[Guest]

Before IBS:About 1.5 years ago I started getting really really bad heart burn. I started eating Tums like candy. After a few months, everything went back to "normal" but then the IBS started. I thought it was due to some food I ate at the time.Fast forward to now, I find that the things that help my IBS go away the most is eating tons of altoids, pickles, or anything high in vinegar.I stumbled upon "hypochlorhydria" while researching peppermint oil. It seems to fit many symptoms related to the IBS. I don't have any of the outwardly visible symptoms though.Has anyone found hypochlorhydria to be a contributing factor to their ibs, or have a background like mine?

 

[BQ]

From what I read of your history, your IBS came on after a seafood meal at a restaurant. I would highly doubt you have hypochlorhydria. First off you are not regularly using anything that lowers the natural amount of stomach acid. If anything you are eating things that might make you feel much more stomach acid.. (altoids)not less! (BTW... peppermint altoids do not have vinegar in them...) If you think the few days of eating TUMS would cause this hypochlorhydria... um.. I seriously doubt that. Also by your posts it sounds like you are young... and well under age 60 when this condition apparently becomes much more common.Have you ever tried a probiotic... See our Probiotic Forum for more info about them. Plus I have read in some places that one can have IBS AND this hypochlorhydria. So one COULD have both conditions.. simultaneously.Also this article from Pubmed:http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16416217Says the following:

Although gastric hypochlorhydria is a risk factor for gastroenteritis and for gastric cancer, no reliable, inexpensive, noninvasive test exists for screening or epidemiologic studies.

So.. that kinda leaves things wide open for many vendors to sell their alleged curative wares. So really.. buyer beware if you KWIM.If you really want to know whether or not you have it... get yourself to a GI and get diagnosed properly. It is NEVER a good idea to self-diagnose or self treat a condition like this.Here is some info about diagnosis:http://www.mdguidelines.com/achlorhydria-a...ydria/diagnosis