Now it is unlikely that when I mention the problem for which a
recent publication in in the January 2013 issue of Alimentary
Pharmacology and Therapeutics confirmed Coca Colas therapeutic
use, that you have either heard of it, or will ever see it in
clinic. However, the spin on this use is the effect of coca cola
and the implications for its continued ingestion, especially
when eating. Gastric bezoars (what are they!) is an indigestible
object introduced intentionally into the digestive system and
usually found in the stomach. Phytobezoars are composed of
indigestible plant material (e.g., cellulose), and are
frequently reported in patients with impaired digestion and
decreased gastric motility. Phytobezoars’ conservative
management includes administration of proteolytic enzymes,
cellulase, carbohydrate beverages, either orally or by gastric
lavage, and endoscopic fragmentation. The mechanism of bezoar
dissolution by Coca-Cola has not been thoroughly explained, but
having an acidity of pH 2.6, due to carbonic