No crowds this month for Bruce Springsteen and his “E Street Band”. What stopped “The Boss” and his incredible energy was the peremptory verdict of the doctors who imposed a forced stoppage on him. He has to cure his peptic ulcer. “It breaks my heart – the legendary American rocker wrote on Instagram, apologizing to the fans – but we will go back to doing those concerts and more.”
The tour, which started at the beginning of the year, had already suffered a brief setback in March, then in April (he and his wife Patti Scialfa had tested positive for Covid) and in mid-August, when the two Philadelphia dates were were postponed due to unspecified health problems.
Bruce Springsteen is ill: all concerts in September canceled
THE PAUSE
A few days ago the announcement of this new setback: no concerts for the entire month of September, then the break already scheduled for October. To restart, if the conditions are right, in November for the long tour on the West Coast.
In short, Bruce will blow out his 74 candles at home on September 23rd, but without being able to toast. Alcohol on an ulcer is like gasoline on a fire.
A peptic ulcer is a more or less deep erosion of the internal wall of the stomach or duodenum, generally caused by a bacterium or by the intake of anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen or naproxen, but also of cortisone and anti-aggregating drugs, not accompanied by adequate gastric protection. The stomach’s number one enemy is the Helicobacter Pylori bacterium, whose discovery earned the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 2005.
The ulcer is a serious condition, which among other things sees Springsteen in good company because it affects approximately 5-10% of the population. In Italy there are 4 million patients. They range from mild forms to others that can be life-threatening if the ulcer begins to bleed or perforates. Helicobacter generally arrives in the stomach when young, drinking contaminated water, and very slowly produces its damage, altering the protective mechanisms of the stomach wall (mucus and bicarbonate) which is thus more easily attacked by the acidity of gastric juices and from pepsin.
Everything is made worse by alcohol intake and cigarette smoking, which should however be avoided if you care about the health of the gastro-intestinal tract (and not only).
Helicobacter ulcers are fought with a 2-3 week course of antibiotic therapy, accompanied by proton pump inhibitors, drugs that reduce the production of hydrochloric acid from the stomach. Even very strong stress, such as a prolonged stay in intensive care or a serious trauma, can facilitate the appearance of an ulcer.
In recent years, the role of diet as a causal factor has been reduced, while the consumption of foods rich in fibre, probiotics (yogurt) and those rich in vitamin A (sweet potatoes, carrots) can promote healing.
THE ORANGES
Instead, be careful with milk, which can increase acid secretion, and with fatty foods that slow gastric emptying and worsen symptoms. As for acidic foods (oranges, tomatoes) or spicy foods, once prohibited, it is now advisable to avoid them only if they make the pain worse.
The incidence of ulcer tends to increase with age. Gastric one is more frequent in women, duodenal one in men. It can manifest itself with nausea and abdominal pain, in the pit of the stomach, which worsen after eating, in the case of gastric ulcer. On the contrary, the duodenal one is felt more on an empty stomach or at night. Many people lose their appetite and weight. If, in the presence of these symptoms, you notice that your stools take on a blackish color, you should seek help immediately, because it could be a bleeding ulcer, a medical emergency.
The diagnosis of ulcer is made with a gastro-duodenoscopy which highlights its presence and allows biopsies to be carried out in which the presence of Helicobacter pylori is assessed (which is also looked for with a breath test and a blood test) or any cells neoplastic.
RECIPES
Finally, the ulcer can heal (scar) and recur, giving rise to symptoms, interspersed with periods of well-being lasting up to months. Being, in fact, a pathology characterized by scarring and relapses, it is natural that the symptoms are also generally intermittent and episodic, with periods of well-being lasting a few months, with periods of mainly seasonal flare-ups. Usually in spring and autumn-winter.
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