Gastroesophageal reflux: a self-inflicted disease?
I will never stop saying that our body is "a perfect machine ", I am passionate about anatomy as well as physiology, and understanding both areas is what facilitates the understanding of diseases, because if you know what happens normally, you can intuit what is going wrong when an illness or discomfort occurs.
Today I want to talk about the digestive system, the one that is in charge of processing what we ingest in the form of food, to obtain from them what our body needs to stay healthy, in balance.
Very specifically I want to focus my topic of development in this publication in the esophagus, which is the initial part of the digestive system, an organ that works constantly, that practically we can not even feel, unless we take or eat something with very low or very high temperature and it is the one that carries what we ingest from the mouth to the stomach.
The esophagus is a tubular organ, basically composed of muscle, which by a very efficient mechanism of action conducts the food from the mouth, once swallowed, to the stomach, so that here it joins with the gastric acids.
I speak of the efficiency of this organ because even if a human being is hanging from his feet, with his head downwards, if he swallows something, the esophagus will be in charge of taking what he has swallowed to the stomach, even when he is against gravity. And it is a job that we do not coordinate ourselves, but it is involuntary, it does not subtract the work of being aware of that work.
Luckily we have a central nervous system and an autonomic nervous system, which take care of most vital functions without us even realizing it. One more reason to be very passionate about the human body. But, not only do I want to talk about how wonderful that muscular organ called esophagus turns out to be, I would like to share information regarding one of the most common diseases that usually occur in it, the reasons, and how to avoid it.
The disease that mostly affects the esophagus is the Gastroesophageal reflux disease, and to a large extent I must say that the reason for the appearance of this is due to causes related to habits of the human being who suffers from it.
I will begin by explaining a very important point here, and that is the gastroesophageal junction, the point where the esophagus joins the stomach. A very important junction point, which is where if a dysfunction occurs, however minimal it may be, we will be able to see what from it, over time, can be generated.
At this particular point, there is a specialized muscular structure, which is called Sphincter, and this small structure is in charge of only allowing the passage of food and liquids from the esophagus to the stomach, but not inversely, and when the latter occurs, is when the problems begin.
I have illustrated in the figure above what is the gastroesophageal sphincter, which has the ability to open and close, to allow the passage of food and beverages in the direction of the stomach. But for some reasons, it usually allows the food to pass back from the stomach, once it has mixed with gastric acid, from the stomach into the esophagus, producing a sensation of heartburn, unfortunately very common.
I should note that the inner layer, the mucosa of the esophagus does not have the capacity to adequately withstand the acidity of gastric acid, which is why it ends up being very injured when this is common.
This even gives the possibility that over the years esophageal cancer or another condition called Barret's esophagus may develop. I am not going to go into much detail at this time, but they are a consequence of the constant contact of this acid with the esophageal mucosa.
I commented at the beginning that the main reasons why people suffer from this reflux is because of some habits, mainly foods that produce the "numbness " of the gastroesophageal sphincter and prevent it from performing its function properly.
I could say that the most common is the consumption of fat in excess. Have you noticed that people who present heartburn do so after a copious intake of fatty foods? such as hamburger, hot dog, barbecue, etc.
This is the reason that I most often see as the cause, therefore, can we avoid it?, of course we can, simply by reducing the intake of such foods. But it is not only these that produce it, but also other habits, which are not healthy for our organism either, such as the consumption of alcohol and smoking.
These are habits that are present in almost 100% of the people who suffer from acidity due to gastroesophageal reflux. But overeating also causes it, regardless of the type of food eaten.
This disease generates a sensation that can sometimes be confused even with a heart attack, when presented acutely, with a burning pain of strong intensity, which can last for hours, and that decreases with the intake of liquids, at least for a short period of time.
It is best to stay away from harmful habits such as excessive alcohol, fatty foods and eating in large proportions, as it can trigger a very large discomfort in us, with even serious consequences in the medium and long term, which could reach the point of being irreversible damage.
Grateful for your support, I hope it has been an educational post for all. Have a good week.
Fatty things taste good but the consequences are bad!
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Fatty things are the ones that can give us the best taste, but they certainly have their consequences. Thank you.
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Hello, extraordinary article, you are absolutely right when you express that our body is a perfect machine, that is why, the importance of learning to take care of it as best as possible, and this information is very valuable for that purpose, we must always be attentive to this information to learn a little every day to take care of our body. For example, the so important digestive system, it was really a great pleasure to have read your posts, and learned many things I did not know, thank you for providing your knowledge to everyone.
It is a pleasure for me that this publication leaves you with knowledge that I hope you can put into practice for a much better life, which is what we should strive for.
Thank you for your kind comment.
I have someone very close to me who has this disease. Its not very easy, though he is coping with lifestyle modifications and some PPIs.
Though the etiology of his GERD is likely from a hiatus hernia which distorts the lower oesophageal sphincter and causes the reflux.
Endoscopic Surgery might be the definitive treatment but for now, he is still doing some conservative management.
It is a seemingly harmless disease, but the truth is that it can cause a lot of discomfort in the person, it requires healthier lifestyle habits. But it may also be that the solution is surgical. As you put it.
In our contemporary age, one of the thing causing massive disease to our body is what we consume in terms of food
Yes, it Is true. Bad eating habits generate chaos in our bodies.
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