Can bottled water be the cause of out of control bacteria in the stomach (h-pylori)?

Question

I was treated for h-pylori and cannot think of how I got it. I still have some symptoms that I thought were from the bacteria. I do not drink tap water only in coffee, just bottled water. Is there chemicals in tap water that can keep stomache bacteria from overproducing? I am just trying to find out what the cause is.

Answer 1

Please see the web pages for more details on Helicobacter pylori and H.pylori Infection: Gastric and Peptic Ulcer Disease.
H. pylori is a common gastric pathogen that causes gastritis, peptic ulcer disease, gastric adenocarcinoma, and low-grade gastric lymphoma. Infection may be asymptomatic or result in varying degrees of dyspepsia. Diagnosis is by urea breath test and testing of endoscopic biopsy samples. Treatment is with a proton pump inhibitor plus two antibiotics.
Under conditions of environmental stress, Helicobacter will convert from the spiral to a coccoid form. This coccoid form of the organism has not been cultured, but has been found in the water supply in the US and is apparently involved in the epidemiology of the bacterium. The coccoid form has also been found to be able to adhere to gastric epithelial cells in vitro.

Answer 2

No, it isn't the cause.

In truth, H. Pylori can be found in up to 70% of people in the US, most of whom do not have any symptoms. It has been associated with ulcers, though popular reports and the lay media link it o gastritis and general stomach pains. That link has never been established.

To answer your question though, it is not caused by drinking tainted bottled water.

Answer 3

Public water is often treated with chemicals to control the growth of harmful bacteria. But that doesn't mean contamination couldn't occur in situations such as those presented by hurricanes Isabelle, Rita, and Katrina.

You might want to have your bottled water tested in case it was contaminated.

Good luck.

Answer 4

It really depends on the company producing the specific water. I doubt that any company would risk of having a contaminated water, but it has happened before and who knows....Have it tested if you think this could be the only reason.
Also, read this article about bottled water:

http://www.dari-bazaar.com/wp/115/bottled-water/

because sometimes, it's the conditions in which the water is kept are of fault, not the bottled water.