Tips on how to protect against Helicobacter pylori

Author: Tao Na

Unit: Nansha Hospital of Guangzhou First People's Hospital

Helicobacter pylori is a bacterium that colonizes in our gastrointestinal tract. The fecal-oral route and oral-oral route are the main ways of transmission of "he". So what are the symptoms of Helicobacter pylori? How to check? And how to effectively prevent Helicobacter pylori infection? Let's talk about Helicobacter pylori in a comprehensive way. Everything you want to know is here. I hope it will be helpful to you.

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1. Learn to identify Helicobacter pylori . These 3 symptoms are particularly obvious

1. Bad breath

Especially in the morning when I open my mouth, I smell a strong smell. No matter how I brush my teeth or chew gum, it is of no use. I dare not talk when others get close to me.

(II) Gastrointestinal symptoms

You feel full after eating a small amount, and you feel bloated after a meal. You often feel your stomach is bloated. Some people also have a burning sensation in the upper abdomen, which we call heartburn, or belching and nausea.

3. Other symptoms

Some people, who eat but don't gain weight, always feel hungry, suffer from urticaria, pityriasis rosea, acne, black stools, anemia, and malnutrition. If you don't treat it for a long time, it may cause erosion of the gastric mucosa, or even gastric ulcer, and increase the risk of gastric cancer. So if you want to test whether you are infected with Helicobacter pylori? It's actually very simple. We just need to fast. Go to the hospital to do a carbon 13 or carbon-14 breath test, and you can know whether you are infected with Helicobacter pylori.

2. Regarding the transmission routes of Helicobacter pylori , how to prevent Helicobacter pylori infection?

Rumors are flying about how Helicobacter pylori is transmitted, just like a pony crossing a river. Some people describe Helicobacter pylori as extremely dangerous. If you eat a meal together, you will be infected with Helicobacter pylori. However, some people think that Helicobacter pylori is not easily transmitted. First of all, we need to know that Helicobacter pylori is a bacterium that colonizes in our gastrointestinal tract. Its transmission mode is not fully understood at present, but there are two clear ways: 1. fecal-oral route and 2. oral-oral route. What does fecal-oral route mean? It means that patients infected with Helicobacter pylori also have bacteria in their feces, which then contaminates the water source. If other people drink the infected water, they will be easily infected with Helicobacter pylori. This is actually a very dangerous way of transmission. What we can do is to pay attention to hygiene and drinking water safety.

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So the question of whether eating together can spread Helicobacter pylori is the oral route. Studies have found that for a Helicobacter pylori patient, a lot of bacteria can be cultured in his vomit, but very few bacteria can be cultured in his saliva. The most dangerous thing is vomit. So: ① When we go to some restaurants, places where people drink a lot, toilets or pools, stay away from these filth, and pay attention to washing hands frequently. The most important thing to pay attention to! ② Refuse mouth-to-mouth feeding! In some places, the elderly or parents will eat this, chew it up and feed it to children. This actually increases the contact time of the mouth and the amount of bacteria, which is the most dangerous for the spread of Helicobacter pylori. ③ Separate meals, what is separate meals? Don't pick up food from a public plate. Everyone prepares their own bowl, their own chopsticks, and a public chopstick. ④ Disinfect all the chopsticks at home regularly, boil a pot of water, put the chopsticks in and boil for 10 minutes. Doing the above measures can effectively prevent Helicobacter pylori infection.

3. There are two major misunderstandings about Helicobacter pylori

1. Helicobacter pylori is highly contagious

Many people think that if they have Helicobacter pylori, they will be infected by anyone they come into contact with. This is not true. Among infectious diseases, Helicobacter pylori has a very weak ability to spread. In fact, many of us are infected with Helicobacter pylori during adolescence. For adults under 14 years old, the risk of infection is not that high. Studies have shown that the probability is only 5% to 7%. So don't worry too much, because Helicobacter pylori is not that strong in the body.

2. Helicobacter pylori is very harmful

Many people feel that they are doomed after contracting Helicobacter pylori. Will they get stomach cancer? They worry all day long. In fact, there is no need to worry, because the risk of stomach cancer for people infected with Helicobacter pylori is not particularly high, only about 1%.

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4. Why is it not recommended to check Helicobacter pylori in routine physical examinations? Instead, why is it recommended to check carbon-13 and carbon-14?

It's not because it's inaccurate. The carbon-13 we blow is very accurate in checking Helicobacter pylori, with an accuracy of more than 95%. As long as you haven't taken stomach medicines such as prazole and antibiotics before the test (antibiotics must be discontinued for one month), the results are true and reliable. A positive result means that you are infected with Helicobacter pylori, but the problem is that having Helicobacter pylori does not necessarily mean you are sick, and having a disease does not necessarily mean you have Helicobacter pylori. In addition, at least 3 to 4 kinds of medicines must be taken to cure Helicobacter pylori. These medicines themselves will cause side effects in the digestive tract, such as nausea and bitter taste in the mouth, and many people will experience these side effects, not just individuals. Then about 1/5 of people cannot be cured after the first course of treatment, so people with a family history of gastric cancer and people over 50 years old are more recommended to do a gastroscopy. However, for people with healthy eating habits and no symptoms such as nausea and poor appetite, the risk of gastric cancer is not high, and there is no need to check for Helicobacter pylori.

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5. What do the values ​​of the Helicobacter pylori breath test represent? What is the critical value?

The most commonly used method for Helicobacter pylori is the urea breath test. There are generally two types, one is carbon-13 and the other is carbon-14. What is the difference between the two? Carbon-13 is not radioactive, but it needs to be tested twice before and 30 minutes after taking the medicine. Although carbon-14 has a certain degree of radioactivity, the dose is extremely low and has almost no effect. No protective measures are required, and only one breath is required. The cut-off values ​​of carbon-13 and carbon-14 are also different. Carbon*13 is relatively simple. Basically, the cut-off value is 4. Above 4 is positive, and below 4 is negative. Carbon-14, because there are many ways to detect it, some use 99 as the cut-off value, and some use 50 as the cut-off value. So the higher the value of this breath test, the more severe the infection of Helicobacter pylori is, and the lower the value, the better it will be? Wrong, this value only represents whether it is infected or not, and has no absolute relationship with the degree of infection. Of course, near the critical value, there will be so-called false positives or false negatives, and it may be necessary to combine other inspection methods to determine, or do it again after a few days.

6. What should I do if I get Helicobacter pylori?

Especially for adults, it is recommended that people over 30 years old, if your Helicobacter pylori test is positive, you should have a gastroscopy to see what the condition of your stomach is, because for the same Helicobacter pylori infection, some people have at most unstable gastritis, in which case you don’t need to worry too much, but if the test result shows atrophic gastritis, and it is a moderate to severe inflammation, you have to be careful, ① eradicate Helicobacter pylori, ② have regular check-ups every year, but for people with Helicobacter pylori but non-atrophic gastritis, it is also recommended to eradicate Helicobacter pylori, so there is no need to be overly nervous or panic.

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summary

Many people have misunderstandings about Helicobacter pylori, thinking that they can be infected with Helicobacter pylori just by eating. In fact, this is not the case. However, it is still very necessary to take good individual protection measures, identify the symptoms of Helicobacter pylori, conduct necessary examinations, and protect yourself.