The stomach is an important digestive organ in the human body, and its main functions are temporary storage, initial digestion and absorption of food, as well as secretion and defense functions. However, due to improper eating habits and special physical conditions, some people are prone to "stones" in the stomach, which is medically known as gastric stones or gastrolithiasis. Although gastric stones are benign diseases, they can have a serious impact on the function of the digestive tract. Therefore, it is necessary for us to understand and learn to prevent this disease.
Plant-based gastric stones are more common in autumn and winter
Gastric stones are caused by the ingestion of indigestible foods, hair, or foods containing minerals such as bismuth, calcium carbonate, and barium in people with poor gastrointestinal motility and weak digestive tract function. According to the different foods ingested, gastric stones can be divided into four types: vegetable gastric stones, animal gastric stones (or gastroliths), lactic acid gastric stones, and drug-induced gastric stones. Among them, vegetable gastric stones are the most common.
Autumn and winter are the seasons when persimmons, hawthorns, and black dates are ripe and marketed. These fruits contain a lot of tannic acid, gum, pectin and dietary fiber. Especially for unripe, unastringent fruits or peels, the tannin content can be as high as 20%.
Under the action of gastric acid, tannic acid combines with proteins in food to form tannin proteins that are large in molecules and insoluble in water. When tannic acid protein is mixed with gums, pectin, plant fibers, etc., it will accumulate in the stomach to form a solid mass and become a "stone" in the stomach.
Who is prone to gastric stones?
First of all, eating too many persimmons, hawthorns, and black dates on an empty stomach, especially jerky persimmons with the skin, is prone to stomach stones. Because people have high levels of gastric acid in the fasting state, this is an important condition for the formation of gastric stones. If high-protein foods such as fish, shrimp, milk, and eggs are consumed at the same time, the risk of gastric stone formation will be greatly increased.
Secondly, drinking tea and alcohol after eating persimmons and hawthorn on an empty stomach is also a risk factor for the formation of gastric stones. Drinking tea promotes the formation of gastric stones, which may be related to theophylline, tannins, and gastric acid agglutination. Alcohol accelerates protein coagulation, and the higher the amount of alcohol consumed, the faster stomach stones will form.
Again, people with poor digestion are prone to gastric stones. Most of the patients with gastric stones are elderly, because the elderly may have a variety of underlying diseases, weakened digestive tract function, are more likely to have problems such as reduced gastric peristalsis and delayed gastric emptying, and the elderly have reduced sensory sensitivity, often manifesting as asymptomatic gastric stones, which can easily lead to delayed disease. In addition, patients with a history of gastroparesis, diabetes, peptic ulcer, and large gastrectomy, as well as children, are also prone to gastric stones.
Clinically, the risk of gastric stones is increased in the following groups. One is the weight loss population. Many dieters lose weight by reducing their food intake, and some people only eat once a day, which will significantly increase stomach acid levels and weaken gastric motility. The second is diabetics. Diabetic patients themselves have the problem of insufficient motility of the digestive tract, coupled with the increase in the number of patients using semaglutide in recent years, and semaglutide can cause decreased gastrointestinal motility and even gastroparesis. The third is patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Most of these patients have decreased gastrointestinal function and gastric motility.
People with the above conditions should not eat too much persimmon, hawthorn, and black dates in autumn and winter, and do not drink alcohol, tea, or eat high-protein foods at the same time.
How to avoid "long stones" in the stomach
The most common hazards of gastric stones are multiple gastric ulcers and multiple erosions of the gastric mucosa. The formation of gastric ulcers is mainly due to the irritation and damage of the local mucosa caused by gastric stones, that is, the physical damage caused by the friction of gastric stones. Larger stones can cause gastric outlet obstruction, while small stones can enter the small intestine through the gastric outlet, sometimes leading to small bowel obstruction, causing patients to experience symptoms such as abdominal pain and vomiting. The most severe cases are gastric perforation, active gastric bleeding, or acute abdomen such as peritonitis. Therefore, patients with gastric stones should be treated as soon as possible, and high-risk groups should pay attention to prevention and management.
1
Control your intake of relevant foods. Avoid eating too much persimmon, hawthorn, black date and other foods high in tannin content on an empty stomach, especially those with a history of gastric surgery, people with diabetes or semaglutide, people who are losing weight and patients with hypothyroidism. The elderly and children should also pay attention to the moderate intake of persimmons, hawthorns, black dates, etc.
2
Improves gastric motility. Eat regularly, stick to appropriate outdoor exercise, and maintain a relaxed and happy mood. This increases the peristalsis of the stomach and improves digestion. People at high risk of gastric stones can use drugs that promote gastrointestinal motility such as domperidone tablets and mosapride citrate under the guidance of doctors to prevent gastric stones.
Source: Public Health Magazine's WeChat public account
Editor: Yang Shijia
Review: Pan Huahong, Bi Tianqi