H Pylori Diseases – the “Dark Side” of Helicobacter pylori

Posted by Dave Hompes on Dec 6, 2015 in Digestion, Heart Disease, Heartburn, Stomach Cancer, Stomach Ulcers | 5 comments

H Pylori Diseases – The Dark Side of H Pylori

Erm, this article isn’t really full of the joys of spring.

It’s concerned with some of the nastier H pylori diseases like ulcers, stomach cancer and heart disease that often aren’t explained properly (you certainly won’t see this information on regular medical websites).

The info isn’t meant to frighten you, and it’s certainly NOT designed to try and coerce you into buying something from me out of fear (I HATE that stuff).

So please don’t shoot the messenger.

BUT, when you learn this information you realise how important it is to take H pylori infections seriously.

I don’t enjoy talking or writing about serious H pylori diseases – I call these diseases the ‘Dark Side’ of H pylori – but someone has to do it.

It’s rare for doctors to know this information, and even rarer for them to explain the situation to you because of short appointment times and overload in the medical system.

First, I’d like you watch this short video on H pylori diseases, and beneath the video I’ve written some summary points for you, which highlight research into various H pylori diseases.

I hope the video was helpful (you’re very welcome to leave a comment below if there’s anything I can do to improve the presentation!)

Let’s summarize the most important info about H pylori diseases:

H pylori and Ulcers:

H pylori is known to cause stomach (peptic) and intestinal (duodenal) ulcers
Statistically, it’s estimated that H pylori causes 80% stomach and 90% duodenal ulcers
CagA and VacA H pylori strains seem particularly good at causing ulcers
As well as being extremely painful and uncomfortable, ulcers can be dangerous if left untreated
Ulcers can bleed and perforate, increasing the risk of sepsis
See your doctor if you have any of the following symptoms:
- frequent vomiting (especially if it contains blood, or coffee-like grains)
- severe stomach burning
- severe nausea
- urgent or sharp stomach/chest pain
- black tarry stools
- diarrhoea for more than a few days
- tightness of chest/difficulty breathing

H pylori causes Gastritis (swelling and inflammation in the stomach)

Gastritis can be acute (short term) or chronic (long term)
Gastritis is redness, swelling, pain and damage in the stomach
Gastritis can result in heartburn, GERD-like symptoms, pain and other digestive problems
Severe gastritis can lead to bleeding and sepsis (infection getting into the blood)
Ulcers may develop as a result of gastritis
Gastritis is also caused by some common foods like cow’s milk, gluten and alcohol
Smoking and the use of NSAIDs like aspirin may lead to gastritis
Over a period of several years gastritis may develop into atrophic gastritis (below)

H pylori and Atrophic Gastritis:

Atrophic gastritis is where the stomach lining is worn down, leading to low stomach acid levels, poor food digestion and nutrient deficiencies
Atrophic gastritis is a major risk factor for stomach cancer
Low stomach acid caused by atrophic gastritis can lead to iron deficiency anaemia, vitamin B12 deficiency and other nutrient deficiencies
These deficiencies can cause fatigue, weakness, depression, lethargy, neurological problems, headaches and serious illness
Small intestinal bacterial overgrowth (SIBO) can develop as a result of low stomach acid and cause bloating and irritable bowel syndrome
Please, please, please don’t let it happen to you – get yourself properly tested!

H pylori and Stomach Cancer:

Stomach cancer is a possible outcome of H pylori infection
Stomach cancer doesn’t occur in many people – well under 1% of people who have H pylori
The risk is higher if you have the CagA or VacA H pylori strain (this can be assessed through advanced home stool tests)
It’s unclear exactly how H pylori causes cancer – several mechanisms have been proposed

H pylori and High Blood Pressure:

Research shows that blood pressure can decrease from an excessively high level when H pylori is eradicated
The implication is that H pylori may cause high blood pressure in some people
The CagA and VacA H pylori strains seem to be the main players

H pylori, Blood Sugar Insulin Resistance, Metabolic Syndrome and Diabetes:

Research suggests that H pylori can lead to these metabolic problems
H pylori eradication improves blood glucose and insulin scores in some folk
Through several metabolic changes, H pylori appears to increase type II diabetes risk
H pylori changes cholesterol patterns in some people
- H pylori infection can increase total cholesterol
- H pylori infection can increase LDL cholesterol
- H pylori infection can increase oxidised LDL cholesterol

H pylori and Atherosclerosis:

Atherosclerosis is the gradual process (or rapid process in some people) that leads to plaque formation and narrowing of the arteries.
H pylori seems to increase atherosclerosis development and severity
CagA H pylori strains seem to be most problematic

H pylori, Heart Disease and Stroke:

Evidence suggest that the CagA H pylori strain influences heart disease
It increases seems to incidence of angina pectoris
It may increase the incidence of heart attacks
It may increase the incidence of stroke!

Mechanisms of H pylori Diseases:

H pylori can reduce stomach acid and this can lead to iron deficiency, vitamin B12, E, C deficiencies, which increase the risk of disease via numerous pathways.

It causes inflammation in the digestive system, which can lead to increased levels of things like C-reactive protein and fibrinogen in your blood, which in turn are heart disease risk markers.

In fact, in my book H pylori: From Heartburn to Heart Attacks, I show with lots of research papers how H pylori infections influence more than HALF the known heart disease risk factors.

What this means for you:

I didn’t write this post to scare you – I just want you to be aware of some H pylori diseases you may not have been aware of.

Of course, H pylori is best known for causing a few mild symptoms – sometimes a little more severe – such as heartburn, GERD, dizziness and so on.

BUT, it CAN cause other problems – “H pylori diseases” as I call them.

I’m certainly not saying H pylori causes these diseases in everyone, and I’m not saying H pylori is the only cause of these diseases, because it’s not.

What I want is for you to be aware of the main complications that can lead to these H pylori diseases so you can AVOID them!

How to test for H pylori:

To ensure H pylori doesn’t cause any of the above complications, please get your self tested.

If your doctor is not willing to test for H pylori, that’s ok, but don’t take “no” for an answer.

Nag, nag and nag until you get a stool test or breath test.

If your test returns a negative result and you’re not satisfied, get a private stool test (by the way, false negative tests do happen, and fairly frequently in my experience).

If you still don’t have any luck, consider a home stool test.

A home stool test can actually tell you whether you have the CagA or VacA H pylori strains – the ones associated with the more serious conditions listed here.

It also tells you whether the strain you have is resistant to Clarithromycin, one of the most important antibiotics used in H pylori triple therapy.

How to beat H pylori:

If you know for sure you have H pylori, get it treated.

If your doctor’s treatment doesn’t work, there are other options.

Start with the protocols in my book, The H Pylori Diet.

Be persistent: some people eradicate H pylori quickly, but other people need more time.

For example, some people might need 30-days on herbs, and some may need 60-90 days.

Some people need more courses of antibiotics than others (this is a bit of a problem because the more antibiotics you use, the more problems you might run into – Candida overgrowth, SIBO, antibiotic resistance, etc.)

It’s Your Turn:

Are you concerned about possible H pylori complications?

If so, we’d love to hear from you.

What not leave a comment below and we’ll do our best to get back to you quickly!

Best,

Dave.

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H pylori and metabolic syndrome – is there a link? H pylori and metabolic syndrome In this post we’ll explore the association between H pylori and metabolic syndrome. It’s a really […]
H pylori and high blood pressure – an important link H pylori and high blood pressure / hypertension In the third article in my series on H pylori and cardiovascular disease, we’ll cover the […]

Sovrn

Darrel Owen

View December 7, 2015

Hi Dave, around 6 weeks ago ‘out of the blue’ I had a bad bout of vomiting where I brought up blood (looked like coffee granules) followed by green bile. Carried on with life for 2 weeks with no further vomiting but my gut was bad so went to my GP. Blood test and abdomen US came back normal but I tested positive for H Pylori. GP pescribed triple therapy for 14 days and I only have 3 days left to complete the course. The side effects have been grim but have pecivered. Gut is still playing up and I still don’t know if I have an ulcer or possibly gastritis? I’ve found your videos very informative and very well presented and would love to have your opinion on my present condition. I’m a 57 year old male and consider myself to reasonably fit and never had any previous problems concerning the digestive tract. Kind regards.

Reply
Nicola Francis

View November 17, 2017

Hi, my problems started way back in Feb and for over 4 months was told it was all psychological and I was anxious and to basically stop going to docs. After a month of pain and struggling I tried one more time and saw a locum doc who straight away suggested the problems were my stomach. I was put on ppi med and this helped a bit but not a lot he then did a stool test as I was to terrified of camera option. It found h pylori and I was given the triple therapy treatment and told that’s it youll be fixed. Nearly 2 month later my symptoms of pain in chest and stomach breathing difficulties has returned badly and I niw have to have camera for suspected ulcer. I am petrifed. I’d like to know if being undiagnosed for nearly 8 months and not believed about my symptoms could this have caused damage that could of been sorted much earlier? I am so scared of having an endoscopy I don’t know if I will be able to go ahead with it but I’m struggling to breathe on a daily basis

Reply
- Dave Hompesreplied:
  
  View November 24, 2017
  
  Nicola,
  
  This should be relatively easy to resolve. Diet changes, lifestyle considerations and the correct medications and/or natural supplements will resolve the issue (unless there is a complex medical disorder, which I don’t know about).
  
  Triple therapy does not always work for H pylori. It can leave “straggling” organisms that multiply once the treatment has finished. you should have been tested for H pylori again 4 weeks after completing your treatment (this is the consensus medical protocol, but many doctors do not adhere to it; in fact, a study was released this year showing that in the US, a large proportion of doctors fail to retest for H pylori following treatment).
  
  Nicola, it’s not really up to the doctor to resolve these issues for you. You must become empowered and learn to deal with these issues yourself. The doctor can help, but in reality, only you can make decisions about your health.
  
  I recommend you read my e-book – The H Pylori Diet – and begin following the programme ASAP.
  
  Ask your doctor to test for H pylori again (breath test or stool test). If they won’t test, consider using a home stool test like this one.
  
  If you have an ulcer, eradicating H pylori will help.
  
  But you must stop smoking, stop drinking alcohol, and cut your salt intake, too.
  
  Other foods that can irritate the stomach are gluten, cow’s milk and vinegar, citrus fruits and chocolate.
  
  Good supplements include aloe vera, DGL, curcumin, slippery elm. They help to reduce digestive irritation and can reduce symptoms until the underlying cause is dealt with.
  
  Best,
  Dave
  
  Reply
Shelia

View November 18, 2017

My mother was diagnosed with h-pylori last year January 2017 she was admitted to ICU where she was on a ventilator for two days the doctors had done a emergency exploratory surgery to find the source of infection 4 days after ICU she was send back to the prison infirmary with NO type of medication 8 months later in September 2017 again was admitted to ICU at a different hospital she had gone into respiratory arrest. They put her on a ventilator and anyone that was in her room had to wear gloves and a gown the infection was so bad her organs began to fail. A team of infectious Control doctors told me that there wasn’t anything else they could do. She passed away 17 hours later after she was taken off of the ventilator. My question is Back in January if she had been giving proper medical treatment for H-Pylori would she still have become septic?

Reply
- Dave Hompesreplied:
  
  View November 24, 2017
  
  Hi,
  
  I’m sorry for your loss.
  
  It’s very difficult to answer this question with any degree of certainty. My mother died from septicemia when she was 60. When they did the autopsy, they found a severe level of damage in her stomach and duodenum, which I believe led to bacteria getting into her body and causing the septicemia. But it’s impossible to say for sure.
  
  Best,
  Dave
  
  Reply

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