VietNamNet Bridge – Unhealthy diets and study stress had caused the number of children suffering from gastric problems to increase, said Doctor Nguyen Thi Ut from the Ha Noi-based National Hospital of Paediatrics' Digestion Ward.



The hospital treated on average 200 children per month with gastric-related problems so far this year, compared to only 30 per month seven years ago, Ut said.


Most of the patients were between six and 12 years old, she added.


The doctor blamed parents for trying to feed their children too much and forcing them to study too hard.

Eleven-year-old Nguyen Quoc Thang, from Ha Noi, was hospitalised a week ago with serious stomach pains, a headache and dizziness.


His mother said that she thought Thang had anaemia because he was very pale, but doctors found he was suffering from a bleeding digestive system caused by eating too much.


Another mother from Ha Noi, who wished to remain anonymous, said that her 10-year-old daughter suffered from stomach aches because of her diet and the pressure to study.


"Seeing my daughter's classmates study in extra classes, I also forced her to attend some and eat a lot to have good health for studying," she said.


Every day the little girl's routine was eating and then studying until she became completely stressed.


Doctor Ut said that stress could make children belch gastric acid up from their stomachs and cough.


"The repeated phenomenon will cause stomach ulcers," said Ut.


Gastric diseases are often caused by Helicobacter pylori (Hp) bacteria, which enters the human body in the form of food.

"Children become stressed when they are urged to study and eat too much which will cause stomach aches," said Ut.


If problems were not treated quickly, they could lead to a bleeding digestive system, stomach ulcers, malnutrition and chronic anaemia, Ut warned.


VietNamNet/Viet Nam News