True Story About A Patient Overcoming GERD problem

Many people like Beth (which you can watch the video below) thought that their heartburn problem was a simple case and did not really bother about it.

When the symptoms got worse, they started to find something is serious about it.

Click this video to learn more about it: True Life Story: GERD

Pain the chest, upper abdomen, a sign of heartburn

When there is unexplained pain in the chest or upper gastrointestinal tract, that may be a sign of an increased risk of death from alcohol-related causes, pneumonia or lung cancer.


Thus, people with these symptoms are likely to be hospitalized for "ischemic" heart disease - the type of heart disease caused by restricted blood flow in heart arteries which Dr. Estrid Muff Munk and colleagues from Aarhus University Hospital found.

The researchers noticed that when a patient with pain in the chest or the upper abdomen has normal results on a test called endoscopy, in which a scope is used to view the inside of the esophagus and the stomach, the pain may be due to undiagnosed ischemic heart disease.

To date, studies have shown that patients with this type of pain and normal upper endoscopy results have not excluded those with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) or ulcers, they add. "Thus, it is uncertain whether all study subjects had truly unexplained pain."


To address this issue, researchers looked at heart disease risk and death over a 10-year period in 386 patients with pain in the chest or upper abdomen, normal upper endoscopy and no existing heart disease, and 3,793 control patients. They excluded patients with reflux, heartburn or other symptoms of GERD or ulcers.

The patients with unexplained pain were 60 percent more likely to be hospitalized over the next 10 years. They also were more than twice as likely to die within the first year of their endoscopy, while mortality risk was elevated for up to five years after the test.

Their risk of death from alcohol dependence, pneumonia or lung cancer was triple that of the general population.

Unexplained chest pain and upper abdominal pain in patients with a normal endoscopy test "is a strong marker for ischemic heart disease and increased mortality," they conclude.

[SOURCE: BMC Gastroenterology, published online July 15, 2008.]

Thus, I believe that once you start to experience the symptoms that indicate you may be having heartburn acid reflux problem, it is best to consult your doctor

How Can Apple Cider Vinegar Can Treat Acid Reflux Problem?

We know that vinegar is acidic and cause more problems to people who have heartburn acid reflux problem. However there is only one vinegar not only the heartburn sufferers can take and it is actually a natural acid reflux remedy which you can east all symptoms during the day.

WOW! That is Apple Cider Vinegar!

Read more about The Connection Between Vinegar and Heartburn...

Apple Cider Vinegar is vinegar made from crushed and aged apples known as cider. When unfiltered, Apple Cider Vinegar has a brownish-yellow color. Unfiltered cider vinegar, also known as organic apple cider vinegar, contains what is known as the “mother of vinegar” or simply the “mother”. The mother looks like stringy floating globs in the liquid, and is where all of the healing properties of Apple Cider Vinegar reside.

Apple Cider Vinegar contains minerals, as well as trace elements including magnesium, chlorine phosphorous, sulfur, sodium, calcium, potassium, iron, copper, fluorine and silicon. Due of all of its beneficial ingredients, Apple Cider Vinegar is a natural fighter of bacteria, which often makes it a beneficial vinegar acid reflux treatment choice.

How can Apple Cider Vinegar benefit acid reflux sufferers? You may be confused as to how a type of vinegar could be beneficial for treating acid reflux symptoms such as heartburn. After all, doesn’t vinegar have a high acid content? Wouldn’t cider vinegar just exacerbate the problem? Surprisingly, for most acid reflux sufferers, Apple Cider Vinegar helps to relieve the burning sensation and nausea caused by reflux without adding to it.

Why?

Many people with digestive problems like acid reflux, experience problems not because they have too much acid, but because they have too little. Apple Cider Vinegar mimics the acid level of the stomach, which aids in the proper digestion of food, and can help aid the stomach in digesting.

Therefore, in some cases, vinegar acid reflux remedies for heartburn work more effectively than antacids, because although antacids will cure heartburn, they are designed to diminish acid within the system. Thus, antacids will not treat the actual cause if acid reflux is the result of too little stomach acid, and instead can make reflux more frequent.

How should you take apple cider vinegar? Apple Cider Vinegar is available in many forms including liquid, tablet and capsule. However, when using Apple Cider Vinegar as a natural treatment, the only form you should obtain is the organic liquid that contains the “mother” enzyme.

When taking Apple Cider Vinegar, you will first want to shake it well before you ingest it to disperse the mother throughout the liquid. To start, try taking one tablespoon of cider vinegar before each meal. You will likely find the taste of the Apple Cider Vinegar to be quite potent. It is an acquired taste, and you should grow more accustomed to the flavor after the first few vinegar acid reflux treatments.

Nevertheless, should you find it too repellant, there are a few other ways you can take Apple Cider Vinegar such as:
- Mix a tablespoon in a fat free salad dressing or light mayonnaise and eat it with your meal
- Sprinkle a tablespoon on salad or vegetables
- Mix a tablespoon in an 8 oz. glass of water and add a bit of honey to sweeten the drink.
- Make a tea out of ACV by adding a tablespoon of the cider vinegar to hot water and slowly sipping it.

Although it is best to ingest apple cider vinegar prior to each meal, you can also take a tablespoon when your stomach is upset or heartburn acts up.

After taking apple cider vinegar for a few days, many acid reflux sufferers find that their symptoms improve, and continue to improve with treatment in the months that follow. However, in addition, you should be aware that Apple Cider Vinegar has a few mild side effects including stomach upset. Furthermore, Apple Cider Vinegar may worsen heartburn in some individuals. It is also known to thin the blood and should be avoided by anyone taking blood thinning medications such as anti-coagulants.

===> Testimonials of Old Folk Remedy: Apple CiderVinegar

Always remember that you should speak to your doctor first before starting any treatment, including vinegar acid reflux treatment, and keep in mind that natural treatment should not replace any medication or treatment advice that has been prescribed by your doctor without prior consultation.

To Learn More about it...

Click Here : Stop Acid Reflux NOW!

Chew Your Food Slowly Helps To Prevent Heartburn

Heartburn may feel like your heart is on fire, but what’s “burning” is actually your esophagus. Acid reflux, or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), occurs when the stomach acids enter the esophagus, causing pain and burning sensations. Left untreated, GERD can lead to serious medical consequences, including narrowing of the esophagus, bleeding, or even a condition called Barrett’s esophagus, which increases your risk of developing esophageal cancer.

Read more about Heartburn Can Cause Cancer

In fact, the experts have found a simple way to prevent GERD in the first place: Eat more slowly. Researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston did a case study by feeding 690-calorie meals to 10 healthy volunteers, instructing them to finish the meal in either five or 30 minutes on alternating days. Participants were monitored for 2 hours after finishing their meals. Those who took 30 minutes to eat experienced fewer episodes of acid reflux or GERD compared to subject who finished eating in five minutes.

People need to slow down many areas of their lives, especially mealtime. Besides aiding your digestion, eating your meals slowly can help your waistline too, by giving your stomach a chance to communicate to your brain that it’s full. Time yourself, just to see how long it takes you to eat an average meal. Try to take a full 20-30 minutes (you might have to build up to this slowly) to finish your food. If you are experiencing heartburn or discomfort after meals on a regular basis, see your doctor, before GERD causes irreversible damage.

Besides learning to eat slowly, knowing what type of food to avoid is equally important.

Read more about What Types Of Heartburn Food To Avoid...

How To Relief From Acid Reflux

Heartburn acid reflux is a very common health problem for many people worldwide. Thus, you are not alone.

Here is a video that illustrate how you relieve yourself from heartburn acid reflux


Another important factor that you must look into is your diet. Do you know which types of you food will trigger off your heartburn causing your discomfort?

There is a well-written article about the types of food you should avoid in order not to trigger your acid reflux symptoms.

=====> What Types of Heartburn Foods to Avoid?

Also there is a latest update on dietary changes for GERD and acid reflux patients. Click here for more details - Dietary Changes and GERD / Acid Reflux: The Latest Research

Natural Heartburn Cures

Heartburn is one of the most common and painful ailments that mankind ever suffer. In fact, the drug companies come up with many different prescriptions and medicines very often to help to you combat your heartburn. As you know that taking too much drugs is not good for your health ultimately. You know that heartburn do not happen overnight, hence you can try some other natural heartburn remedies to help you.

Here are some natural cures for heartburn acid reflux, there are a few in particular that you will want to consider.

Orange Peel ExtractOne of the best natural cures for acid reflux is orange peel extract. It has been studied in several clinical trials, and in all of these studies, it proved as being successful in the relieving of acid reflux and heartburn. Scientists believe that orange peel extract helps by moving food through to the stomach effectively and efficiently, and food doesn't stay in the esophagus longer than necessary, lessening the chances for heartburn to develop.

Herbal RemediesThere are various different herbal remedies that can be used for acid reflux. These herbs include chamomile, meadowsweet, slippery elm, cancer bush, fennel, catnip, angelica root gentian root, ginger root, and other botanicals. Modern herbalists have found that a combination of several of these herbs can be even more effective, and so you should take some time and try out a few different combinations in order to see what works best for you.

Proper DietThis is one of the most obvious, and easiest natural cures for acid reflux. Simply by eating fruits, vegetables, and an otherwise healthy and nutritious diet, you will be able to relieve any existing acid reflux problems that you have, as well as prevent any problems with this disease in the future.

As everyone is different, it is not necessarily that all the natural heartburn remedies will work for one person. You need to try out more different things. If you are interested, you can check here:

Doctors renew focus on worst acid reflux cases

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Chronic heartburn is a daily acid bath for the esophagus, and complications from it are on the rise. With the new government figures, it show a worrisome rise in esophagus disorders from severe acid reflux.

To make things worse, esophageal cancer is continuing increase as the nation's fastest-growing malignancy.

More doctors are trying to zap away the worst damage, beaming radiofrequency energy down the throat to burn off precancerous cells.

Heartburn sometimes is a temporary problem, but it also can signal gastrointestinal reflux disease, or GERD, where a loose valve allows stomach acid to regularly back up into the delicate esophagus. Millions have GERD, which is on the rise along with expanding waistlines. For most people, acid-suppressing medications are the answer.

But severe reflux over many years can cause serious problems for a fraction of people. The lining of the esophagus erodes until it bleeds, narrows to make swallowing difficult or, worse, starts to repair itself with more acid-resistant intestinal cells that happen to be more cancer-prone. That last condition is called Barrett's esophagus, and sufferers are 30 times more likely than the average person to go on to develop esophageal cancer.

[Source - Associated Press]

Natural Heartburn Cure: Fighting heartburn, naturally

Television commercials have trained our minds to believe that taking antacids for our heartburn is a normal part of our life.

However, simple diet and lifestyle modifications can help prevent you from joining the 25 percent to 35 percent of Americans who suffer from frequent, severe heartburn, also known as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). This condition can have serious consequences if left untreated, including an increased risk for esophageal cancer.

Frequently, medications are the first method of treatment for GERD. Unfortunately, some of these medications have side effects, such as impaired absorption of nutrients including calcium, vitamin B12 and iron. You may be able to avoid medication and its side effects by taking these easy steps to make prevention your first line of defense against heartburn:

# Avoid wearing tight-fitting clothes like neckties and tight waistbands. This will give your system room to move.

# Do not eat within three hours of bedtime. Avoid bending over or lying down immediately after meals. Gravity can help aid digestion.

# Avoid acidic, spicy foods, or any foods that you know trigger your heartburn. Consider skipping the nachos during the game.

# Avoid large, high-fat meals. Fat slows digestion, and slow digestion contributes to heartburn.

# Limit alcohol, caffeine and nicotine. These substances relax the esophagus and may allow acid to creep back from the stomach.

# Increase regular intake of "bitters" such as dandelion and mustard greens to stimulate digestion.

# Always consult your health care practitioner if your symptoms continue or become severe.

[Source: Laura Hunter, BS, dietetic intern and Debra Boutin, MS, RD, assistant professor in the School of Nutrition and Exercise Science at Bastyr University
Nonprofit, accredited Bastyr University (bastyr.edu) offers multiple degrees in the natural health sciences, and clinical training at Bastyr Center for Natural Health (bastyrcenter.org), the region's largest natural medicine clinic]

Surgery may cure heartburn

This is an interesting article that I got it from The Detroit News:

Dear Dr. Donohue: I have been suffering from GERD for 19 years. Stomach acid stays in my throat. I have tried all kinds of medicines, but they make things worse. I have had acid tests with a tube in my throat that indicated an acid rise when I step out of bed. Why on an empty stomach? My sphincter muscle doesn't work. I had a procedure called EndoCinch; it didn't work. I spoke to a surgeon about laparoscopic surgery. Do you feel surgery would benefit me?

L.T.

Dear L.T.: You'd be hard-pressed to find a single person who hasn't had at least one episode of GERD -- gastroesophageal reflux disease, or heartburn, in common language. It's often felt on an empty stomach. Food initially neutralizes stomach acid, but some foods do increase acid production shortly after they hit the stomach.

GERD is like Old Faithful, except instead of water, it is a geyser of stomach acid, which shoots up into the esophagus because of a lax sphincter (SFINK-tur) muscle. The sphincter, if working, would shut and prevent the upward spurt of acid. Sometimes, as in your case, stomach acid can rise as high as the throat and mouth to cause hoarseness, cough or an awful taste sensation.

Have you tried the non-medicine approaches that can sometimes control GERD? Chocolate, peppermint, spearmint, coffee (including decaf), other caffeine-containing foods and drinks, citrus fruits, tomato products, high-fat foods, garlic, onions and spicy foods often make it worse. Six-inch blocks under the bedposts at the head of the bed keep stomach acid in the stomach during sleep. Weight loss, if needed, is another way to stop stomach acid from spurting up. Small meals, slowly chewed, help. Smoking and alcohol aggravate GERD.

If nothing works, surgery is a definite option. The Nissan fundoplication is successful 90 percent of the time. It can be done with a scope. The upper part of the stomach is wrapped around the lower esophagus to create a barrier to acid reflux. A number of procedures, like your EndoCinch, can be done through a gastroscope -- a scope passed into the esophagus through the mouth. The long-term results of these procedures aren't as well-known.

The booklet on GERD, heartburn and hiatal hernia discusses these topics in depth. Readers can order a copy by writing: Dr. Donohue -- No. 501, Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. Enclose a check or money order (no cash) for $4.75 U.S./$6 Can. with the recipient's printed name and address. Please allow four weeks for delivery.

Write to Dr. Paul Donohue at P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475.

Learn about the Foods Heartburn Sufferers MUST Avoid

What acid reflux foodstuffs must I avoid?

It is a perplexing question for many heartburn sufferers. Making changes in your diet and lifestyle have been shown to be natural components of any long-term holistic acid treatment and they cannot be dissociated either. A preference for healthy foods and selective nutrition to ban certain foods and eat more of others can show long-term health benefits to acid reflux sufferers.

The reduction of the consumption of unsuitable foods and the adoption of new diet habits in particular to aid digestion for heartburn sufferers could create a very positive effect on your current heartburn conditions.

The kind of food we eat determines how we can maintain the delicate and natural equilibrium inside our bodies. Certain dietary customs and nutritional habits have been shown to contribute indirectly or directly to the degradation of a heartburn condition.

These kinds of foods are:

Drinks with caffeine content like coffee. They cause increase acidity, so stop consuming large cups of coffee. Where possible, halve your cup of coffee to give two separate drinks and drink less coffee before going to sleep. Do not go over two cups of coffee per day and reduce even further if you can.

Alcohol can also be at the same time a relaxant for the LES muscle and an irritant for the stomach, causing an increase in acidity and reflux.

Foods high in fat content have a longer digestion time and take more effort for your body to get rid of them. They increase the risk of acid refluxing into your esophagus and are among the worst delinquents for triggering acid reflux symptoms. The exceptions are fish and fish oil omega-3 fatty acids. These are actually strong anti-inflammatory substances.

If you are addicted to chocolate, go for dark, organic types in preference to others limiting your consumption to two or three little two or three times in any week. Containing large quantities of caffeine and fat, chocolate can also lead to heightened acidity and degraded digestion, and thus should not be consumed.

Before going to sleep, make sure that you do not drink milk or consume any products based on milk containing a lot of calcium.

Leave aside food with strong mint. The same goes for herbal tea that is mint-based. Acid reflux symptoms can be aggravated still more by peppermint and spearmint amongst others.

The esophageal sphincter is also liable to open in response to cruciferous vegetables (such as spinach, cauliflower, cabbage, brussels sprouts, broccoli) and foods high in acid (tomatoes and oranges, to take two examples) leading to further acid reflux.

So finally, which acid reflux food has to be taken out of your nutrition? It doesn't matter what your current level of acid reflux level is; when you make the choice of an improved quality of life, you can make the choice to terminate heartburn permanently, with a holistic solution. You can move to eliminate acid reflux and put your well-being and quality of life on a different level, by making these modifications in your diet and having the right motivation to revamp your lifestyle.

The keys to solving the problem will be yours. To learn more, click here to find out in more details and steps to prevent your heartburn symptoms.

Heartburn Cures - Heartburn & Diet Part 3

Junk food?


Occasionally, but with caution, choose fat free cookies, baked potato chips, or red licorice. A good exercise to do if you suffer from heartburn regularly is to create a food diary and log your meal intake for 2 or 3 weeks. Then note each time you experience heartburn in order to target the foods you need to avoid.

In addition to making better food choices, consider changing your portion perception.

Overeating is another heartburn aggravator. Exercise caloric conscientiousness and choose to skip that second helping or fatty side dish, eat slow and drink plenty of water. Living without heartburn is within anyone’s grasp, and shouldn’t require drastic medical treatment.

Simple, reasonable modifications in your eating habits can do wonders for quelling acid reflux, not to mention improving overall health.

Heartburn Cures - Black Raspberries May Protect Against GERD Cancer

The black raspberry may be one of the reason why Barrett’s Esophagus patients can use to stay strong and prevent their heartburn acid reflect condition from turning into cancer, health professionals said.

According to the National Institutes of Health, Barrett’s Esophagus is a condition which the esophagus changes so that some of its lining is replaced by a type of tissue similar to that normally found in the intestine. The condition usually starts as heartburn acid reflux problem which affects about 700,000 Americans.

For more than 10 years, Danny Harris has struggled with heartburn after he eats. He learned his reflux had turned into Barrett’s Esophagus, and that an interesting thing happened when he ate black raspberries.

“I really didn’t have any flare-ups or episodes after I had taken the berries,” he said.

Harris was part of a new study led by a research team at Ohio State University’s Comprehensive Cancer Center. For six months, he and other Barrett’s Esophagus patients drank a black raspberry powder and water mix.

The study said that the black raspberry actually helped many patients to reverse the negative impact of the reflux acid. Nearly every four in 10 patients saw a boost in a protective enzyme and six in 10 saw a decline in oxidative stress, which can cause cell damage, researchers said.

Researchers said they believe the fruit’s combination of nutrients gives it super healing power.

“They’re really strong antioxidants. They’re also a good source of multi-vitamins and minerals,” Dr. Laura Kresty of Ohio State University’s Comprehensive Cancer Center said.

A larger study is likely the next step to see if black raspberries yield more positive results for patients with Barrett’s Esophagus, officials said.

Night-time Heatburn Cures

Here are the simple ways that you can help to prevent having night-time heartburn symptoms:

1. After you eat, walk around to help with your digestion. Do not lie down immediately for 2 to 3 hours after you eat. Sitting upright with the help of gravity can drain food and stomach acid into your stomach and intestines.

2. Avoid taking snack before going to sleep. Eating close to bedtime can set off heartburn symptoms.

3. Have your meals about 2 to 3 hours before your bedtime. This gives time for the food to digest.

4. Eat less spicy food and fatty food. These foods can easily trigger heartburn.

5. Adopt new habits of eating your food slowly and eat smaller and frequent meals instead of having a quick bit or 3 large meals a day. These new habits can help to avert activating heartburn acid refluet symptoms

6. Cut back on stuff like chocolate, mint, citrus, tomatoes, pepper, vinegar, catsup and mustard.

7. Avoid drinks that can activate reflux, like alcohol, drinks with caffeine and carbonated drinks. Alcohol can relax the esophageal sphincter, worsening GERD, so avoid it.

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).

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

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 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.