Hanoi (VNA) - The rate of childrensuffering from gastric disease is growing due to schooling pressure andinappropriate food, health experts have said.

Doctor Nguyen Thi Ut from theDigestive Disease Department at the National Paediatrics Hospital, said HPbacteria is one of the main causes of gastric disease in children.

Ha, an eight-year-old child from Hanoi’s Soc Son District, kept complaining of stomach aches and was gainingweight. When the pains became more serious and were accompanied by vomitting,her parents took her to the hospital.

She was diagnosed with inflammationof the stomach’s mucous membrane caused by the Helicobacter pylori (HP)bacteria.

Doctors advise children not to sharetheir bowl and spoon with gastric disease patients as they could catch HPbacteria.

Nhi, a six-year-old girl of thecapital’s Dong Da District, also suffered from stomach aches. Her parents said that she hadregular meals, eating one bowl of rice each day, and several snacks such asmilk, yoghurt and fruit. But she watched TV or played with a smart phone whileeating, otherwise she would refuse to eat.

To prevent the diseases, parentsshould not let their children watch computer, TV, smart phone, or sing anddance while eating, said Associate Professor Nguyen Tien Dung of thePaediatrics Department at Bach Mai Hospital.

He said the rate of childrensuffering from gastric disease is growing. Recently, a ten-year-old patient washospitalised for emergency care with an inflammation leading to digestivebleeding.

Statistics of the NationalPaediatrics Hospital show that as many as 76 percent of children between theage of four and nine complaining of stomach aches require edoscopic digestivediagnosis.

In addition, many families let theirchildren watch TV, or play with Ipads and smart phones while eating, affectingdigestion. Some fast food such as sausages also affect children’s digestivesystem, he said.

Dung warned that if gastric diseasein children was not treated in time and properly, they could lead to dangerousproblems such as digestive bleeding and even stomach cancer.

The expert also said that childrenbetween the age of 10 and 16 suffer from gastric disease more than youngerchildren because they have a lot of schooling pressure. He advised parentsnot to pressure their children and make them worry that they are not as good astheir friends.

Pressure greatly affects children’spsychology and also leads to gastric disease, according to Dung. – VNA