Low Stomach Acid

HockeyMom · Post by **HockeyMom** » Tue Mar 20, 2018 5:31 pm

Hello All-
I haven't been on here much lately. I basically have had a horrible 2 years with 2017 being awful...missed 2.5 months of work due to diarrhea. Have had the million dollar work up last year to include ct scans, radioactive ct scans and of course another colonoscopy. Confirmed I have collagenous colitis. Started on Entocort in October. Lost a ton of weight...did other meds that didn't work...stayed on the cholestyramine at varying doses. Poop consistency varied but was never great... I have been on this forum since 2011. Do daily magnesium, Vit D3 and fat solubles...wicked restricted diet...

Long story short....I went rogue and decided (after reading some things online...) to try betaine HCl. I dabbled in it last summer but never much of it. To be honest I was sort of afraid of the stuff. Well, about 2 months ago..after deciding that so many of the symptoms of low stomach acid applied to me..I decided to go all in. I slowly bumped up what I was taking with each meal. You are supposed to go up to where you get a "warm burning sensation, then back down
one pill". Well, I never really get that sensation, just feel not that great. I decided that my optimum dose was 5 648mg pills with a meal. Have done this for awhile now, in addition to completely stopping Entocort (after tapering it down) about 3 weeks ago...Entocort isn't the magic pill for me...wasn't the first time back in 2011/12 either..

I haven't had diarrhea in 3 weeks. My stool slowly just got more normal and the frequency decreased. I just feel better, I am sleeping better. I wanted to throw this out to the group because no matter what I did, no matter what I cut out of my diet (and believe me people...Enterolab testing said I reacted to EVERYTHING at a 2+ or 3+ level in 2016...and I had been gf/df and sf since 2011 after first test. And my wicked anxiety has gotten much much better.

I haven't seen poop this normal in years. I have cut down the cholestyramine to a scoop a day and hope to go off that totally. So..I just want to throw this out to the group as nothing I was doing was making me better and I needed to try something else. I would never had told you that this could be my problem....and maybe it's only a piece of the puzzle...but I have been adding food back in slowly and so far so good.

Something to try and think about anyway...

Laine

Marcia K · Post by **Marcia K** » Tue Mar 20, 2018 5:52 pm

Hi, Laine. So glad to hear that it's been working for you! I hope you continue to have normans!

Post by **tex** » Tue Mar 20, 2018 7:06 pm

Hi Laine,

It's good to hear that you've finally found something that works for you. This is interesting.

Some years back we discussed the use of betaine HCL and sort of pushed it. But most people who tried it didn't seem to have any luck with it. I can recall one individual who was successful, and she (or was it a he) used a substancial dose. One or two quit because they experienced burning on a low dose. Now I wonder if the others quit too soon or just didn't use enough?

Thank you so much for sharing your experience. Obviously we need to look at betaine again for intractable cases.

Tex

ldubois7 · Post by **ldubois7** » Wed Mar 21, 2018 11:01 am

Hi Laine!

I have been using betaine for a few years.
I was taking high doses, like you, for a while....I now take 1000 to 1500 at lunch and dinner and less for breakfast.

I think it’s been beneficial for me, too!

Erica P-G · Post by **Erica P-G** » Wed Mar 21, 2018 3:49 pm

I was told by a NPT after taking some tests that I could benefit from Betaine HCL and I actually have some but with one pill I thought I felt a bit of burning I wonder if I can break that pill in half

I'm on the fence about being 100% better myself, it is still a 50/50 crap shoot at times. No urgency, although it depends sometimes every once in a while that will come out of nowhere, do I understand it, NO.

Thanks for the idea to re-look at this option.

Erica

ldubois7 · Post by **ldubois7** » Wed Mar 21, 2018 4:22 pm

I started taking betaine because of nausea and bloating issues.

I was taking high doses, as Tex mentioned.

I never had burning!

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Wed Mar 21, 2018 5:49 pm

that is great that the betaine HCL worked so well for you.

of note - low stomach acid is related to low amounts of zinc and B6

HockeyMom · Post by **HockeyMom** » Thu Mar 22, 2018 6:36 am

I just wanted to throw it out as an option. I have been supplementing with zinc for years Gabe, and have been doing the B's for at least a year. I am truly wondering if I just was balancing on the fence with stomach acid for years...and then with all the stress of my husbands death 2 years ago I just completely went over the edge.

To be honest with y'all. I never could really tell you if I "got glutened". So many of you seem to be able to tell exactly what you react to, but I can't. Ya, the initial Enterolab tests said I reacted to gluten, dairy and soy (dairy and soy were like 10 and 11..gluten was a 22), so I cut that stuff out and over the years tried cutting out lots of other food, tried the antihistimine thing, tried oral magnesium, etc, etc, etc.

So, I just had to post this in case anyone else may benefit from it. I know we are all different and different things work. I just had no idea that this would help me at all, and truly had just sort of given up hope as nothing was helping...you feel like a failure.. I tried everything that was thrown out on this page!!! Really, it's on this page I heard of betaine HCl!!! I just had to take ALOT of it, and take it for awhile before the ship started turning around....

Laine
P.S. The almost normal sleep, and the anxiety slowly melting away are ALMOST as good as the normal BM's, in my book.....

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Thu Mar 22, 2018 9:02 pm

I have been supplementing with zinc for years Gabe, and have been doing the B's for at least a year.

what type of zinc, and how much are you taking?
what type of B's and how much are you taking?

adrenals, immune system all use zinc, so with the stress of the past few years you may not be supplementing with enough. Also, if you have low stomach acid you wont be breaking down tablets/capsules and getting full benefit of dosage ie you might be taking 30mg of zinc but only breaking down and getting half or a third of that ....

nhotch · Post by **nhotch** » Thu Mar 22, 2018 9:54 pm

Sorry to butt in Laine

Hi Gabes:

How much of the P-5-P (also zinic) daily should a person be taking? I have been taking 50mg of P-5-P in the morning.

Thank You
Nancy

Gabes-Apg · Post by **Gabes-Apg** » Fri Mar 23, 2018 2:14 am

dosages of things like P5P and zinc vary person to person.
very dependant on age, other health issues, weight etc.

i personally have a health issue that causes zinc and P5P deficiencies so my dosages of these items is quite.

some people here have taken higher doses of the P5P (above 50mg) where needed.

nhotch · Post by **nhotch** » Fri Mar 23, 2018 8:40 am

Thank you Gabes, just wanted to make sure I was on the right course.

Nancy