Nitrite in saliva increases gastric mucosal blood flow and mucus thickness
It’s always great to come across items in the medical literature that support stuff you’ve been saying and doing for years. Mainstream medicines’ approach to ulcers and reflux is to shut down acid production. However, much research supports the idea that, as we get older, hypochlorhydria is much, much more common (too little stomach acid). So, if most people don’t make enough stomach acid already, how could suppression be good? Well, many of us in natural medicine actually add stomach acid and digestive enzymes in patients with ulcers and GERD.
This study finds that, in an ACIDIC stomach, nitrates in the diet are converted to NO which is protective to the GI mucosa. JCI — Abstracts: Björne et al. 113 (1): 106 –