Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - riding health

First off it sucks that I'm only 20 and I've got my first ulcer.

Anyone ride with an ulcer or have some kind of secret remedy?
Don't move this to another forum either please.

Is the ulcer from stress or illness? There can't be stress in Hawaii, can there?

Stress.
Hawaii has no stress, but the navy marine corps team sure does

dude you got an ulcer!? I thought it was .... oh oops nevermind. Are you gonna be cool to ride tomorrow?

Try yoga to relax yourself. I was skeptical about trying it but it's great, especially the inversions.

And remember kids, ulcers are caused by bacteria, not stress. Stress can aggravate a peptic ulcer, but it does not cause one.

the "oops nevermind" is a result from the ulcer

Make sure you eat breakfast.

Make sure you eat breakfast.

before you drink coffee

And remember kids, ulcers are caused by bacteria, not stress. Stress can aggravate a peptic ulcer, but it does not cause one.

Would drinking more alcohol help kill the bacteria? (serious question)

And remember kids, ulcers are caused by bacteria, not stress. Stress can aggravate a peptic ulcer, but it does not cause one.

H. pylori, at that! Ulcers can also be caused by long-term use of NSAIDs (non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs).
And alcohol wouldn't do anything. Ulcers are generally treated with a "cocktail" of drugs, if you will. The regimen includes antibiotics, H2 blockers (block histamine, which stimulates acid secretion), proton pump inhibitors (PPIs, stop acid from being pumped into the stomach), and something to protect the stomach like Pepto-Bismol.

Would drinking more alcohol help kill the bacteria? (serious question)

Depends on the amount of alcohol. Too much (read often getting puke drunk) and you get ulcers in your esophogus (sp?) which can be really really bad. You puke, the tube from your throat to your stomach tears, then you have stomach acid coating all your vital organs.

I'm not sure, but I think that the bacteria attack the lining of your stomach, so it can't counter-act the acid. So it starts burning a hole in your stomach. Antibiotics would probably help kill the bacteria better than alcohol.

WTF? Am I publishing something against alcohol as the cure for all of life's ills?

Thanks,
I've always wondered if you could use alcohol to clean the outside, why not the inside.
Looks like I be avoiding NSAIDs.

You might want to try some pro-biotics; bacteria which will out-compete the H. Pylori in that little ecosystem of yours. You get them in fresh, live yogourt or those small fermented milk drinks.
http://www.dairyscience.info/probiotics.htm

Plus milk is a buffer which means it tends to bring the pH of a solution towards neutral, reducing acidity in this case.

not all ulcers can be blamed on H. pylori- it would be a good idea to get a blood test done. If it is pylori then you need the antibiotics asap. If not then you probably need to go on proton pump inhibitors to stop stomach acid for a month or two till the ulcer heals.

Eat a little often and avoid coffee in any case. If you smoke then better stop. I dont think the probiotic yoghourt will help much as ulcers occur in the stomach and duodenum and the bacteria live further down. But it cant hurt

Alcohol is a definite no no. In lab experiments where they deliberately induce ulcers in experimental animals they often use alcohol. So better avoid it. Check any painkilling meds carefully for stomach irritation as lots of NSAIDs such as aspirin or ibuprofen irritate the stomach. As far as I know paracetomol is OK.

If the ulcer is stress induced then considering you are only 20 you need to make some major changes in your life before you kill yourself.

Get checked out for H pylori. If you're positive, eradication therapy appears to be effective.

http://www.cochrane.org/cochrane/revabstr/AB003840.htm
http://www.cochrane.org/cochrane/revabstr/AB004062.htm

HA! The military have some amoxicillin, zantac and pepto. I get amazing treatment options here

Lets see.
Amoxicillin to kill all good and bad bacteria, giving you the runs.
Zantac to stone you so you don't care.
Pepto so your puke is a cute pink and smells good.
Yup. You are in good hands.

I always eat a ton of yogurt when on antibiotics.

Tai Chi also relaxes the body and mind, quite well. I enjoyed it a lot when I did do it.