What Is Peptic Ulcer Disease?

What Is Peptic Ulcer Disease?

Peptic ulcer disease refers to painful sores or ulcers in the lining of the stomach or first part of the small intestine, called the duodenum.

What Causes Ulcers?

No single cause has been found for ulcers. However, it is now clear that an ulcer is the end result of an imbalance between digestive fluids in the stomach and duodenum. Ulcers can be caused by:

• Infection with a type of bacteria called Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori)
• Use of painkillers called nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as aspirin, naproxen (Aleve, Anaprox, Naprosyn, and others), ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil, Midol, and others), and many others available by prescription. Even safety-coated aspirin and aspirin in powered form can frequently cause ulcers.
• Excess acid production from gastrinomas, tumors of the acid producing cells of the stomach that increases acid output (seen in Zollinger-Ellison syndrome).

What Are the Symptoms of an Ulcer?

An ulcer may or may not have symptoms. When symptoms occur, they may include:

• A gnawing or burning pain in the middle or upper stomach between meals or at night
• Bloating
• Heartburn
• Nausea or vomiting

In severe cases, symptoms can include:

• Dark or black stool (due to bleeding)
• Vomiting blood (that can look like "coffee-grounds")
• Weight loss
• Severe pain in the mid to upper abdomen

How Serious Is an Ulcer?

Though ulcers often heal on their own, you shouldn't ignore their warning signs. If not properly treated, ulcers can lead to serious health problems, including:

• Bleeding
• Perforation (a hole through the wall of the stomach)
• Gastric outlet obstruction from swelling or scarring that blocks the passageway leading from the stomach to the small intestine.

Taking NSAIDs can cause any of the above symptoms without warning. The risk is especially concerning for the elderly and for those with a prior history of having peptic ulcer disease.

Who Is More Likely to Get Ulcers?

You may be more likely to develop ulcers if you:

• Are infected with the H. pylori bacterium
• Take NSAIDs such as aspirin, ibuprofen, or naproxen
• Have a family history of ulcers
• Have another illness such as liver, kidney, or lung disease
• Drink alcohol regularly
• Are 50 years old or older

How Are Ulcers Diagnosed?

Your doctor may be able to determine if you have an ulcer just by talking with you about your symptoms. However, to confirm the diagnosis one of several tests should be taken. First, your doctor may ask you to take an acid-blocking medication, such as those used to treat heartburn, for a short period of time to see if symptoms improve.

If needed, your doctor may recommend a procedure called an upper endoscopy. It involves inserting a small, lighted tube (endoscope) through the throat and into the stomach to look for abnormalities. This procedure is usually given if you are having severe symptoms of ulcers.

Doctors will frequently treat for ulcers without confirming the diagnosis using endoscopy. If the cause is not likely to be from NSAIDs, then it is very likely to be from H. pylori. Many doctors will now test for and treat H. pylori, in addition to giving medications to reduce the symptoms.

How Are Ulcers Treated?

If not properly treated, ulcers can lead to serious health problems. There are several ways in which ulcers can be treated, including making changes to ones lifestyle, limiting dairy, taking medication, and/or undergoing surgery.

Lifestyle Changes to Treat an Ulcer

To treat an ulcer, first eliminate substances that can be causing the ulcers. If you smoke or drink alcohol, stop. If the ulcer is believed to be caused by the use of NSAIDs, they need to be stopped.

Ulcer Medications

Ulcer medications can include:

• Proton pump inhibitors (PPI). Proton pump medications reduce acid levels and allow the ulcer to heal. They include Prilosec, Prevacid, Aciphex, Protonix, Zegerid, Dexilant, and Nexium.
• Antibiotics. If you have H. pylori infection, then antibiotics are used. There are multiple combinations of antibiotics that are taken for one to two weeks along with a PPI. Pepto-Bismol is also part of some treatment regimens.
• Upper endoscopy . Some bleeding ulcers can be treated through an endoscope.
• Surgery. Sometimes an operation is needed if the ulcer has created a hole in the wall of the stomach or if there is serious bleeding that can't be controlled with an endoscope.

Will Drinking Milk Help Cure an Ulcer?

No. In fact, milk can make an ulcer worse. Milk provides brief relief of ulcer pain because it coats the stomach lining. But milk can also stimulate the stomach to produce more acid and digestive juices, which can aggravate ulcers.

How Can I Prevent Ulcers?

To reduce the risk of developing ulcers:

• Don't smoke.
• Avoid alcohol.
• Don't overuse aspirin and/or NSAIDs.
• If you have symptoms of an ulcer, contact your health care provider.

But for the matter of fact the truth will always be that nature has the best for everything in our life.  I would advice for you to take control of your ulcer problem by using the following FOEVER LIVING PRODUCTS:

Aloe Vera Gel

The miraculous Aloe leaf has been found to contain more than 200 compounds. A product of our patented Aloe stabilization process, our gel is favored by those looking to maintain a healthy digestive system and a natural energy level.Imagine slicing open an Aloe leaf and consuming the gel directly from the plant. Our Forever Aloe Vera Gel™ is as close to the real thing as you can get.

The miraculous aloe leaf has been found to contain more than 200 compounds. A product of our patented aloe stabilization process, our gel is favored by those looking to maintain a healthy digestive system and a natural energy level.

The first to receive certification by the International Aloe Science Council, this rich cocktail of pulp and liquid authenticates this product just as nature intended. Taken daily, either alone or mixed with pure fruit juice, it is one of the best health drinks available!

• The power of aloe – from the inside out
• The first of its kind to be certified by the International Aloe Science Council
• Beneficial for maintaining a healthy digestive system

FOREVER BEE PROPOLIS

When we think of the bee, honey and pollen are foremost in our thӣoughts, but there is yet another miracle substance too. Propolis is a sticky resin secreted by trees. Honeybees collect and metabolise the propolis, then line their hives with it to protect themselves from germs. In fact, the name Propolis is derived from the Greek meaning `before the city', signifying Propolis defended the entire community from external threat. Propolis has a 5000 year old history and has demonstrated its ability to fight germs. The Assyrians used propolis to heal wounds and tumours, while the Greeks used it for abscesses. One of the most effective natural antibiotics ever, bee propolis helps to maintain excellent health by strengthening our immune system. So effective are the antibacterial, antiviral and antiparasitic properties of propolis, that the interior of a beehive is many more times germ-free than the most sterile of operating theatres. One particularly potent bacterium called MRSA, against which no other antibiotic seem to be very effective, is extremely sensitive to propolis. Forever Living's Bee Propolis is gathered from pollution-free high desert regions. To further assure purity, patented bee propolis collectors are used. Our Bee Propolis is 100% natural with no added artificial preservatives, colourings or flavourings. It is also an excellent natural food form, loaded with nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, enzymes, amino acids, and a rich supply of other elements in trace amounts. Natural and powerful antibiotic. Fortified with Royal Jelly. Contains 22 amino acids, B-complex vitamins. Helps relieve the symptoms of coughs, colds, flu and respiratory problems

Royal Jelly

ROYAL JELLY MAKES YOU MORE YOUTHFUL

Royal Jelly is a milky substance produced by the young nurse worker bees (honey bees) in a beehive. It is secreted from the hypopharyngeal and mandibular glands situated in the heads of young workers and are derived from the proteins and nutrients in the pollen ingested by the secreting bees to feed all of the larvae in the colony, including those destined to become workers.

This rich jelly called Royal Jelly is manufactured solely in order to nourish the young larvae and sustain the queen.

Deep within every ordinary beehive a miracle unfolds. A single bee is chosen to become the Queen. As she feeds solely upon Royal Jelly in large quantities for the next four days, a wondrous food produced exclusively for her by the worker bees, she undergoes an amazing transformation that allows her to live nearly six years. The less fortunate worker bees, feeding only on honey and pollen, live about six weeks!

Astoundingly, if you take the Queen Bee off her diet of fresh Royal Jelly, she also lives about six weeks, just like the worker bees! The span of the worker bee’s life is about 35-40 days; while the queen lives 5-6 years and is extremely prolific. She is fertilized once, and from that moment on can lay as many as three thousand eggs a day during the season.

As incredible as this may seem, she can lay that many eggs for five years. Any creature that has that amount of energy and vitality has to be respected!

It is clear that, when it comes to providing the Queen Bee with sustenance, energy and long life, Royal Jelly can only be described as one of nature’s miraculous foods.

Cultivation

Royal Jelly is produced by stimulating colonies with movable frame hives to produce queen bees. It is collected from each individual queen cell when the larva is about four days old. It is collected from queen cells because these are the only cells in which large amounts are deposited.

Composition & Uses

The overall composition of Royal Jelly is 67% water, 12.5% crude protein (including small amounts of many different amino acids), and 11% simple sugars, also including a relatively high amount (5%) of fatty acids.

It contains remarkable amounts of proteins, lipids, vitamins B-1, B-2, B-6, C, E, hormones, enzymes, mineral substances, and specific vital factors like gamma globulin, which helps your immune system fight off viral infections.

Although some of the elements found in Royal Jelly are in microgram quantities, they still can act supremely with co-enzymes as catalysts or can act synergistically.

Royal Jelly is rich in folic acid and pantothenic acid. In fact, it contains seventeen times as much pantothenic acid (one of the most important substances in the body, essential for the synthesis and metabolism of proteins, fats, carbohydrates and several hormones) as that found in dry pollen.

The amino acids in Royal Jelly are of significant interest to nutritionists. Long associated with the ability to fight ‘free-radicals’ in the body, amino acids form the basis of our chemical make-up, and are essential to growth and the ability to fight infection and disease.

In most cases we cannot create our own amino acid, so we must ingest them through the foods that we eat. The actual chemical make-up of Royal Jelly remains an unrevealed Royal secret. The fact is that we can’t recreate Royal Jelly by a recipe or something!

Royal Jelly is a delicate liquid. As soon as it’s removed from the sterile environment it can get infected. So once removed from the hive it must be processed quickly to prevent contamination, ideally within two or three hours.

Our Royal Jelly is gathered from dry, remote, high Sonoran desert regions where pristine conditions provide the ideal environment for our beehives.

It is extracted from the hive and immediately freeze-dried to remove only the excess water from the product, leaving all vitamins, minerals, enzymes and co-enzymes present.

Freeze drying ‘locksin’ the nutritional content of the product and removes the water without affecting the nutrient quality of the product.

Moreover, Forever Royal Jelly is devoid of artificial colours or flavours and is preserved in it’s most natural state.

The source of your product is of vital importance as many bee-keepers may not be equipped to process the Royal Jelly efficiently, and this can lead to degraded nutritional content and various forms of contamination.

Forever Royal Jelly is a powerful super-food which adds a potent punch to our diet and well-being.

Forever Absorbent-C® Absorbent-C® with Oat Bran is an outstanding dietary supplement. It combines two vital nutrients into one convenient product. The bonded matrix composition, developed through a unique process, is an effective delivery system to help absorption of vitamin C from each tablet. A daily intake of Absorbent-C® is highly recommended for good health.

Daily vitamin C has long been associated with good health. Science now provides us with a whole list of benefits derived from this most famous of all vitamins:

• It is a powerful antioxidant, forming part of the body’s defense system against the harmful effects of free radicals.
• It is a beneficial supplement for the skin, as it supports the formation of intercellular collagen
• It is necessary for the maintenance of healthy connective tissue.

Vitamin C is water soluble, and is secreted from the body. Since humans are among the few animals that are unable to make their own vitamin C, we must therefore get it from our food, drinks, and supplements, such as Forever Absorbent-C®.

The need for adequate levels of vitamin C is very evident. Science reports that one cigarette destroys 25mg of vitamin C. Stress, medication and environmental factors all heavily deplete the body of this vitamin. A deficiency can result in broken capillaries and bleeding gums.

Forever Absorbent-C® with Oat Bran is an outstanding nutritional supplement. It combines two vital nutrients into one convenient product. The bonded matrix composition, is a unique delivery system combining 500 mg of oat bran with the full 60 mg of Vitamin C in each tablet.

A daily intake of Forever® Absorbent-C® is highly recommended for good health.

• Oat bran aids absorption of vitamin C
• Powerful antioxidant
• Promotes healthy skin

DISCLAIMER: All above Product Information is taken from www.foreverliving.com. The statements contained herein have not been evaluated by the FDA. The products discussed are not intended to diagnose, mitigate, treat, cure or prevent a specific disease or class of diseases. You should consult your family physician if you are experiencing a medical problem.

Rest of the information provided above is as per my sole understanding and is created by myself or taken from other sources on Internet, Books etc. Please read Company's literature or attend Company's Seminar for more and latest information.