Methods for treating digestive disorders

First rule out organic diseases such as ulcers and Helicobacter pylori infection, and then restore gastrointestinal motility through personalized adjustments to diet, work and rest, and mood based on your own situation. There is no need to blindly take high-priced supplements, and it is not recommended to rely on acid-suppressing and gastric motility-stimulating drugs for a long time.

To be honest, I have met hundreds of friends with this kind of problem in the past two years, and nine out of ten of them have fallen into the trap of "blindly nourishing the stomach". They either drank millet porridge for three months until the acid reflux became more severe, or they stocked up on probiotics worth thousands of dollars, which were of no use. Some people took omeprazole when they felt uncomfortable, and then they couldn't digest anything they ate, which made the problem worse.

No matter what method you plan to use to adjust, the first step is to find out whether you are really just "dysfunctional." Western medicine generally recommends a gastrointestinal endoscopy and carbon 14 breath test to rule out organic problems such as ulcers, polyps, and Helicobacter pylori infection. After all, if the discomfort is caused by a disease, conditioning alone is useless. The disease must be treated first. However, many practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine hold a different view. They believe that if there are no high-risk signals such as blood in the stool, sudden weight loss, or severe pain, it can be treated through symptom differentiation for half a month. If there is no improvement, it is not too late to do invasive examinations. After all, it is really painful to have a gastroscopy and colonoscopy. Both of these statements are reasonable. You can choose according to your own physical condition. There is no need to argue about right or wrong.

Many people asked me right away, "Is there a unified recipe for nourishing the stomach?" To be honest, there is no such thing. Someone else's magic weapon for nourishing the stomach might be your poison for hurting the stomach. I met a little girl who works in operations a while ago. I heard others say that millet porridge and yam paste are good for the stomach. She ate it for more than two months. At first, she only had occasional gastric bloating. Later, she suffered from acid reflux and heartburn every day. When she went to see a doctor, she found out that she has a constitution with excessive gastric acid secretion. Thin and soft liquid foods will accelerate gastric acid secretion, and the more she eats, the more irritated it becomes. If you usually have diarrhea after eating something cold, feel full after just two bites, and often have unformed stools, then eating some soft and easy-to-digest porridge or steamed yam in the short term can really reduce the burden on your gastrointestinal tract. ； But if you often suffer from acid reflux, bitter taste, and nausea when eating sweet foods, you should eat less liquid foods and eat more solid neutral foods such as steamed sweet potatoes and boiled lean meats, which can neutralize stomach acid and relieve discomfort.

There is also the issue of food taboos that everyone is most concerned about. Most Western medicine practitioners believe that as long as they are not uncomfortable after eating, there is no need to taboo food. For example, some people can eat spicy food all the time without any problems. There is no need to force yourself to quit.； However, Chinese medicine practitioners have repeatedly emphasized that you should avoid cold and cold foods such as ice drinks and sashimi. Even if there is no reaction immediately after eating, long-term accumulation will damage the spleen and stomach yang energy. In fact, there is no need to stick to a certain school of thought on this point. If you feel comfortable eating, eat and avoid eating if you feel uncomfortable. Your body's feelings are more accurate than any expert's words.

You may not believe it, but more than 70% of the people I come into contact with with digestive disorders have experienced long-term anxiety and stress. They either stayed up late for two or three months in a row to catch up on projects, or they were worried about something at home every day. Some people were nervous after taking the postgraduate entrance exams for more than half a year. There is now a concept in mind-body medicine called the "brain-gut axis", which means that the intestines and the brain are linked in real time. If you are so anxious that you can't sleep every day, the peristalsis and secretion functions of the intestines will be disrupted, and it will be useless no matter how much medicine you take. This old Chinese medicine doctor's statement actually coincides with modern medicine. As the old saying goes, "Thinking hurts the spleen." Thinking too much is the first to cause problems in the spleen and stomach. I had this problem before when I was working on a project. I felt bloated as soon as it was time to eat. I took gastric motility pills for almost half a month, but it didn't help. Later, I forced myself not to touch my phone after meals every day, so I would go downstairs and walk around the community for 10 minutes. I would look at the stray cats on the roadside and watch the uncles and aunts playing chess without thinking about any work. Within a week, most of the bloating problem was gone. It was really much more effective than taking medicine.

There are also many people who like to stock up on various stomach medicines and probiotics and take them whenever they feel uncomfortable. I would like to remind everyone that no matter what kind of medicine they are, don’t take them blindly for a long time. If acid reflux and heartburn are particularly severe, it is okay to take acid-suppressing drugs for a short period of about a week, which can quickly relieve symptoms. However, Western medicine also clearly reminds that it is best not to take acid-suppressing drugs continuously for more than 4-6 weeks. Long-term use will inhibit gastric acid secretion, and will instead aggravate digestive disorders. Many people also like to take Chinese patent medicines such as Baohe Pills and Xiangsha Yangwei Pills. I always keep them at home, but I would like to remind everyone to understand their own situation before taking them: For example, if you are bloated after eating too much hot pot and barbecue, and your mouth is bitter and smelly, taking Baohe Pills to eliminate accumulated food is really useful. ； But if you are usually afraid of the cold and suffer from diarrhea after eating something cold, your spleen and stomach will become weak after taking Baohe Pills, which is completely inappropriate. As for probiotics, current research has not clearly stated that it can cure digestive disorders. At most, it is useful for some people with intestinal flora imbalance. There is no need to spend a lot of money to buy imported ones. Ordinary medical probiotics are enough. If you have not used them for half a month, don’t take them. It is a waste of money.

In fact, digestive disorders are really not a serious disease that cannot be cured. I have seen the fastest one in half a month, and the slowest one may take less than half a year. The biggest taboo is being too anxious, staring at one's stomach every day and thinking "Why am I still not well?", but it will get better even slower. To put it bluntly, the gastrointestinal tract is a "pampered" organ. If you treat it well, eat regularly, stay up less late, and think less, it will naturally work well. There are really not so many complicated ways.