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When there’s too much pressure in the stomach but the pH isn’t acidic enough for the pyloric sphincter to open, the only way for the body to release that pressure is by opening up the LES.
The pressure released into the esophagus causes the symptoms of heartburn and acid reflux, which are often misdiagnosed as high stomach acid.
Even if you have little stomach acid, any amount of it going from your stomach to your esophagus will cause discomfort or pain. This is because your esophagus was never designed to handle stomach acid.
When this happens regularly, the LES weakens and becomes “leaky”, making the problem worse.
Having low stomach acid leads to inflammation in the gut and throughout the body. Chronic Inflammation damages your small intestine, makes it hard to digest and absorb nutrients, increases your food intolerances, triggers small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO), and causes leaky gut.
Now, you may ask: what causes low stomach acid?
A variety of factors can lead to low stomach acid. These include aging, poor diet, chronic stress, chronic inflammation, medications like antacids and proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), and deficiencies in nutrients necessary to make stomach acid.
Another cause of low stomach acid is hypothyroidism which goes untreated. This is because thyroid hormone is required to produce stomach acid.
An H. pylori infection (a bacterial infection of the stomach) can make it harder for your stomach to produce acid. This leads to poor absorption of iron and vitamin B12 and can cause SIBO.
Next, here are the 3 steps you can take to increase stomach acid and stop acid reflux, heartburn, and GERD.
The first thing you can do to increase your stomach acid naturally is to take betaine hydrochloride or betaine HCL.
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Betaine is a compound that is found in food, such as grains or beets. Betaine HCL is an acidic form of betaine that works the same way as hydrochloric acid in your stomach.
Before you supplement with HCL, take two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, ACV, to test if your stomach lining is ready. ACV helps stimulate stomach acid production. If you feel gastric burning, you are not yet ready for supplementation.
Instead, take a tablespoon of ACV with each meal for 4 to 6 weeks to improve your digestion. Dilute it in water until you can tolerate it. If you do not experience any discomfort after drinking ACV, you are ready to take 1 to 2 capsules of betaine HCL with a meal. This helps reduce bloating and discomfort after eating protein-rich foods.
You may need to increase your dosage until you no longer feel burning or discomfort, and then lower your dosage over time.
Next, you need to make sure you’re getting enough potassium, sodium, and zinc in your diet. These nutrients are needed by your body to produce stomach acid. Keep watching for a list of the best and worst foods for acid reflux.
