Alternative medicine - Coffee, Not for Heartburn Acid Reflux

Coffee is not just a favorite American beverage but it is one of the most popular drinks in the world. Everywhere in the world you can see a coffee cafe or even the famous coffee chain - Starbucks.

Research has proven that coffee which is a stimulant drink made from roasted coffee beans can bring benefits to our health. It is believed to be able to help to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and heart diseases, diabetes mellitus type 2, liver cirrhosis, and gout.

Unfortunately, it does not help in reducing acid reflux heartburn symptoms. In fact, caffeine can increase the production of stomach acid and this can worsen the symptoms.

So for people who suffer from acid reflux heartburn symptoms, it is best to avoid drinking coffee or any beverage that contains caffeine.

Natural Heartburn Cures: Chamomile

Chamomile has many medicinal uses. It is often used to treat motion sickness, tension, restlessness, spasms, headaches, migraine and depression.

It is often taken as tea. Chamomile tea is an extremely effective remedy for hysterical and nervous breakdowns and is also used as an emmenagogue.

When chamomile flower combined with ginger and alkalies, this cold infusion proves an excellent tonic to indigestion problems such as flatulent colic, heartburn, acid reflex, loss of appetite, and also in gout and periodic headache.

For more other natural remedies using chamomile, find out from Alternative medicine: Chamomile

Heartburn Cures Overcome Acid Reflux Symptoms during Holiday Season

Pat Baird, Registered Dietitian and National Heartburn Alliance (NHBA) member offers some ways to overcome our heartburn or acid reflux symptoms.

- DO NOT overindulge yourself. Eat only smaller portions of your favorite holiday foods. Bear in mind that too much good things can lead to heartburn.

- Avoid heartburn trigger foods like red wine, alcoholic beverage, fatty foods and spicy foods.

- Avoid eating late at night or right before going to bed. This is to decrease your chances of suffering from nighttime heartburn.

- Relax. During the holidays, stress levels tend increase because of the anxiety of getting things ready for the holidays. Holidays are meant to let you wind down and enjoy your family and friends times. Every day, just give yourself 15 minutes to relax and do nothing. How about taking a 10-minute walk after a holiday dinner for some stress-free time.

- Practice moderation in eating. From Thanksgiving to New Year's Eve, holiday celebrations and alcoholic beverages are plentiful. If you are going to drink, choose cocktails that are easier on the tummy, such as a wine spritzer (white wine and club soda).

The First Ever Heartburn Awareness Month -November

Do you know that each month heartburn problem is causing a lot of pain to 60 million Americans? This is according to the National Heartburn Alliance (NHBA) who recognized urgent need to provide heartburn education to the people. Thus, they sponsored the first ever Heartburn Awareness month.

In the recent survey, it shows that 66% of Americans experience their heartburn symptoms most during the holiday season. Among this group of people, 94% of them would want to enjoy their holidays without worrying about heartburn & acid reflux problem.

During the Heartburn Awareness Month, the goal is to educate, screen and treat the heartburn sufferers. All heartburn sufferers are encouraged to take an active role in consulting their healthcare professionals during November. They can receive better information about heartburn which can them to eliminate symptoms when they are more likely to indulge in holiday meals and spirits.

"November is a perfect time for heartburn sufferers and healthcare professionals to address heartburn, because more people tend to over-indulge in holiday meals," says Pat Baird, Registered Dietitian and NHBA Board member.

"By incorporating lifestyle changes into their diets, heartburn sufferers can learn to alleviate symptoms so they can enjoy the holidays."

For more information, you can visit the Heartburn Awareness Month Web site at http://www.heartburnmonth.org/. It provides great information about to change your lifestyles to combat against heartburn and you can order free educational brochures, available in English and Spanish.

Natural Heartburn Cures: using spices and herbs

For years, our ancestors had been using natural herbs like spice as a form of natural remedy to their illness. Spices and herbs are primarily used for cooking and recently, more for their medicinal effects.



Turmeric is a very interesting spice which has the functions as a healer and cooking flavor. It has a bitter, peppery flavor. The spice is yellow in color which is commonly used in cooking curried food to add color and flavor to the food.

If you've never used turmeric in cooking, you may have eaten foods that are prepared using it such as plain yellow mustard, pickles, relish and popcorn. Even, people use it to color butter and cheese.

Most importantly, in ancient Indian medicinal system(Ayurveda) and traditional Chinese medicine, turmeric has been used for a wide range of medicinal purposes.

One of the great medicinal uses is aid in our digestion. Turmeric has been used widely treat various stomach and gastrointestinal problems such as gastric, heartburn acid reflux. It also helps to promote liver function. It can be taken as a powder in a capsule each time prior to the meal or mixed in a cup of hot water as tea.

Another function is to use as an anti-inflammatory agent which can be used to help relieve pain from arthritis.


[Source: National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine]

Technorati Profile

Untreated Chronic Heartburn Acid Reflux can lead to Cancer

Do you know that leaving untreated chronic heartburn acid reflux for years can lead to esophageal erosion, ulcers and even cancer? According to the American Cancer Society, esophageal cancer is one of the fastest-growing cancers in USA. In most cases, they are diagnosed at an advance stage which survival rate is relatively low.

In fact, it is very common for at least one out of five American adults to have heartburn acid reflux at least once a week. This is quite an alarming figure.

Frequent bouts of indigestion like at least once a week sound a warning that there is a need to change in your lifestyle and diet. The best approach is to consult your doctor. However, here are some basic heartburn acid reflux remedies can be used immediately.

- Keep a food diary. This will help to keep track of all kinds of food that you have eaten and find the trigger food that cause heartburn symptoms.

- Eat smaller meals instead of 3 big meals. Frequent small meals can help your stomach to digest the food better.

- Avoid eating two to three hours before sleeping.

- Reduce stress in your lifestyle.

- Sleep on your left side, and keep your head above your stomach to keep acid from flowing up into the esophagus.

- Quit smoking and avoid caffeinated beverages

- Wear loose clothings and avoid tight pants or snug belts to reduce the stomach pressure.

Latest Heartburn Cure - Using Radio Waves

In the DailyMail UK, it is reported that radio waves are being used as a new treatment for heartburn problem. It makes use of small wires to generate heat and help to stiffen the loose tissue and cause the backflow of stomach acids to stop.

Currently, 75% of the UK patients who are in trials do not need to use drugs or only use occasionally when symptoms appeared. Before that, the patients were taking their medicine twice a day.

This treatment is based on the idea of the tissue at the junction of the oesophagus and upper stomach which can be stiffened by the body's natural responses to injury. This similar method is also used in treating snoring and sleep apnoea by stiffening the tissue at the throat.

It is just a day surgery which takes an hour to get the procedure done. The patients are fully recovered by the next day. Even the latest research shows that the treatment is highly effective.

When the patient is sedated, a flexible catheter would be inserted through the throat to the lower part of the oesophagus. The catheter has a number of sharp elements or thin wires at the extreme end which are manoeuvred so they penetrate 1-2mm into the oesophageal sphincter.

Once the catheter is in oesophagus, the wires transmit high-frequency radio waves into the muscle tissue, raising its temperature. The heating causes inflammation which would make the muscle tissue to thicken. This step is repeated in various positions. Remote sensors are in place to monitor the whole process and to ensure that there is no overheating. At the same time, there is chilled water circulating to prevent the other tissue being heated during the process.

According to doctors in Hanover, Germany, who did a study of 60 patients at 6 centres found that 75% of the patients who did the treatment 1 year ago do not need medication or less medication than before treatment.

News: New Incisionless Surgery Offers Hope to Heartburn Sufferers

A new cutting-edge simple operation can give hope to the millions of people are suffering from acid reflux or heartburn.

Recently, the surgeons at the Ohio State University Medical Center have performed the first incisionless procedure on first 2 patients that leaves no outside scarring. There is very minimal post-operative pain and at the same time, it reduces the patients' recovery time significantly.

This procedure makes use of a device known as EsophyX which was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration.The mechanism is relatively new in the United States and it has been proven safe and effective in patients treated throughout Europe for gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), also known as heartburn or acid reflux.

The incisionless surgery allows reconstruction of the one-way valve at the top of the stomach, when the valve is defective. The new tubular device is introduced to the body totally through the mouth, and is then advanced down the esophagus into the stomach. During the procedure, the operation is viewed through a small fiberoptic camera located within the tubular surgical tools.

Patients are normally stay overnight in the hospital. After the procedure, the patients reported to be symptom free.

[Source: Fox News]

Is heartburn surgery remedy overused medical treatment?

In the latest Nov issue of Consumer Reports magazine, there is a list 10 overused tests and treatments. Heartburn surgery is one of them.

HEARTBURN SURGERY.
Doctors surgically tighten a sphincter muscle that blocks stomach acid from backing up into the esophagus. But research shows the operation, which costs $14,600 or more, provides no better long-term relief than taking a proton-pump-inhibitor drug such as omeprazole (Prilosec OTC), which costs less than $1 a day.

Are we really overused surgery as our remedy for heartburn? Actually there are many natural remedies for heartburn as long as you bother to research more about it.

Heartburn Medicines May Have Side Effects

Do you know that for long term medication for heartburn can cause your side effects?

Antacids and other heartburn or acid reflux medication commonly prescribed to treat these problems may cause you to have uncomfortable side effects when it is long term or short term use.

If you happen to take a heartburn drug and develop any of the follow symptoms, please talk to your doctor as recommended by The American Academy of Family Physicians.

- Nausea
- Diarrhea
- headaches
- feeling breathless
- constipation

Alternatively, you may want to consider natural remedies for your heartburn problem.

Heartburn Symptoms

Most people will find that heartburn symptoms are relatively common and they treat it like part of their normal lifestyle. Regardless whether it is mild or serious, it should not be treated lightly. These heartburn symptoms do not happen suddenly. They are due to over a period of time and they serves as a warning from your digestive system.

It is important to learn what are the symptoms of heartburn so that you can help yourself when you are experiencing it.

Common symptoms of heartburn are acid indigestion, acid reflux, acid regurgitation, non-cardiac chest pain, and sour stomach. This symptoms are also described as a burning sensation in the throat or the chest. Some people say that experience pain in their lower chest. While others feel heat or warmth sensation on their upper abdomen.

Most people experience chest pain, pain in the upper abdomen, excessive burping and bloating at the stomach, difficulty swallowing or sometimes, a burning sensation on the top of the throat.

For some people, heartburn symptoms can last for 2 hours or more. Others may experience difficulty in sleeping due to the heartburn symptoms. Some would wake up during the night and have difficulty falling asleep again. As the result of lack of sleep and suffering from heartburn, these people also feel the negative impact on their work the next day.

Another symptom which often goes unnoticed is a dry cough or frequent throat clearing.

Causes for Heartburn

The burning pain at the chest has become more commonly associated with heartburn acid reflux. It has become a big problem to many people. This is often have to with our lifestyle & diet.

The two main causes of heartburn is diet and lifestyle.

1) a) Diet- Food

Any food that is acidic, spicy and fried are common triggers for heartburn. Eating large portions of food can cause your stomach to generate large amounts of acid juices. As the result, this can help to increase your digestive juices to escape into the esophagus and cause you to have heartburn. Food like tomatoes, citrus fruits, peppers, fatty foods, fried food could be the causes of your heartburn problem.

As each individual is different and in order to clearly identify which food actually can trigger your heartburn, it is important to keep a food diary to track what kind of food do you eat every day. Thus, from the journal, you can detect what foods can cause it.

b) Diet - Beverages

Your daily beverages can also be the causes of the heartburn. Beverages like alcholic, citrus juices, carbonated drinks and sodas and caffeinated drinks are common causes of heartburn. They help to increase the acidity in your stomach and can cause irritation to the esophagus.

2. Lifestyle

Stress level High stress can cause your stomach to generate more acidic juices and causing you to have a heartburn.

Smoking encourages the production of digestive juice which induces relaxation of the sphicter. These are great conditions for heartburn to happen.

It is never a good idea to sleep immediately after a meal. By doing so, you are setting the condition for the digestive juices to escape to the esophagus.

How to tell that you are suffering from Heartburn?

How to you really tell that you are suffering from heartburn?

Is it when a heartburn become more than just an occasional problem that caused you to reach for nexium or zantac? Has it become too often?

What you can do is to ask yourself these questions?

1. Do you frequently have this uncomfortable feeling behind your breastbone that seems to move upward from the stomach?

2. Do you often have a burning sensation in the back of your throat?

3. Do you frequently have a bitter acid taste your mouth?

4. Do you get acid indigestion or heartburn problem at least 2 times a week and often have to use medicine for relief?

5. Do you experience these above problems after meals frequently and require to use medicine get relief?

If you answered yes to two or more questions, you might have heartburn. It is time for you to see your doctor or a gastrointestinal specialist to determine how serious your problem is.

Are you suffering from Heartburn problem?

As the world getting more affluent, we have more lifestyle health problems like diabetes, heart attack, cancer happening to us than before.

Heartburn is getting relatively common these days in this fast-moving and highly stressful society. As the result, people take it as it is a normal part of their life and they just bear with it or ignore it until it is too late.

So, are you suffering from Heartburn?