Conventional medicine erroneously assumes that removing a symptom or infectious bacteria also
removes the health condition. However, in reality, the removal of the symptoms creates a far more serious
and life-threatening situation. Increasing evidence, for example, suggests that the disappearance of H.
pylori, the bacterium present in peptic ulcers, may actually be contributing to the obesity epidemic. H.
Pylori regulates the production of leptin and ghrelin. Leptin is a protein hormone with important effects in
regulating appetite, body weight, metabolism and reproductive functions. Ghrelin, a circulating growth
hormone-releasing peptide derived from the stomach, stimulates hunger and food intake. Destroying H.
pylori in the stomach, can upset the balance of these hormones and lead to spiraling effects of weight gain
and injury to all organs and systems in the body. The saying that a little knowledge is a dangerous thing
certainly applies to the symptom-oriented approach of conventional medicine.
Note for sufferers of stomach ulcers: Licorice has traditionally been applied as an excellent
medicine for peptic ulcers. However, the licorice compound, glycyrrhetinic acid has been found to elevate
blood pressure in some people. Hence, a procedure was developed to remove this compound from licorice
and form deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL). The result is a very successful anti-ulcer agent without any
known side effects.
According to numerous studies, DGL stimulates and/or accelerates the factors that protect against
ulcer formation, including the increased production of mucin, the protective coating in the stomach and
intestines. Study participants have found DGL to be an effective anti-ulcer compound. Several head to
head comparison studies, have shown that DGL is more effective than Tagamet, Zantac or antacids in
both short term treatment and maintenance therapy of gastric and duodenal ulcers. DGL also has been
effective in reducing the need for H. pylori proliferation, perhaps because of the removal of toxic harmful
compounds feeding these germs. DGL must mix with saliva to be effective in healing peptic ulcers. It
may promote the release of salivary compounds that stimulate the growth and regeneration of stomach
and intestinal cells. Don’t use DGL in capsule form, as this has not been shown to be effective. DGL in
chewable tablet form is available through most supplement suppliers.
The salt-ulcer link: H. pylori becomes more virulent in the presence of higher salt concentrations,
according to a study presented at the conference of the American Society for Microbiology.
Researchers discovered that in the presence of salt, H. pylori is more likely to produce proteins that cause
it to be more dangerous to humans, and more likely to produce ulcers.
”Apparently H. pylori closely monitors the diets of those people whom it infects,” said lead researcher
Dr. Hanan Gancz of the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland.
“We think that when there are high levels of salt in the stomach environment, H. pylori over-produces
[the factors that] enable it to survive, which in the long term increases the risk of illness.”
Gancz also pointed out that doctors have long been aware of a link between high salt intake and
increased risk of gastric cancer.
It is not clear from the study whether the increased risk of developing stomach ulcers and stomach
cancer also applies to the consumption of unprocessed full-spectrum sea salt, versus refined, bleached
table salt. If you suffer from a stomach ulcer, try reducing your salt intake, especially if you are a Pitta
type (see details about body types in Chapters 5 and 6).
Defying A Hopeless Prognosis
Jenny was only 25 years old when she came to me with progressive Crohn’s disease, a chronic
inflammatory condition of the alimentary tract. There was chronic patchy inflammation with edema of the
full thickness of the intestinal wall, causing partial obstruction of the lumen. She had been told that her
condition was irreversible and would eventually lead to her death. Jenny was heading toward internal