Before you reach for the pills, try these all-natural tips to boost your stomach acid and prevent hypochlorhydria:
1. Try not to eat when you are stressed. We typically have two parts of the nervous system – the sympathetic (‘fight or flight’) and the parasympathetic (‘rest and digest’). When stressed we produce a rush of adrenaline and cortisol. Blood is moved away from the digestive organs, resulting in less stomach acid and digestive enzyme production.
2. Eat a low-carbohydrate diet.
3. If you have IBD or IBS, it is better not to eat your carbs and proteins together.
4. Chew your food completely as this stimulates the production of stomach acid. It also eases the digestive process when digestion has started in the mouth.
5. Drink a mixture of raw apple cider vinegar and lemon juice. Start the day with a cup of warm water, add the juice of a lemon and a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar. If the apple cider vinegar makes you feel nauseous, start with a couple of teaspoons and increase gradually. The apple cider needs to be raw and unpasteurised so choose a brand like Braggs vinegar. This mixture, despite being acidic, alkalises the body while acidifying the stomach.
6. Eliminate gluten. There is a lot of research on the link between gluten and hypochlorhydria. Look out for my programme later this year on following a grain-free diet.
7. Give your body the raw materials it needs to make HCL i.e. drink water and use high-quality sea salt (not typical processed salt). Himalayan salt provides you with the chloride to produce HCL. It also gives you over 80 trace minerals the body needs to perform optimally biochemically.
8. Discuss the possibility of taking betaine HCL supplements with a healthcare provider.
9. Eat fermented foods to improve bowel flora in order to eliminate H. pylori.
10. Exercise.