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Hiatal Hernia and Gastric Ulcer

Posted by eternity @eternity, Dec 9 9:05am

18 months ago my hiatal hernia was surgically fixed. Have since been told the motility of my esophagus is not good. A gastroscopy also revealed a gastric ulcer and a small hiatal hernia. I don't know if the small hiatal hernia is "left over" from surgery, or if it is new. My question is: what is the recommended eating pattern for this? I can still only eat small portions...the only improvement is my reflux is no longer acid....it is undigested food and liquids. The choking hazard is hard to deal with at every meal. What quantities should I eat, and how often through the day, and what foods/beverages should be avoided. I want to keep this small hernia from worsening.

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mikeh0 | @mikeh0 | 4 days ago

I am curious how reflux of undigested food/liquids can occur without acid? Is there some mechanism for that?

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eternity | @eternity | 4 days ago

That undigested food comes up in minutes as soon as I've eaten one spoonful too much. It comes from the esophagus because low motility causes the esophagus to not move food to the stomach quickly where the digestive acids are. I have no sign that I should not take one more mouthful until the pressure starts in my chest and major belching goes on during which time the food I just ate that is stuck in the esophagus comes up. It's difficult because with these small amounts, I'm still hungry . I don't know why it happens sooner in some cases. I've kept a food journal but what might have caused trouble once was not a problem the 2nd time. I'm chopping food in the processor but it still comes up.

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1 reply
mikeh0 | @mikeh0 | 4 days ago
In reply to @eternity "That undigested food comes up in minutes as soon as I've eaten one spoonful too much...." + (show)
@eternity

That undigested food comes up in minutes as soon as I've eaten one spoonful too much. It comes from the esophagus because low motility causes the esophagus to not move food to the stomach quickly where the digestive acids are. I have no sign that I should not take one more mouthful until the pressure starts in my chest and major belching goes on during which time the food I just ate that is stuck in the esophagus comes up. It's difficult because with these small amounts, I'm still hungry . I don't know why it happens sooner in some cases. I've kept a food journal but what might have caused trouble once was not a problem the 2nd time. I'm chopping food in the processor but it still comes up.

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sounds like a two-way problem, both directions. I have a baseline that i used to eat before this thing started, I remember generally how I ate during the day, breakfast, dinner etc..Now I just force myself to eat a little less for breakfast, a little less snacking and i skip dessert and even appetizer for dinner. I also make a much smaller after dinner snack. Yeah I am also hungry, but I also can limit my activity level , at least for a few days or weeks. Agree with you that triggers are also sequence dependent which makes for an infinite amount of combinations. the same food eaten before or after another food can have different results. So I think the bottom line is bad mixing is also a thing. My Dad used to tell me this, don't mix a bunch of random stuff together. And there was a diet I recall that said to eat only fruit until noon and then no fruit after. I think its called a mono-diet when you eat mostly 1 or 2 safe foods for a while.

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1 reply
eternity | @eternity | 3 days ago
In reply to @mikeh0 "sounds like a two-way problem, both directions. I have a baseline that i used to eat..." + (show)
@mikeh0

sounds like a two-way problem, both directions. I have a baseline that i used to eat before this thing started, I remember generally how I ate during the day, breakfast, dinner etc..Now I just force myself to eat a little less for breakfast, a little less snacking and i skip dessert and even appetizer for dinner. I also make a much smaller after dinner snack. Yeah I am also hungry, but I also can limit my activity level , at least for a few days or weeks. Agree with you that triggers are also sequence dependent which makes for an infinite amount of combinations. the same food eaten before or after another food can have different results. So I think the bottom line is bad mixing is also a thing. My Dad used to tell me this, don't mix a bunch of random stuff together. And there was a diet I recall that said to eat only fruit until noon and then no fruit after. I think its called a mono-diet when you eat mostly 1 or 2 safe foods for a while.

Jump to this post

Thank you Mike for your worthwhile suggestions. I will be trying all of them.

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