll keep following my doctor's recommendation and continue with my Prevacid).

However, I can report that I am healing my esophagus and that the Whole30 I did a year ago helped me to taper off of a PPI from 2X per day to 1X per day. 

For me, lifestyle changes (also doctor recommended} have made a huge difference. First is not eating after 7:30 or 8 PM (or about 3 hours before bedtime). Second is elevating the head of my bed. I also have been taking iron for a "long" time to get my iron levels up to normal (and they finally are). Third is just observing mindful eating habits in general and making sure I'm not too stressed.

Whole30, because it reduces inflammation, will, IMHO, definitely help your gut issues. But don't expect your food (even Whole30) to do everything. In my opinion, Whole30 can also help with your overall stress levels because you are eating on a schedule, eating balanced meals and eating highly nutritious meals.

I recommend that you consult a good gastroenterologist in addition to trying out the Whole30 protocol.

As Shannon says, take the antacids if they help you. You don't want to suffer from indigestion! You'll still be able to have a successful Whole30. As alternatives to antacids, you can experiment with probiotics (increasing stomach acid to aid indigestion) or apple cider vinegar before meals (ditto) or things like DGL licorice tablets or aloe juice to sooth your stomach. I also found apple cider vinegar before eating. However, only try one thing at a time and carefully observe the results!

[praxisproject]

I recommend also keeping a food diary, tracking what and when you eat and how you're feeling. This is useful for you and your future new doctor.

In particular I would keep an eye on FODMAP intake, to see if they increase your discomfort, as avoiding these could give you some relief.

http://fodmapfriendly.com/what-are-fodmaps/

[tunibell]

Have you had an endoscopy yet? My "gastritis" turned out to be celiac disease.

[ArtFossil]

On 1/3/2017 at 7:49 PM, tunibell said:

Have you had an endoscopy yet? My "gastritis" turned out to be celiac disease.

That's a really important reminder and another reason to have the endoscopy. 

[praxisproject]

and if you want to be checked for coeliac disease, you need to be eating quite a lot of gluten for several weeks before you have any internal exams, as they actually assess the internal damage. Discuss with your doc/s.