Cure Heartburn

Heartburn is the painful burning sensation caused by stomach acid rising past your lower esophageal sphincter (the muscle that closes and separates your esophagus from your stomach) and into your esophagus. The tissue of your esophagus is not meant to handle the pH of your stomach acid, which is what causes the discomfort. Many of those who frequently suffer from heartburn has a condition called gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD). Luckily, you can take both immediate steps to alleviate current heartburn as well as long-term steps to reduce the frequency of symptoms.

Steps

Treating Heartburn at Home

1. Loosen your clothing after meals. While loosening your belt after a meal seems like a silly cliche, it can help in this case. Increased pressure on your abdomen and lower esophageal sphincter help push up the stomach acids that cause heartburn. Looser clothing, especially after big meals, will help relieve heartburn.
2. Do not lie down immediately after a meal. Sometimes heartburn symptoms are caused by plain old gravity. By lying down after a meal — when those stomach acids are most active — they can flow more easily toward your esophagus and get past your esophageal sphincter. Avoid lying down for 30 – 60 minutes after a meal.
   • Generally avoid late meals as well since you should wait at least three hours after a meal before going to bed.
3. Drink a mix of baking soda and water. If you prefer not to take medications, then you can often alleviate your heartburn with simple baking soda (sodium bicarbonate). Mix one teaspoon in a glass of water, and drink it after your meal or when signs of heartburn begin. Do not exceed five teaspoons of baking soda in a day without first talking to your doctor.
4. Take over-the-counter (OTC) drugs for heartburn. You can choose from a wide array of OTC products that target heartburn. The three most common classes of these drugs are antacids, H2 blockers, and proton pump inhibitors.
   • Antacids (products such as Tums) provide quick, short-term relief for heartburn by neutralizing your stomach acid.
   • H2 blockers—ranitidine (Zantac) and famotidine (Pepcid)—slow the production of stomach acid. These products take up to an hour to work, but they work for a longer period of time.
   • Proton pump inhibitors—omeprazole (Prilosec) and lansoprazole (Prevacid 24HR)—slow your body’s production of stomach acid even more. These products are generally used for heartburn that isn’t controlled by antacids or H2 blockers and that occurs more frequently than two days a week.
5. Elevate your mattress. Sometimes people experience heartburn when they go to bed even after waiting several hours after dinner. If heartburn disrupts your ability to sleep, try slightly angling the head of your bed. By lying at a gentle slope instead of parallel to the ground, you can help alleviate heartburn symptoms.
   • You can elevate the head of your bed by elevating the entire frame on one end, or you can simply put a wedge-like object between the boxspring and mattress.
   • People report this method being more effective than just adding more pillows behind your head alone. By only using more pillows, you can strain your neck or simply roll off them in the night, defeating the purpose.
6. Go for a walk. While vigorous exercise after a meal can increase your risks of heartburn, some gentle physical activity can help alleviate symptoms. Try going for a walk or a calm bike ride when your symptoms start to see if the physical activity helps eliminate heartburn symptoms.
   • Stress and anxiety can both make heartburn symptoms worse as well. Daily physical activity is a great way to combat stress, making it effective against heartburn for multiple reasons.
7. Eat modest portions at mealtime. Choosing large meals instead of moderate portions increases the risk of heartburn. With more and more food in your stomach, your stomach acids have a higher chance of passing into your esophagus. Opt for smaller servings to see if it decreases your occurrences of heartburn.
8. Avoid foods that trigger your heartburn. Though heartburn has mostly to do with your esophageal sphincter, many people do experience an increased occurrence of heartburn from eating certain foods. One of the easiest ways to stop getting heartburn is to cut out foods that trigger it for you. Some common foods associated with heartburn include:
   • Spicy foods
   • Onions
   • Tomatoes (or tomato products such as ketchup and pizza sauce)
   • Acidic foods such as those containing citrus
   • Chocolate
   • Alcohol
   • Peppermint
   • Fried or overly fatty foods
   • Coffee, soda, and other beverages containing acids.
9. Maintain a healthy weight. Carrying around excess weight puts additional pressure on your stomach that can help force stomach acid into your esophagus. Even losing a few pounds can begin aiding to alleviate that pressure. Diet and exercise are the two best ways to help yourself shed extra pounds.
   • A healthier diet will also mean cutting out fried and fatty foods, which often worsen heartburn symptoms.
   • A healthy exercise routine includes thirty minutes of moderate cardio activity (such as jogging, cycling, swimming, etc.) five days a week.
   • Note that pregnancy is a common cause of GERD in women. Always check with your doctor before attempting any weight-loss routine if you are pregnant.
   • Those more than 100 pounds overweight may be candidates for bariatric surgery to help improve GERD symptoms.
10. Quit smoking. Smoke from tobacco products damages your lower esophageal sphincter, impairing its ability to function normally. This makes it easier for the stomach acid that causes heartburn to get passed and into your esophagus. You should quit smoking to decrease your risks of many smoking-related illnesses but especially after meals to help decrease the chances of heartburn.

Consulting Your Doctor

1. See your doctor. If your frequent heartburn symptoms persist for more than two weeks despite efforts with OTC medications, then make an appointment with your doctor.
2. Submit to any diagnostic testing. Since recurrent bouts of heartburn are often indicative of gastroesophageal reflux disorder (GERD), your doctor may ask you to submit to some diagnostic testing to help determine the best way to treat you. These tests will also examine you for a complication of GERD called erosive esophagitis, which is when your stomach acid has done actual damage to your esophagus. Tests for the condition include:
   • X-rays to look at the shape and condition of both your esophagus and your stomach
   • An endoscopy, which will check for abnormalities along your esophagus caused by long-term esophageal erosion due to stomach acid, especially if you are over fifty or have had GERD for longer than five years
   • An ambulatory acid probe test, which measures when acid backs up into your esophagus and for what duration
   • Your doctor may also biopsy some of the cells found in your lower esophagus to test for a condition called Barrett’s esophagus, which is a precancerous condition resulting from long-term GERD symptoms. However, this is only a small percentage of those with GERD.
3. Ask about prescription-strength medications. Both H2 blockers and proton pump inhibitors are available in prescription strength from your doctor. If OTC strengths of these drugs haven’t controlled your symptoms, then your doctor will likely first recommend a prescription option to control your symptoms.
4. Discuss surgical options. For GERD that isn’t controlled by medication and which has developed into erosive esophagitis, your doctor may even discuss surgical options with you. These options include:
   • Fundoplication, which is when your surgeon wraps a small section of your stomach around your lower esophageal sphincter, which helps strengthen the muscle, allowing less stomach acid to pass through it
   • Inserting a device (such as a Linx) that is implanted along your lower esophageal sphincter to help strengthen it

Tips

• Baking soda is different than baking powder, baking powder will not work.
• Green tea can also cure heartburn .

Warnings

• If you find yourself frequently treating heartburn you should consult a doctor.

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