Characteristics Of Nutritional Therapy
The objective of peptic ulcer dietotherapy is to prevent hyper secretion of pepticchloride in order to reduce the sore and pain in the gastric and duodenal mucosa. Inaddition, nutritional therapy aims to promote healing, based on a complex sequence ofevents going from the initial trauma to the repair of the damaged tissue.Investigation of nutritional deficiencies is essential in the preparation of anappropriate recovery diet. In the early 20th century, Sippy proposed adiet based on milk and milk cream, combined with antacids, for treatment ofgastrointestinal ulcer, based on the principle that milk would provide gastricalkalinization and relieve pain. Today milk is not recommended due to the bufferingeffect and the significant gastric acid secretion effect of milk29.
According to Marrota and Floch18,calories distribution for patients with peptic ulcer should be normal, with valuesranging from 50-60% of carbohydrates, 10-15% of proteins, and 25-30% of lipids, withtotal energy value sufficient to maintain or recover the nutritional status.
Best Foods To Eat When You Have A Stomach Ulcer
Stomach ulcers may require lifestyle and dietary changes to manage them while they are healing. Acid reducing medications may also be beneficial. Previously, a bland diet was recommended for stomach ulcers but current research does not support that idea.
Dietary modifications can help, but spicy foods arent necessarily an irritant. Doctors now emphasize a diet rich in vegetables and fruits. The best foods to eat when you have a stomach ulcer include:
Dietary fiber
This includes oats, legumes, flax seeds, nuts, oranges, apples, and carrots. These foods are good for you because they can help prevent ulcers from developing.
Vitamin A rich foods
Foods like broccoli, sweet potatoes, kale, spinach, and collard greens contain vitamin A. These foods increase the mucus production in your gastrointestinal tract, which some believe can help prevent ulcers.
Green tea
Emerging research indicates that green tea can help fight off H. pylori.
Flavonoid-rich foods
This includes garlic, onions, cranberries, strawberries, blueberries, and snap peas. Research suggests that these foods can help protect your gut against chronic gastritis, H. pylori infection, and stomach cancer. These foods help inhibit H. pylori growth.
Cranberry juice
This tart juice can potentially reduce the risk of H. pylori overgrowth in your stomach and prevent inflammation.
There are certain foods that could irritate your stomach ulcer, and it might be a good idea to limit them. Those foods include:
Broccoli Brussels Sprouts Cauliflower And Kale Are All Ulcer
These cruciferous vegetables all contain sulforaphane, a compound that appears to squelch H. pylori. In one study, after patients who tested positive for the bacteria ate a half cup of broccoli sprouts twice daily for seven days, 78 per cent tested negative for the bacteria. Other studies, on mice, have shown that sulforaphane extracts can successfully destroy the bacteria in the mices digestive tracts.
Recommended dose: Consider eating a cup a day of broccoli, raw or cooked, or broccoli sprouts. Not only will the broccoli begin to battle your ulcer, but it will also provide more than a days worth of vitamin C and a generous amount of fibre: two more allies in the fight against ulcers.
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When To See A Doctor About A Stomach Ulcer
If you suspect you have a stomach ulcer, see your doctor right away so treatment can begin. Delaying treatment can risk complications, such as perforation and subsequent infection, bleeding or blockage.
Also let your doctor know if your treatment plan isn’t working after several weeks, or sooner if your symptoms worsen. Seek urgent medical attention if you have blood in your stools, ongoing vomiting, if you’re throwing up blood or food eaten hours or days before or if you feel unusually weak or dizzy.
What Foods Should Not Be On The Table Of A Stomach Ulcer Patient

Diet therapy is an important link in the prevention and treatment of gastric ulcers. Gastric ulcers should choose foods that are easy to digest and contain enough calories, protein and vitamins, such as porridge, noodles, milk, soft rice, soy milk, eggs, lean meat, tofu and soy products, fresh vegetables and fruits, but those with obvious gastric acid reflux Flow should try not to drink milk.Will eating acidic foods aggravate stomach ulcers
Avoid fried foods and celery, leeks, sprouts, ham, bacon, dried fish and various whole grains that contain more crude fiber. Because these foods are not only rough and difficult to digest, but also cause a large amount of gastric juice secretion, which increases the burden and condition of the stomach. It is forbidden to eat foods that stimulate gastric acid secretion, such as broth, raw onions, raw garlic, concentrated juice, coffee, wine, strong tea, etc., as well as foods that are too sweet, sour, salty, overheated, cold, and hard.
Sweet and spicy food will increase gastric acid secretion, irritate the ulcer surface and aggravate the condition overheated food will irritate the ulcer surface, causing pain and even bleeding too cold and hard food will be difficult to digest and aggravate the condition. In addition, because the nicotine in tobacco can change the pH value of gastric juice and aggravate the condition of gastric ulcer, patients with gastric ulcer should quit smoking.
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Diet Plan For A Stomach Ulcer
Prior to the 1980s, stomach ulcers were typically blamed on stress or spicy foods â and thus a bland diet was a common treatment. But we now know that ulcers aren’t caused by these factors.
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Instead, most stomach ulcers are a result of the Helicobacter pylori bacteria, and some are linked to long-term use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs , such as ibuprofen and aspirin.
But that also means there is no specific diet that treats stomach ulcers. However, you may find certain foods worsen or ease your symptoms, and some foods may even help ulcers heal. Talk to your doctor and you can work together on finding the best combination of foods for you.
Yogurt With Active Cultures
Foods like yogurt and kefir contain good bacteria that can inhibit H. pylori and may help ulcers heal faster. In one large study in Sweden, people who ate fermented milk products like yogurt at least three times a week were much less likely to have ulcers than people who ate yogurt less often.
Recommended dose: Have a cup of yogurt, kefir, or another fermented milk product with live, active cultures at least once a day. Avoid sweetened varieties, which are less effective.
Never ignore these ulcer symptoms.
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Diet For Duodenal Ulcer Patients
For patients suffering from the H pylori related duodenal ulcers, treatment is often done using antibiotics. There are some ulcers of this type that are not related to the H pylori bacteria and for that antacid, other related medications are considered effective. In this regard, it is relevant to mention that H pylori infection related risk reduction can be achieved using commonsense, simple hygiene practices include washing of hands using soap and water prior to food preparation are very useful. Keeping a watch on your diet can help in controlling the symptoms of duodenal ulcer.
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Healthy Eating Guidelines For People With Peptic Ulcers
Healthy Eating & Physical Activity Categories
A peptic ulcer is a sore on the lining of your stomach or small intestine. Peptic ulcers include gastric ulcers that form in the stomach and duodenal ulcers that form at the beginning of the small intestine. The most common symptom of a peptic ulcer is a dull, burning pain in your stomach. Other symptoms may include bloating, burping, poor appetite, nausea, and weight loss.
Most peptic ulcers are caused by infection with the bacteria Helicobacter pylori . Long-term use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen and aspirin can also cause ulcers. Most ulcers are treated with medicines. Ulcers caused by H. pylori are usually treated with antibiotics. Ulcers caused by NSAIDs are often treated with medication that lowers the amount of stomach acid and by reducing or stopping NSAIDs.
No specific food has been shown to cause ulcers, but some may make your symptoms worse or may make it more difficult for your ulcer to heal. This resource provides healthy eating suggestions that can help you manage your ulcer.
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Which Foods Should You Eat
The cornerstone of successful management of ulcers is not about avoiding specific foods, says Walters. More important are simple lifestyle changes that include balanced, healthy eating, weight reduction, decreased alcohol consumption and smoking cessation, she says.
These are Walterss top tips for ulcer management:
Cabbage Can Help Prevent Ulcers
Scientists think that it may be the amino acid glutamine that gives cabbage its anti-ulcer punch. Glutamine helps to fortify the mucosal lining of the gut and to improve blood flow to the stomach, meaning it not only helps prevent ulcers but can also speed healing of existing sores.
Recommended dose: Eat two cups of raw cabbage daily. Add it to salads, coleslaw, and wraps. You can also drink raw cabbage juice, sold in health food stores. Drink a quart a day for three weeks ifyou can stand it!
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Why Change My Diet
There are so many benefits to changing your diet if you suffer from stomach ulcers that it would be foolish not to. When you follow a diet that primates healthy stomach and gut health you will:
- Obtain the protein and nutrients that your body needs to repair itself.
- Help you to remove all foods that are aggravating the small intestine and stomach lining.
- It can help to minimize or control the symptoms of related conditions like bacterial infections, Crohns disease, or celiac. These can aggravate ulcer symptoms.
- Help to fill in any contributing nutritional deficiencies.
Certain foods help to repair the gastrointestinal lining that erodes form long term use of anti-inflammatory drugs or bacterial infection.
Foods That You Should Avoid If You Have Stomach Ulcers

There are many acidic foods that can worsen the situation of patients with stomach ulcers. It is important to learn to identify them since it is not a good idea to consume them during the recovery process.
The main ones are:
- Coffee and drinks with caffeine
- Sweets and products with refined sugar
- Carbonated drinks
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Plantain Can Help Prevent Ulcers
This large, green, banana-like fruit is starchy and sticky in texture. It helps to soothe inflamed and irritated mucous membranes and has some antibacterial properties to boot. Studies on rats with ulcers caused by daily aspirin use have shown that unripe green plantain can both prevent the formation of ulcers and help to heal them. Plantain works its magic best when its unripe.
Recommended dose: Until human studies determine the amount that might help, use the fruit as they do in Latin America, where green plantain is eaten boiled like a potato. Avoid fried plantain, as the fat can aggravate ulcers.
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Foods To Eat With A Peptic Ulcer
A bland diet is generally your best bet when dealing with a peptic ulcer. These foods are low in acidity, saturated fats, and spiciness.
Another rule of thumb is to choose foods that are high in dietary fiber, both soluble and insoluble. Studies have shown that fiber-rich diets reduce the risk of peptic ulcers by lowering stomach acids. Foods that are rich in vitamin A have similar effects.
Foods that are probiotic can speed healing by blocking H. pylori from attaching to the lining of the stomach. Probiotic-rich foods include pickled vegetables as well as certain fermented dairy products like yogurt and kefir.
Foods rich in flavonoids are also believed to inhibit the growth of H. pylori in the gut. These plant-based nutrients are found in berries and many other fruits and vegetables.
Among the foods you can eat if you have a peptic ulcer are:
- Bean and legumes, which are fiber-rich
- Eggs, which are rich in vitamin A
- Fish, including fatty fish that are rich in omega-3 polyunsaturated fats
- Fiber-rich fruits, like apples, bananas, strawberries, and raspberries
- Flavonoid-rich foods, like cranberries, kale, broccoli, celery, and all berries
- Leafy green vegetables, which are rich in vitamin A
- Orange and yellow vegetables, like sweet potatoes and summer squash that are also rich in vitamin A
- Pickled foods, like kimchi, sauerkraut, and dill pickles
- Lean meats and poultry
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What To Eat On A Gastritis Diet
Some foods may help manage your gastritis and lessen the symptoms.
Diet does not generally cause chronic gastritis, but eating some foods can make the symptoms worse. These may include foods that are:
Some people find that the following foods and drinks help ease symptoms of gastritis:
- high fiber foods, such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, and beans
- low fat foods, such as fish, lean meats, and vegetables
- foods with low acidity, including vegetables and beans
- noncarbonated drinks
2016 review , some studies say that probiotics could help with stomach complications caused by bacteria called Helicobacter pylori, also known as H. pylori.
These bacteria cause an infection in the digestive system, which can lead to gastritis or stomach ulcers. In fact, H. pylori is the most common cause of gastritis, accounting for
Eating smaller, more frequent meals can also help ease symptoms.
Some types of gastritis can make it more difficult for your body to absorb iron or vitamin B12, leading to deficiencies. Talk with your doctor about taking supplements to prevent deficiencies.
Spicy And Salty Foods
While spicy foods dont cause ulcers, they could irritate your stomach lining. Some people with stomach ulcers may be able to tolerate a little spiciness in their foods, but if hot stuff makes your tummy hurt and triggers symptoms of your condition, you might have to hold off on dishes, sauces, dressings and condiments that contain ingredients like red chili peppers, horseradish, peppercorn or jalapeño.
Foods with high salt content are not friends of your tummy either. Studies show that large amounts of salt in your stomach causes the H. pylori bacteria to become more active and attack the lining of your digestive tract.
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How The Ulcer Diet Works
An ulcer diet promotes healing and reduces irritation to the stomach lining and the duodenum, the first part of the small intestine that attaches to the stomach. It also limits excess acid production, which can aggravate an ulcer.
There are no strict rules about which foods to eat, but try to add as many foods as you can from the best choices list above. Definitely avoid foods that make you feel worse or that trigger acid production and reflux.
Eating enough protein is also important. While your ulcer is healing, aim for about 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of your body weight. That means about 3 ounces per day for a 140-pound woman, and 4 ounces per day for a 200-pound man.
The rest of your calories should come from a balanced diet that includes whole grains, fruits, and vegetables. More fiber may lower the risk of ulcers, but one Korean study found that high-fiber diets lowered the risk of peptic ulcer disease in women but not men. It’s a good idea to ask your healthcare provider about fiber intake.
What Foods And Beverages Should Be Avoided Or Limited
It is best to avoid any spicy, acidic or high-fat foods. It is suggested that you learn to identify what foods have the worst impact on your peptic ulcer symptoms, everyone is affected by food differently. The foods to avoid pertain to the ones that result in the over-production of stomach acid which can interfere with the healing of the ulcer and irritate the lining of the digestive tract.
The following foods may aggravate the symptoms of an ulcer:
Beverages
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Gastritis Duodenitis And Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory bowel disease is the chronic inflammation of part or all of your digestive tract. The exact cause is unknown, but doctors believe that IBD may be the result of an immune disorder. A combination of factors from the environment and a persons genetic makeup also appear to play a role. Examples of IBD include ulcerative colitis and Crohns disease. Crohns disease may affect any part of your digestive tract and often spreads beyond the intestinal lining and into other tissues.
A study published in Inflammatory Bowel Diseases reported that people with IBD are more likely to develop a form of gastritis or duodenitis that isnt caused by H. pylori than people who dont have the disease.