Image: effect of carbonation on food in a glass

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I think the system will create a message to announcement that I added

this image, but I wanted to tell you more about it.

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A lot of people with achalasia say that carbonation helps them while for

others it does not work. It probably works for a number of reasons when

it does. The image I uploaded is only about one way it may help. That

way is by breaking up food clogs and floating food particles.

Carbonation is known in some circles as a lifting agent. That is because

it has the ability to, in some environments, to lift some things by

attaching bubbles and floating them. Before lifting it may also break

apart some things by letting the carbonated solution get absorbed into

those things and break them up by explosively forming tiny bubbles within.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. I am not sure that is true

here but in that spirit I took a couple of photos of food in a glass.

One with just the food, some chunks of uneaten cabbage and some chewed

cabbage, and some water. The other is the same glass of food and water

to which I added some carbonation (7 Up). As you can see in the image,

(I combined both photos into one), I only used a little carbonation to

float everything in the glass. I added about 1 inch to 4.5 in the glass

but because of the zoom out it looks like even less.

It should be noted that the chunks of cabbage always floated even though

I tried to get them to stay submerged. This may be part of the problem

with some foods and why they seem to linger more than others. Most of

the chewed cabbage went right to bottom, though some floated in between

top and bottom.

Along with the other things carbonation does in the esophagus, I think

this image shows one way it may help to clear the LES and help the

esophagus to empty.

There may be a science fair project here if anyone knows a young

scientist looking for one for the next school year. There is more along

these lines that could be tested.

notan