The acid in your stomach and stomach ulcer.

The acid in our stomach is so powerful as the acid present in a car battery. It's so strong that it could cause the rusting of a metal and even dissolve bones.. just like any other acid.

Foods leaves our mouth and ends up in a acid bath( stomach) where it is broken down into various nutrients that are absorbed in our bloodstream.

In addition, the stomach is linked to the brain by the Vag.nerve . This nerve helps in sending information to the brain from the stomach when it's empty and you begin to feel hungry, then you'd start thinking about food. Also since the Brain is a most powerful organ that controls all the others . You might still not be feeling hungry even if your stomach is empty due to brain activities like depression, excitement, focus or concentration. 😁

The Protein is the major food broken down by this stomach acid since proteins are made up of tougher chains than carbohydrates. Digestion of carbohydrates actually starts and it's partially completed in the mouth. The acids also dissolves the outer covering of harmful bacterias thereby destroying them and protecting us.

The name of this acid is called hydrochloric acid which is contained in the gastric juice produced by the epithelial cells of the stomach.

When the stomach is empty, this acid's concentration is at it's strongest, with a pH value of 1 which is equivalent to the acidity of vinegar or lemon.

Well, one might start thinking that why wouldn't this acid attack the soft folds of the stomach when it is strong enough to dissolve a bone. The reason is that the stomach which produces this acid also have others cells that help in secreting a mucous layer that forms a protective layer through out the wall of the stomach ( more like a bullet proof vest) ...

But the acid sometimes do attack the stomach !

Now, there's a certain bacteria in the stomach called H. Pyloric which could harm us by reducing the thickness of the protective mucous membrane. When this happens, the inner layers of the stomach becomes exposed to the corrosive action of hydrochloric acid, thereby hurting it. This process leads to a condition known as gastric or stomach ulcer. When viewed with a hospital camera, one would be able to see the "open wound" or injury where the stomach acid had attack the stomach.

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process through which this bacteria ( H.pylori) wears away the protective lining of the stomach is not exactly known. But it has been discovered that a whole lot of people have this bacteria in them and might not even know that they also have ulcer until after a very long time before the symptoms begin to appear. Although, some individuals might have developed resistance to the actions of H. pylori.

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This bacteria could be transmitted from person to person or from the consumption of contaminated food and water resulting from poor hygiene. No wonder stomach ulcer is more prevalent in developing countries.

A person with stomach ulcer could experience severe sudden pain around the stomach region, nausea, vomiting and loss of appetite. They might even experience heartburn as the gastric juice might escape into the esophagus ( food pipe at the back of the throat) as there's no enough mucous membrane in the stomach to hold it back.

People with stomach ulcers are adviced to stay away from spicy foods because they stimulate an higher production of the stomach juice which contains this acid. Also owing to the sensitivity of the stomach, too much consumption of alcohol and even stimulants like coffee could lead to the inflammation of the mucous lining of the stomach walls...

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Thanks for reading 😁💝