Younger stomach problems?
The incidence of stomach disease in the population is as high as 85%, and continues to increase every year, people often say that nine out of ten people have stomach disease, the survey report shows that more than ninety percent of the respondents said that they have had stomach discomfort, and the trend of younger is obvious. The persistence of various social pressures has led to a gradual increase in the incidence of tumors and a trend of younger people, and esophageal cancer, gastric cancer, colorectal cancer, that is, digestive tract tumors, have ranked first, seriously endangering people's physical and mental health.
April 9, 2024 is the 19th International Stomach Care Day.
Chronic gastritis is the most common upper gastrointestinal disease in mainland China, with a medical rate of up to 60%. The proportion of patients aged 23-34 years with chronic gastritis is increasing year by year.
At the event site, medical staff widely publicized common stomach discomfort by hanging banners, distributing materials, and popularizing science by doctors, including: indigestion, stomach fullness, acid reflux heartburn, stomach pain, Helicobacter pylori infection, etc., and the early symptoms of digestive tract tumors were hidden, and the most typical symptom was that there were no symptoms at all. Early diagnosis and treatment are the key to improving survival.
Stomach nourishment knowledge and health science
I woke up and rushed to work, and I didn't have time to eat breakfast
After the meeting at noon, order a takeout
Work overtime in the evening, eat as much as you want......
These are the true portrayals of contemporary professionals
Little did you know that irregular meals are damaging your stomach
April 9 is International Stomach Day
Your stomach that works all day, are you okay?
There are only 4 steps from gastritis to stomach cancer
In the early stage of gastric cancer, most patients have no specific manifestations, and even if they do, they are often similar to the symptoms of chronic gastritis, mainly manifested as indigestion, such as epigastric pain, abdominal distention, postprandial fullness and early satiety, as well as loss of appetite, ambiguity, pantothenic acid, nausea, etc., and some patients can have symptoms such as emaciation and fatigue, so it is easy to misdiagnose and mistreat.
In addition, although atrophic gastritis is considered a precancerous disease, the development of gastric cancer is a long process involving multiple pathogenic factors, and not all of them will eventually progress to gastric cancer. Therefore, if you have epigastric symptoms or high-risk factors for gastric diseases, you need to seek medical attention and appropriate intervention in a timely manner.
The development of gastric cancer from chronic gastritis to gastric cancer has roughly gone through four stages, and appropriate intervention at any stage of these stages plays an important role in the prevention and treatment of gastric cancer, so we must pay attention to it.
Most gastric cancers start from chronic superficial gastritis, and most chronic superficial gastritis can find corresponding causes or predisposing factors, and the elimination of these factors can maintain the health of the stomach and stay away from gastric cancer.
Among these factors, chronic infection (Hp) of Helicobacter pylori is currently recognized as the main causative factor of chronic active gastritis, and is a class I carcinogen identified by the World Health Organization, but Hp infection can be prevented and controlled, and timely eradication can interrupt the deterioration of gastric mucosal lesions, otherwise it will gradually develop into chronic atrophic gastritis, that is, the second stage, often with symptoms such as vague abdominal pain, fullness and discomfort, indigestion, nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite.
If the inflammation repeats, the gastric mucosa will undergo an adaptive response - intestinal metaplasia, and even epithelial dysplasia, which will develop to the irreversible third stage - precancerous lesions.
From mild dysplasia step by step to severe dysplasia, it is getting closer and closer to early gastric cancer, and now pathologically it is called dysplasia, also known as intraepithelial neoplasia, which is divided into low-grade and high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, if the pathological report is high-grade intraepithelial neoplasia, it is necessary to intervene as soon as possible, and endoscopic lesion resection is preferred, otherwise it will enter the fourth stage - early gastric cancer.
❗ So if you find yourself experiencing the following symptoms, be vigilant:
1. Abdominal discomfort that cannot be relieved
Such as indigestion, abdominal pain, bloating, loss of appetite, etc., and many of them have no triggers, and the effect of taking medicine is not good, and even aggravated.
2. The stool is noticeably darker
Be on high alert for cancer, which is likely to be caused by bleeding from the ulcer, and the blood oozing from the stomach turns black when it reaches the intestines.
3. Significant weight drop
Without deliberate weight loss, in a short period of time, the weight has dropped sharply by more than ten or twenty pounds, accompanied by a feeling of tiredness and weakness, and it is also necessary to be vigilant against stomach cancer.
Gastroscopy is currently the best method to evaluate gastric mucosal inflammation and lesions, pepsinogen-related serum indicators are helpful to judge the functional status of gastric mucosa, and Helicobacter pylori detection can detect the cause and eradicate it in time.
Timely treatment of the lesion can well prevent the occurrence and development of gastric cancer, and it is not recommended to take gastric medicine by yourself, which may misjudge the severity of the disease and delay the disease.
Stomach cancer is most closely related to diet
Of all cancers, stomach cancer is most closely related to diet. The National Cancer Center published a new study on the situation of gastric cancer in mainland China in the journal The Lancet, which found that among the six major causes of gastric cancer in mainland China, gastric cancer caused by Helicobacter pylori infection, smoking, pickled food and alcohol consumption showed a downward trend, while obesity and diabetes showed an upward trend.
1. Helicobacter pylori infection
Data show that 15%-20% of patients with H. pylori infection will develop peptic ulcer, 5%-10% will develop H. pylori-related dyspepsia, and 1% will eventually develop gastric malignancy.
2. Smoking
The harmful substances in tobacco can irritate the gastric mucosa, causing abnormal cell proliferation in the stomach tissue. Compared to people who have never smoked, smokers have a 61% increased risk of stomach cancer and a 43% increased risk in former smokers.
3. Obesity
Obesity has been widely recognized as a condition capable of inducing inflammation and cancer, with studies showing that people with larger waists have a 38% higher risk of stomach cancer compared to those with smaller waist circumferences.
4. Diabetes
First, patients with type 2 diabetes often have an increased risk of gastric cancer due to insulin resistance and hyperglycemia, secondly, hyperglycemia and glucose metabolism disorders can lead to impaired immune systems, making patients more susceptible to Helicobacter pylori infection, and there are common risk factors between diabetes and gastric cancer, such as obesity and unhealthy diet.
5. Preserved foods
Nitrosamines and nitrites in pickled foods may cause cancer, and long-term intake can increase the risk of stomach cancer. Compared with less intake of such foods, the risk of stomach cancer increased by 2.21 times in people who regularly ate preserved foods.
6. Long-term alcohol consumption
Alcohol can cause severe irritation of the gastrointestinal tract, causing nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and other reactions, causing gastric mucosal damage and bleeding, and increasing the risk of gastric cancer.
Do 5 things to do to stay away from stomach cancer
Stomach cancer doesn't happen overnight
It is closely related to people's daily habits
I recommend that everyone do these 5 things well
Keep stomach cancer out of the door
1. Put an end to bad eating habits
Eat regular meals, preferably without supper. Surveys have shown that the risk of stomach cancer is 1.3 times higher than that of the normal population. Advocate a low-salt diet, eat fresh vegetables, fruits and high-quality protein appropriately every day, eat less high-temperature fried, barbecued, smoked food, and reduce the intake of salted, spicy and other foods that irritate the gastric mucosa.
2. Cultivate a good lifestyle
Quit smoking, drinking, and staying up late, and people who are stressed should learn to self-adjust. Long-term effects of bad mood on the human body will lead to endocrine disruption and reduce immune function, thus giving cancer a chance to take advantage of. Pay attention to weight control and participate in aerobic exercise appropriately can not only enhance physical fitness, promote the peristalsis of the digestive system, but also improve the body's immunity.
3. Prevent Helicobacter pylori infection
It is recommended to develop the habit of dividing meals, whether it is eating at home or eating out, use spoons and chopsticks. Test for Helicobacter pylori every year, and if infection occurs, follow the doctor's instructions in time, carry out quadruple therapy to inhibit Helicobacter pylori on time and in accordance with the amount, and recheck on time.
4. Have regular physical examinations
Gastroscopic pathological biopsy is the "gold standard" for diagnosing gastric cancer. Routine gastroscopy should be done every 2-3 years for people over the age of 45, and earlier (eg, 35 years) for people with Helicobacter pylori, hepatitis virus, or a family history of gastrointestinal cancer. In addition, it is important to pay attention to diabetes screening.
5. Be wary of genetic factors and family history
About 10% of stomach cancers run in families, and people with a family history of stomach cancer have a 2-10 times higher risk of stomach cancer. Especially for people with a history of stomach cancer in their immediate family, it is important to pay attention to early screening. The 5-year survival rate of early-stage gastric cancer > 90%, and many patients can achieve long-term survival without recurrence.
In life, we can nourish our stomach through some foods and eating habits, such as drinking more boiled water, eating more fresh food, and drinking health and stomach tea, etc., which can protect our stomach health to a certain extent. If you have had a gastroscopy and there is no lesion in the stomach, but the stomach is often uncomfortable, and you want to prevent atrophic gastritis, we recommend a health care stomach drink:
Composition: 10 grams of prince ginseng, 10 grams of reed root, 10 grams of fried malt, 3 grams of ginger.
Usage: Fry in water for 10 minutes, let it cool for offspring tea. People with a weak spleen and stomach can increase the amount of ginger to 10 grams.
Part of the picture and text source: PLA General Hospital
Picture | Advocacy Section
Article | Zhang Lin
Orchestration| Tan Tingting
Review|Liu Yangbo, Pu Zhaozhi, Tan Qi
Specialty Audit|Gastroenterology, Neurology