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>>8638369
>>8638372
Stomach (Gastric) Ulcer
http://patient.info/health/stomach-gastric-ulcer

Understanding your gut and digestion
Food passes down the gullet (oesophagus) into the stomach.
The stomach makes acid which is not essential, but helps to digest food. After being mixed in the stomach, food passes into the first part of the small intestine (the duodenum).
In the duodenum and the rest of the small intestine, food mixes with chemicals called enzymes.
The enzymes come from the pancreas and from cells lining the intestine.
The enzymes break down (digest) the food which is taken up (absorbed) into the body.

Some terms explained
Peptic inflammation is inflammation caused by stomach acid. Inflammation may be in the stomach; in the first part of the small intestine (the duodenum),
as acid flows in with food; or in the lower gullet (oesophagus), if acid splashes up to cause 'reflux oesophagitis'.
A peptic ulcer is an ulcer caused by stomach acid. An ulcer occurs where the lining of the gut is damaged and the underlying tissue is exposed.
If you could see inside your gut, an ulcer looks like a small, red crater on the inside lining of the gut.
A stomach ulcer is one type of peptic ulcer. A stomach ulcer is sometimes called a gastric ulcer. (The most common type of peptic ulcer is a duodenal ulcer.)
The rest of this leaflet deals only with stomach ulcers.

What causes stomach ulcers?
Your stomach normally produces acid to help with the digestion of food and to kill germs (bacteria).
This acid is corrosive, so some cells on the inside lining of the stomach and the first part of the small intestine (the duodenum) produce a natural mucous barrier.
This protects the lining of the stomach and duodenum. There is normally a balance between the amount of acid that you make and the mucous defense barrier.
An ulcer may develop if there is an alteration in this balance, allowing the acid to damage the lining of the stomach or duodenum.