Barretts Esophagus and Vitamins

There are three critical nutrients that can help with this condition

There is mounting evidence to support the fact that if this condition is not treated by surgery or using the natural approach which is vitamins, it can very easily lead to this form of cancer.

If you are a white male in middle age or older, or if you suffer from acid reflux disease, you have a very good chance of developing this condition unless you take a pre-emptive approach with three critical nutrients.

What is it?

In fully understanding the connection between Barretts esophagus and vitamins, it is very helpful to understand exactly what this condition is, the symptoms as well as the risk factors.

The next step is which three vitamin help and exactly why they can help you in avoiding the next stage of this condition, which is esophageal cancer.

Barretts esophagus is best described as a condition where the cells of your lower esophagus have become damaged, and in the vast majority of cases, this damage is caused by repeated exposure to stomach acid.

When these cells become damaged, it changes their color as well as the makeup or composition, which opens the door for cancer to form.

If you suffer from acid reflux disease, or GERD, also referred to as gastoesophagel reflux disease, it can very easily trigger it.

Even though this condition only effects a small portion of people that suffer from GERD, it is considered to be a very serious situation because of its ability to very quickly develop into esophageal cancer.

The exact cause of this condition is still not fully understood by the medical community, but what is understood is that is the damage that may result. When your stomach contents are forced back up into your esophagus as the result of GERD, your esophagus does the only thing it can do; it tries to heal itself.

Once this occurs, the cells that are found with this condition begin to appear, as your body is having a difficult time replenishing healthy cells to replace the damaged ones.

Symptoms and Risk factors:

The connection between Barretts esophagus and vitamins continues with the symptoms you can watch for as well as the risk factors. The first and most common of these symptoms is a frequent occurrence of heartburn, as well as a gradual difficulty in swallowing food.

These symptoms are then generally followed by chest pains that can range from very mild to moderate, as well as upper abdominal pain and a dry cough. However, there is one very challenging aspect about this condition; not everyone that suffers from it will experience these symptoms.

If you do suffer from any type of a chest pain and it continues for any length of time, or if the difficulty in swallowing becomes persistent, you need to seek immediate professional help as it is becoming a lot more serious or something even more sinister is happening.

Other real warning signs include vomiting red blood cells that will almost look like coffee grinds, or passing black and tarry stools. The risk factors other than suffering from GERD include being male, Caucasian, and older than fifty years of age.

Lifestyle Changes:

The connection between Barretts esophagus and vitamins will also include some lifestyle changes that when combined with the three nutrients that can help may assist you in controlling this condition or prevent it from taking the next step.

The first of these lifestyle changes is to get your weight down if you are heavy. This is critical as extra weight can place pressure on your abdomen, which in turn will push up your stomach, and all of these conditions combined may cause acid to build up more easily.

Eating smaller and more frequent meals can also help, as well as avoiding tight fitting clothes. If you have clothes that fit very tightly around your waist, it places pressure on your abdomen which is the last thing that you need.

Avoiding any type of food that causes heartburn will also help, as well as avoiding excessive bending or stooping, as this will also place pressure on your abdomen.

If you lie down directly after eating, this can also trigger acid reflex.

Barretts Esophagus and Vitamins:

Barretts esophagus and vitamins connection begins with Vitamin C, which is widely held to help with your oral cavities, stomach and pancreas, as well as your esophagus.

It is also believed by many in the medical community that some forms of cancer are caused by free radicals, which are naturally occurring molecules that have one purpose; to steal the electrons from your healthy molecules for themselves.

Your DNA is critical in protecting your body from cancer cells, and if they are compromised, it opens the door for cancer to form. However, this nutrient is a very powerful anti-oxidant and it actually offers itself as the food source for these rogue free radicals, which in turn protects them from any type of attack.

It does this by offering their own electrons as the food source, but there is another connection with Barretts esophagus and vitamins with this nutrient; it also promotes the activity of cell growth.

This is critical with this condition as your cells are very easily damaged in this process, and if your cell growth is compromised as your esophagus tries to repair itself, it can make the situation even worse, again opening the door for cancer cells to form.

The next connection continues with vitamin D, which is believed to help your body increase its production of a protein referred to as 15-prostaglandin dehydrogenase. This protein is believed to help suppress esophageal cancer cells from forming, and if you are deficient of this nutrient, it again opens you up for even more potential damage.

The final connection is with vitamin E, as it also has very strong anti-oxidant qualities and when it is combined with vitamin C, it forms a very powerful one-two punch against the damages caused by free radicals which can draw this condition into the cancer stage.

Summary:

Barretts esophagus and vitamins have a very strong connection in preventing this condition from ever developing into cancer, and by supplementing them, it will strengthen this connection.

Even though the actual cause is still not known, it is believed that if you can control acid reflux and back it up with these nutrients, you may beat this condition before it takes the next very dangerous step.

References:

Mayo Clinic: Barretts Esophagus

www.mayoclinic.com/health/barretts-esophagus/HQ00312

Vitamins for Healing a Damaged Esophagus

http://www.livestrong.com/article/321579-vitamins-for-healing-a-damaged-esophagus/

Barretts Esophagus and Vitamins

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