Antacids pro bacteria
I must admit, sometimes it is so hard not to run around the room jumping up and down saying “I told you so!!” when issues like this pop up. We are so quick in medicine to suppress acid production in patients without giving thought to the ramifications. Stomach acid is absolutely essential for healthy nutrient absorption (especially iron, B12 and calcium), healthy digestion (not only does it digest things…HCl is needed to activate many other digestive enzymes) and protection from orally ingested bacteria. Besides, the patient that produces TOO MUCH stomach acid is actually very rare; most patients do not produce enough and further suppression is adding fuel to the (lack of..) fire…
