Well if you have no symptoms I wouldn't bother.Truth is that the treatment requires harsh course of strong antibiotics and that might trigger gastritis because it destroys the stomach lining and kills the good bacteria in your gut as well.Unless you want to take a natural approach like mastic gum etc.Again I wouldn't do anything unless you become symptomatic.Thats my opinion though.In the past h-pylori was thought to be responsible for stomach ulcers but that approach has changed now I believe.And yes,youre right.This bacteria is very common.Most people don't even know that they have it because they have no symptoms.I on the other hand have gerd and gastritis but no h-pylori was found during endoscopy.

I would suggest you do a lot of research if you are planning to forego treatment. I have heard about the links of this bacteria with ulcers and potentially cancer. What made them look for it if you have no symptoms. Your goal should be to reduce your potential for long term damage. If you are having acid reflux, you want to get rid of it.

@JoHam Hi Jo, thanks for your reply to my message. I'm a little apprehensive about the antibiotics course, and the fact that it kills good bacteria; and am thinking about a natural solution to H Pylori.
Thanks again.

@ prayinglots Hi, and thanks for your reply to my message. I agree, I'm going to research this, and have not definitively decided to forego treatment. I have no symptoms other than when I drink alcohol, which does give me acid reflux. So, it might still be a good idea to undergo treatment. Thanks again.

I also think you need to make a careful decision on this one. Prayinglots is right on this. Hpylori can lead to more serious things.

If you have an issue when you drink alcohol then you know something is going on that isnt normal.

I also feel that acid reflux needs to be dealt with effectively.

There is a person on the gERD site who ignored her heartburn and reflux for years and now she has dysplasia of the esophagus and stomach.

Chances are that eradicating H pylori is unlikely to get rid of your symptoms anyway if that's what you're hoping.

Many people feel even worse after antibiotic eradication. It's like a going off in your stomach. People (myself included) can be left with chronic gastritis, visceral hypersensitivity & IBS.

It depends on which cells in the stomach were infected.

Have you had an endoscopy?

@smilelikeyoumeanit
Hi, and thanks so much for your message. This is what I'm concerned about: if I do the therapy, it might affect me adversely, especially as I have no symptoms, other than when I drink alcohol. And who's to say once I complete the therapy, these alcohol-related symptoms will clear up? They may be being caused by something else entirely than h. pylori.

@ Lesleygm
Hi Lesley, I do agree, that the alcohol issue is a clear indication something isn't right; the question being, is h. pylori behind it?

Smile is very good with stomach issues and knows a lot about H pylori. So keep responding to her.

I would avoid alcohol for a while and see if it clears up for you.

H pylori gets the blame for this sort of thing, but I'm a firm believer that H pylori can be a coincidence and a complication, but not necessarily the singular, outright cause.

There's a big difference between carrying a bug (like H pylori) compared to having an active infection. Like we all carry E. coli in our system, but it is only problematic when an active infection.

You really need to avoid the things that trigger your symptoms. So stop drinking alcohol or you'll get worse.

My motto is that "if it causes pain then it's doing damage".