Counseling Sheet

Agatha M. Thrash, M.D.
Preventive Medicine

Gastritis is a condition in which the stomach is upset or inflamed. Causes include food poisoning, spoiled food, overeating, the use of alcohol, not drinking sufficient water (enough to keep the urine very pale), aspirin, vinegar, or spices such as ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, and black and red pepper.

Gastritis may be acute or chronic. Chronic gastritis leads to atrophy of the stomach, with progressively decreased acid and pepsin. This causes poor digestion, malabsorption of vitamin B-12 (pernicious anemia), and stomach cancer.

Persons with persistent stomach problems should be checked for Helicobacter, a common cause of chronic complaints with the stomach, and treated with goldenseal, echinacea, grapefruit seed extract, and garlic for one month. Bring one quart of water to a boil, when simmering gently add one slightly rounded tablespoon of goldenseal powder and one heaping tablespoon of echinacea. Gently simmer for 20 minutes, strain, and drink throughout each day for 30 days. To each cup of tea, add eight to ten drops of grapefruit seed extract which you can purchase at a health food store. If that much grapefruit seed extract causes a stomachache, drop the dosage to four to six drops.

Additionally, eat a whole globe of garlic microwaved for 1 minute and 10-15 seconds at each meal. A globe of garlic contains 12-15 cloves. For simple gastric acid over-production, charcoal powder, one tablespoonful four times daily stirred in a bit of water can be very helpful.