Navigating Ramadan: Fasting Without Gastritis, Gastric Ulcer, and Gerd

TIMESINDONESIA, JAKARTA – Marhaban ya Ramadan. Alhamdulillahi rabbil’alamin. Just before we know it, Muslims will be entering the month of Ramadan 1445 H.

Throughout the holy month, an obligation of Muslims throughout the world is fasting. However, for some Muslims suffering from digestive diseases such as gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD, Ramadan could be quite a formidable period. So, how can one fully fast free of Gastritis, Gastric Ulcer, and GERD.

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Causes of Gastritis, Gastric Ulcer, and GERD

The causes of gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD include: painkillers, antibiotics, non steroid anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAID), foods high in saturated fats, coffee and sweet drinks, acidic foods and drinks, alcohol, and high stress.

Nonetheless, these causes only account for 5% of all gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD cases. 95% of those cases are caused by the domination of bad bacteria called Helicobacter pylori (HP) inside the stomach. That being so, it is important to maintain the stomach’s health by supplementation of probiotics (or good, beneficial bacteria) in order let these probiotics outweigh the number of HP in the stomach.

The dominance of HP could lead to:

●    Excess gastric acid production which leads to increased production of pepsin, the cause of stomach wall erosion.
●    Increased pro-inflammatory cytokines, causing stomach inflammation

Conventional Treatments for Gastritis, Gastric Ulcer, and GERD

Many attempts have been made in order to eradicate the bad bacteria HP, such as:
●    Taking antacids, which are highly accessible in the market. Antacids functions as a gastric acid neutralizer. Yet, this is not a one-stop solution since the root cause of gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD, HP might still be dominant in the stomach.
●    After antacids fail, gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD patients are given Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPI) to halt gastric acid production done by parietal cells found in the stomach walls.
●    Should PPI treatment fail to deal with gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD, 3 kinds of antibiotics will be further given on top of PPI with hopes that HP could be completely eradicated.
●    Even after a chain of treatments, there is a high chance that gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD could still linger; and, even worse, complications of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) due to antibiotics could kill a lot of beneficial bacteria in the intestines.

Giving antacids, PPI, and antibiotics only alleviates the side effects of gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD. It does not solve the root cause of gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD, which is the domination of HP inside the stomach. Eventually, when the consumption of these drugs is stopped, the production of gastric acid shockingly increases and then worsens gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD.

Probiotic Supplementation for Accelerating Stomach Mucosal Regeneration

The mucosal layer inside the stomach is an important asset for protecting the stomach against pathogenic infections and erosion of stomach lining due to gastric acid.

The integrity of the stomach mucosal layer, a layer that covers the surface of organs, plays an important role in maintaining the stomach’s health. The balance of the stomach’s physiological condition lies between injuries on the stomach mucosal layer, mucosal regeneration, and the stomach’s defensive factors.

The defensive factors are composed of surface epithelial cell layers that are constantly being regenerated and mucus layers (MUC5AC) that smears the stomach’s epithelial layer.

Dr. dr. Andy Darma, Sp.A conducted a research concerning this problem on Wistar rats, titled, “The Effect of Probiotic Lactobacillus Plantarum IS-10506 on Prevention of Damage and Stomach Mucosal Regeneration Caused by Ibuprofen Exposure” (Darma et al., 2023).

This study successfully proves that supplementation of the probiotic Lactobacillus Plantarum (LP) can accelerate the regeneration of stomach mucosa damaged by ibuprofen exposure.

NSAID like Ibuprofen (to reduce fever) or Na Diclofenac (painkiller) could damage the stomach mucosa by halting the production of prostaglandin, a fat compound the body makes at sites of tissue damage.

This results in the reduced production of mucus, secretion of bicarbonate, and mucosal blood flow, which ends up with gastritis, and even worse, gastric ulcer or GERD.

LP probiotic therapy increases the production of prostaglandin 2 (PGE2) which in turn will increase the production of MUC5AC. In the stomach, PGE2 plays a huge role in keeping the mucosal integrity by regulating mucosal blood flow and stimulates the production of mucus which are smeared on the stomach epithelial layer. This is beneficial for protection against corrosive gastric acid and pathogenic infections.

Probiotic Supplementation for Stomach Mucosal Damage Prevention

Even greater, the supplementation of Lactobacillus Plantarum is able to prevent damage on the stomach mucosal lining due to ibuprofen exposure.

The increase in PGE2 and MUC5AC by prevention is higher than method of therapy. So, by looking at both angles of cellular level and cost of treatment, it seems that “prevention” is better than “medication.” This is the novelty of gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD treatment shown in this research.

Lactobacillus Plantarum therapy can prevent scarring and speeds up regeneration of stomach mucosal layers after damage caused by Ibuprofen and Na Diclofenac exposure, as well as the elusive HP domination inside the stomach.

Multistrain Probiotics and Their Active Metabolites for Gastritis, Gastric Ulcer, and GERD Treatment
Multistrain probiotics, a kind of health supplement, is composed of multiple species of probiotics that work in harmony to give beneficial health effects to the body by producing biochemical products called metabolites, such as:

●    Bacteriocin (natural antibiotics), which can selectively kill HP, which eventually leads to the decrease in HP population inside the stomach
●    Short chain fatty acids (SCFA) which stimulates the production of mucus on the stomach wall. This is crucial for protection against corrosive gastric acid and cell regeneration in order close wounds on the stomach.
●    Natural anti-inflammatory products such as embelin, gingerol, diallyl sulfide, 16 alpha-hidroxysterone which works to decrease inflammation in the stomach.

A Ramadan Free of Gastritis, Gastric Ulcer, and GERD

PRO EM1, a multistrain probiotic health supplement, can prevent and treat gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD free of side effects. Multistrain probiotics tackle gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD down to its root cause. While fasting, supplementing the body with multistrain probiotics during suhoor and after breaking the fast can prevent gastritis, gastric ulcer, and GERD from happening, as well as strengthening the immune system to protect the body from various diseases.

Additionally, PRO EM1 is under license of EMRO Okinawa, Japan, which contains live multistrain probiotics and active metabolites such as SCFA, bacteriocins, natural anti-inflammatory compounds, and has a long shelf life. PRO EM1 is made with natural ingredients sourced from Indonesia, and has acquired the marketing authorization from BPOM (Indonesian FDA) as a supplement product, and a Halal certification from the Indonesian Ministry of Religion.

Happy fasting during Ramadan, and may we all reap the holiness of this holy month. 

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