By: Jean Johnson for Reflux1The big money these days in America goes for large-scale research on links between reflux (GERD, gastroesophageal reflux disease), obesity and esophageal adenocarcinoma. Instances of adenocarcinoma of the esophagus, a deadly form of cancer, rose rapidly between 1974 and 1994 at the staggering rate of 350 percent. Current annual rates of increase in the United States run around 21 percent with even higher incidences in Great Britain, Australia and the Netherlands. In all those nations middle aged-white Caucasians are six to eight times as likely to get the condition as others.
While not in the public vernacular as much as reflux and trying to knock off unwanted pounds around the belly where men tend to carry their weight, Barrett’s esophagus figures in to the big money triad because it is associated with heartburn or reflux. More, Barrett’s can lead to adenocarcinomas of the esophagus.
Barrett's esophagus is an advanced stage of reflux in which permanent changes in sections of the lining of the esophagus are visible. Acid refluxing into the esophagus can alter cells and give rise to Barrett’s. Symptoms usually appear after a meal and can include regurgitation, or burping up of acid into the mouth, burning in the chest and high abdomen and pain when lying down or bending over.
The good news is that 90 – 95 percent of those diagnosed with Barrett’s esophagus do not develop esophageal cancer. An estimated 10 – 15 percent of those who have reflux develop Barrett’s.
When you figure that 38 – 44 percent of Americans experience symptoms of heartburn at least occasionally, it’s easy to see why the medical community is peering through its collective glasses very carefully.
Studies, of course, can’t be rushed. In the meantime, lifestyle changes might be prudent. Certainly trying to control heartburn, or reflux, the number one risk factor for Barrett’s, is an option. Mainstream medicine across the board calls for diets high in vegetables and fruits and low in fat to reduce risks for cancers of all types.
Naturopath Carlos Rosa, N.D. of Portland, Ore., goes a step further. “Chewing properly is a big piece people often forget. Most people are in such a hurry that they don’t take time to chew their food and it ends up fermenting and putrefying in the stomach,” Rosa said. “The other piece is that most people eat their largest meal at night when gastric juices are the lowest. It’s better to live with the rhythm of your body and have your biggest meals between 9 and 2. And when you do, try to be in high emotional states. The idea is to calm down and enjoy the moment.”
Rosa also recalls what Hippocrates said when back when the Athenians dazzled the world with their enlightened Mediterranean Mecca: “Let the food be your medicine, and your medicine be your food.” Most likely when we’re talking about Barrett’s esophagus and its friends reflux, obesity and esophageal adenocarcinoma, Hippocrates’ advice, not to mention that of Dr. Rosa’s, doesn’t seem too far off.
