Wellness  

8 Foods You Should Avoid If You Have Stomach Ulcer

By Michael Bamidele

01 November 2019   |   9:05 pm

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Stomach ulcers, which are also known as gastric ulcers, are painful sores in the stomach lining. Stomach ulcers occur when the thick layer of mucus that protects your stomach from digestive juices is reduced. This allows the digestive acids to eat away at the tissues that line the stomach, causing an ulcer. What Causes Stomach…

8 Foods You Should Avoid If You Have Stomach Ulcer. PHOTO: Webmd

Stomach ulcers, which are also known as gastric ulcers, are painful sores in the stomach lining. Stomach ulcers occur when the thick layer of mucus that protects your stomach from digestive juices is reduced. This allows the digestive acids to eat away at the tissues that line the stomach, causing an ulcer.

What Causes Stomach Ulcer

• an infection with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)
• long-term use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as aspirin, ibuprofen, or naproxen

Foods You Should Avoid

Some of the following foods may cause discomfort for people with an ulcer:

Alcoholic beverages:

Excess consumption of alcohol irritates the lining of the stomach, making it red, raw, and inflamed. Excessive alcohol consumption is widely considered to increase the risk of developing an ulcer. It can also keep existing ulcers from healing.

Spicy foods:

Before now, it was thought that eating many spicy foods can cause ulcer as patients would often complain of burning stomach pains after eating spicy food. However, it has been discovered that spicy food doesn’t cause ulcers, but it can irritate existing ulcers.

Chocolate:

Chocolate has lots of potential health benefits. But it often causes discomfort for some people who have ulcers. If eating chocolate makes you feel worse, wait to indulge until your ulcer has healed.

Coffee (caffeinated or decaffeinated):

Both caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee can increase acid production and exacerbate symptoms in individuals with ulcer disease.

Fatty foods:

A higher intake of fat can greatly increase your chance of getting an ulcer in the first place and cause other gastrointestinal problems. They take longer to digest, which can lead to belly pain and bloating.

Tomato products:

Tomatoes have below pH of 4.6, making them a high-acid food, according to an August 2010 article in the Inter-Mountain newspaper. High-acid foods such as tomatoes may trigger heartburn in some people and irritate ulcers.

Citrus fruits and juices:

Oranges and other citrus fruits, as well as citrus fruit juices, should be avoided if they cause pain.