“How is gastritis caused?”

Most common causes are eating spicy food and/or otherwise stress.

Gastritis means inflammation of the stomach. This has many causes. the main causes in a young patient are NSAID use ( ibuprofen, aleve etc). These can also cause ulcers. Other causes are Alcohol use, Helicobacter Pylori infection, autoimmune gastritis etc. This is usually seen on Endoscopy ( EGD) so if your symptoms are still persistent despite using proton pump inhibitors (omeprazole etc) for 4-6 weeks then I recommend you see a Gastroenterologist to see if EGD is needed.

There are several types of gastritis. Some are due to infections, others may be due to spicy and irritating food items in your daily diet, or alcohol or pain medications. Sometimes it can be autoimmune.

Most gastritis has no clear cause and is mild, resulting in no symptoms or consequences. In fact, many patients are erroneously told that gastritis is the cause of symptoms despite lack of evidence. Some gastritis is caused by H. pylori infection so this infection can be sought and treated if present. Otherwise, gastritis by itself does not need specific treatment and any
upper GI symptoms are usually explained by something other than gastritis. A good GI doc can help determine the difference. A bad GI doc will typically seek to repeat procedures (EGD) and not address the symptoms.

Christian D. Stone, MD, MPH