Q: I've been meaning to ask about low stomach acid: How can you tell if your stomach acid is low? I know you've mentioned some of the symptoms before, but I'd be very grateful if you could refresh my memory!

Dr. Wright: Many patients with low stomach acidity frequently report bloating, belching, or burning immediately after meals; a feeling that food just sits in the stomach not digesting; and an inability to eat more than a small amount of food without feeling full. Many of them are constipated, but others have diarrhoea and some people have normal bowel function. Not everyone has all these symptoms-many have just one or two. And some individuals with no stomach acid at all have no symptoms.

There are also some physical signs often found in people who suffer from low stomach acidity, such as weak, easily broken, and peeling fingernails; hair loss (in women); gassiness in the upper abdomen; and unusual dilation of the capillaries in the cheeks and on the nose (in a non-alcoholic).

A long list of diseases frequently associated with low stomach acidity are diabetes mellitus, an underactive or overactive thyroid, childhood asthma, eczema, gallbladder disease, osteoporosis, rheumatoid arthritis, chronic hives, lupus erythematosus, weak adrenals, chronic hepatitis, vitiligo, and rosacea.

If you're suffering from some of the symptoms or diseases mentioned above and suspect that your problem is poor digestion, you should talk to your doctor about the possibility of hypochlorhydria.