The Last Part of - How do we lost weight?

So there's one more "invader" in our body that we need to talk about . . . and that would be "H. pylori".

Helicobacter pylori (H.pylori) is a type of bacteria that can enter the body and live in your digestive tract for years undetected. These are the little buggers that after years of hiding and colonization, can cause ulcers in the lining of your stomach or the upper part of your small intestine, which unfortunately in time lead to stomach cancer.

About 30 to 40 percent of the U. S. population has an H. pylori infection, with most of us getting it as a child. You can get an H.pylori infestation from food, water, utensils and saliva. Yes . . . this is a very contagious type of bacteria, which means someone with an infection can pass it on through kissing or oral sex.

Some of the symptoms of H.pylori are belching (not burping), bloating, nausea and/or vomiting, abdominal discomfort, passing dark or tarry-like stool, fatigue, low red blood cell count (anemia), decreased appetite due to discomfort when you try to eat, diarrhea, peptic ulcers, heartburn, bad breath, irregular menstrual periods and guess what . . . "chronic inflammation".

And the worst part is . . . Most people with H.pylori don't have any symptoms at all. Why? because this bacteria can fester for years undetected and when you finally realize you have a problem, it's because they've accomplished their mission of massive damage to the body.

Does you burp real loud after you eaten? Do you have acid reflux after you've eaten?Have you ever have a stomach pain when your stomach is empty at night or a few hours after a meal? This pain is usually described as a gnawing pain which can come and go. Well . . . that's most likely H.pylori festering and pissed off because it wants you to feed it again!!! Just another reason we eat when it's not time to eat.!

So what is one of the biggest factors that enhances the colonization of the stomach by H. pylori? . . . "STRESS"!

And when this happens . . . H. pylori messes up our levels of serotonin (meaning you can't sleep), the hormone Ghrelin (which means you want to eat all the time), the brain chemical dopamine (which regulates mood and sleep) and the circulatory system . . . resulting in damage to various systems such as the central nervous system.

So how do we get tested for this invader of the body? Well . . . most commonly doctors test by an "antigen test" which is a stool sample or by using a device to measure breath samples after swallowing a urea pill. But . . . if the colonization number isn't high enough . . . . these tests will come back "negative", leaving this bacteria to fester for several more years. The other way to be tested is by a tissue sample called a biopsy which is taken from the stomach lining. This is the most accurate way to tell if you have an infection.