Small appetites and itchy skin

Q. I have a very small appetite but eat often and healthily. Sometimes my stomach just doesn’t feel right and — here’s the strange part — if I eat something I start to feel a lot better. I rarely eat meat or dairy products and I never have a burning sensation. Sometimes after eating I feel very tired — as if the digestion of the meal is very difficult. Is this because of low stomach acid?

A. Low stomach acid is at the root of many digestive issues, including acid reflux conditions. It certainly sounds as if your stomach is not producing enough acid, given the symptoms and problems you describe, especially since your diet is so very clean and healthy.

In the late 1930s Dr Hugh Tuckey began researching patients with optimal and balanced diets. After following hundreds of individuals for 30 years he found that even these people with such healthy lifestyles were having issues with bloating, gas, bad breath, constipation, and indigestion. Dr Tuckey discovered that gut health was the root cause of the symptoms and confirmed this through almost immediate eradication of all symptoms with HCl (hydrochloric acid) supplementation.