Gastric Acid Secretions, Treatments, and Nutritional Consequences

The objectives of this chapter are to provide an overview of the roles of gastric acid in health and disease, the use of acid-suppressive therapies to mitigate prevalent excess acid symptoms and/or diseases, and to review potential detrimental consequences related to their use. Particular emphasis is placed on the nutritional consequences of gastric acid imbalance as it is related to vitamin and mineral status. Finally, reduced gastric acid is also associated with disturbance in the natural bacterial balance throughout the gastrointestinal tract and the resulting gastrointestinal bacterial overgrowth is reviewed.