The stomach is a muscular organ located on the left side of the upper abdomen. The stomach receives food from the esophagus. As food reaches the end of the esophagus, it enters the stomach through a muscular valve called the lower esophageal sphincter.

The stomach secretes acid and enzymes that digest food. Ridges of muscle tissue called rugae line the stomach. The stomach muscles contract periodically, churning food to enhance digestion. The pyloric sphincter is a muscular valve that opens to allow food to pass from the stomach to the small intestine. The stomach can be rightly compared with fuel tank of a motor, as both act as a storage of fuel. Whatever we eat, has to go in the stomach for further processing of the ingested items.
It is obvious to have wear and tear of stomach due to the continuous workload, but quite lately we have been hearing more and more about stomach issues and related stuff. This is a matter of immediate concern, if our stomach malfunctions in any aspect, it will directly affect each and every system present in our body. Some of the common stomach problems include gastroesophegal reflux disease, gastritis, dyspepsia, gastric ulcers etc. These conditions can be detected using various diagnostic test like CT scan , MRI, Endoscopy, pH testing , barium swallow etc.
Now, the question arises, why has this curve of stomach issues risen so steeply in past few years? Apart from other causes, following are four most important causes of this sudden increase:-

Packed/ Canned Food Items

canned food items contain many chemicals other than the food particles as for example food additives including Preservatives like sodium benzoate, sodium nitrite etc flavour enhancers like monosodium glutamate (MSG/ Ajino motto)Etc , artificial sweeteners like aspartame, saccharin etc, artificial dyes etc.
These chemical entities have a very harsh effect on the Gastrointestinal tract, it has been found that prolonged use of Sodium benzoate causes nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain.

Unhealthy Food Habits

These days we have a bent towards junk foods which severely effects our digestion. Junk foods are unhealthy for digestive system as these greasy foods contain high amounts of fat, which slows down stomach emptying. In turn, food spends more time in your stomach, which can cause bloating, nausea, and stomach pain. In order to digest food, stomach needs enzymes and fast food does not have them, which leads to overburdening stomach. When food is absorbed by the intestine it requires fiber and water to excrete but they don't have such nutrients which leads to poor digestion and irritable bowel. People with digestive complaints, such as Irritable bowel syndrome ( IBS) chronic pancreatitis, or a stomach bug, high levels of fatty foods may trigger stomach pain, cramping, and diarrhea.

Pretreated Water

Almost every village has a water purification system these days. The excessive use of chemicals like alums , bleaches etc in purifying water has left a mark on our stomach walls . The excessive or unreacted bleach in water gradually degrades our protective stomach walls, rendering the stomach unprotected to its own juices which lead to problems like acidity, reflux etc and in severe cases gastric ulceration can be observed

Excessive Medications

in this part of the country , we are using medicines at fairly large scale. Any tablet has to go through stomach irrespective of the nature of action of the drug. NSAID’s, painkillers have been found to have a strong effect on stomach walls. Medicines like pantaprazole, rabeprazole etc work by suppressing the acid production for a particular time . Once the drug action ceases, the suppressed acid production increases many folds than normal Production, causing stomach problems.
According to Nhat Hanh “ When you have a stomach ache, you don’t tell your stomach to go away”, which in simpler terms means if anything important is troubling you , you cannot let it go or else your survival will be in danger. On the similar lines if your stomach pains , don’t ignore it, instead try to find a cure for these stomach issues. Now, the question that remains is how can you lessen the burden on stomach and let it heal itself? We have been hearing about the answer of this question from past so many years but we have lent a deaf ear to it. Doctors in daily shows on various channels have been reiterating on how to save your stomach , some of which include practices like avoiding use of excess medicines and spices, excess canned and junk food, hot food etc . In order to make our fuel cell last longer, we need to hear what doctors suggest and follow the them meticulously.

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