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  Posted by happycowgirl at 12/31/11 13:03:55

  Hi Mom of Aspie Veggie,
  I can totally sympathize with your son. I had chronic gastritis for quite some time. Had all kinds of tests done including an upper endoscopy, thousands of dollars later and the specialists could find nothing wrong. Then on my own I tried a drink called Kombucha. Have you heard of it? It is filled with enzymes and probiotics. The brand that has worked best for me is GT's Enlightened Organic Raw Kombucha. I get the Gingerade flavor but there are many flavors to choose from. They have it at Whole Foods and at most local health food stores. You can plug in your zip code and find it here: http://www.synergydrinks.com/enlightened/findastore.aspx
  
  Note that when I had the gastritis I was vegetarian (I'm vegan now). I knew that probiotics were supposed to help with gastritis so I was eating yogurt all the time trying to get my probiotics from there. The yogurt did not help. I tried probiotic pills, they didn't help. The kombucha eliminated my gastritis, almost like a miracle, in a few days. Every once in a blue moon it acts up again. I drink a Kombucha and it is gone. I also try to drink Kombucha during and for a few days after taking antibiotics.
  
  Anyway, if this is at all helpful to your son, then my post will be worthwhile.
  
  All the best,
  Happycowgirl

  
  
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  Posted by happycowgirl at 12/31/11 13:23:03

  Almost forgot, has your son been screened for h. pylori? The long name is Helicobacter pylori. It's a type of bacteria that frequently causes chronic gastritis. You can screen for it with a simple blood test at the doctor's office. It's treated with a 2 week course of 3 different types of antibiotics (6 pills a day for 2 weeks).

  
  
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  Posted by Mom of Aspie Veggie at 01/02/12 19:22:08

  This is VERY helpful, thank you. Your experience really mirrors what we've gone thru so far.
  RE: H. pylori -- haven't checked for it yet. The treatment sounds like it would be tough; i wonder how people can stand it; his gastritis flared up b/c of the antibiotics...
  Anyway, I hope the kombucha is something that he would drink. I will check it out.
  I had ulcerative colitis and lost my colon in 1999, and then had chronic bowel inflammation -- OTHER people would swear by probiotics as a cure but they only made things WORSE for me. I wonder now if Kombucha would have helped. But those years of illness (I now am happily w/ a permanent ileostomy as of last year) and all the things I tried (gluten free, Inflam-X, etc.) has made me suspicious of things that work for others, b/c they just might not for another. But if I could get him to drink it, if we could do it for a week, we'd know if it helped. It sounds great. He doesn't eat any fruits and veggies; and really needs enzymes etc.
  Anyway, this is kind of a babble, I'm really glad you took the time to help me out -- thank you! and i'll post back once i get the stuff and try it out.
  
  also, if anyone wants to weigh in on the longterm health problems that could arise if one eats nothing but whole grain carbs, fatty protein, and sugary foods, i'd appreciate it! :)