Hi Boggy,

Sorry to hear about your condition. 

Serious question from a former seafarer - would you be able to pass a medical as fit to be at sea?

I was given an ENG3 discharge (permanently unfit) from the Merchant Navy with a condition less serious than yours. The argument was that without access to medical care or medication my life would be at risk from what ashore wouldn’t be a life threatening situation. 

Has your GP prescribed omeprazole or something similar to treat the reflux? At one stage before I started on those I was eating literally a dozen or more Gaviscon tablets every day. I eventually developed cancer, so please do what you can to shake off the reflux. Smoking, booze, stress, junk food (white bread, frozen chips and burgers) and being overweight all trigger reflux. A wedge pillow to raise your head up might help reduce it at night

I know from experience that these lifestyle changes are hard, but they’re well worth it if you can avoid Barrett’s changing into oesophageal cancer, like mine did.

Good luck
Dave

Hi Dave, firstly sorry to hear that yours has turned cancerous. Are you going to have surgery to remove it?

Ive asked my seafarer’s doctor about ENG and she said it should be fine to continue but the certificate duration will be shorter to allow for monitoring. My usual is only one or two days out at a time so fortunately I can get the help needed.

I don’t eat a lot of saturated fats but I’m a great lover of Asian cuisine so not consuming the spices will be difficult but necessary. However I’m wondering if mild spice would be ok, after all some spices are not hot and can aid digestion. I eat a lot of fish which I usually poach in white wine with garlic and parsley, I will use boiled spuds now rather than fried to accompany that. I’d like to understand more, like is sesame oil ok or canola oil? Saturated fats I don’t consume anyway.

I am ashore now for a few months so will prop up my bed about 75mm to reduce reflux, my other doctor recommended completely changing my lifestyle but didn’t explain much about that so all I can gain from here is very useful. He has prescribed Opiren Lansoprazole 30mg, and said stop taking Omeprazole.

Im under the impression that my Barrets was caused by a Hietal hernia in my esophagus which I think i caused 15 years ago as I was helping to haul a rescue Rib up the beach after a competition. The doctors at the time mentioned nothing about further complications. Wish they had.

My stage 4 cancer was treated back in 2013/14  I’ve been really lucky and so far it hasn’t come back - fingers crossed! 
I’ve found the best thing diet-wise was trial and error. Stripping everything back that might cause reflux, then reintroducing things one item at a time. Oven chips, beef, coffee and white bread rolls were worse for me than curries. I guess we’re all different!

Sounds like you have successfully managed your diet. Excellent  

I have seen a book that might help us… 

Prateek Sharma is the author and it’s in print with Wiley publishing.

I’m checking out availability.

3 months without results of what to do.

tomato ketchup is bad?

yes tomatoes in the ingredients. Which ingredients???

is salad dressing dangerous?

Hi there Boggy and thanks for the post

It can be a worry to find out you have Barrett's oesophagus and whilst some people who have this may be at higher risk of developing oesophageal cancer, because this is a pre cancerous condition, this won't be the case for most people. 

Once Barrett's is identified you can be closely monitored and treatment offered as needed to best manage and control this. 

In terms of the do's and don'ts with eating it is very individual as the foods that affect one person will be different to someone else. Generally speaking people should limit their intake of alcohol, caffeine alongside fatty and spicy foods as these can increase acid production, causing the unpleasant symptoms. Some people may choose to keep a food diary to find out which foods may cause them issues. Otherwise eating a  healthy and balanced diet whilst maintaining a healthy weight, exercising, trying to minimise any stress and not smoking can also help.

You may find it helpful to take a look at the GUTS UK website again that also has a section of useful information about Barrett's. 

Best wishes

Naomi