Immediate ways of Managing Your Heartburn

You can find some quick relief from your heartburn with a few self-care remedies.

Try these out:

Eat frequent smaller meals instead of three larger ones.

This will help prevent excessive production of stomach acid.

Eat slowly.

One way to help you slow down while eating is to put your fork or spoon down between bites.

Don't go to bed with a full stomach.

Stay up at least three hours after eating your last meal or large snack before going to bed. This gives acid levels a chance to decrease before your body is in a position where heartburn is more likely to occur.

Raise the head of your bed several inches.

With your head elevated, it will help prevent reflux during the night.

Avoid your heartburn triggers.

Examples of foods and beverages that can trigger heartburn are coffee (including decaf), alcohol, fatty foods, caffeine-containing beverages and foods, onions, peppermint, chocolate, citrus fruits or juices, tomatoes.

Stop smoking.

Nicotine can weaken the lower esophageal sphincter, the muscle that controls the opening between the esophagus and stomach and prevents the acid-containing contents of the stomach from entering the esophagus.

Wear looser-fitting clothes.

Tight clothing squeezes the midsection and tends to push stomach contents upward.

Lose weight.

If you are overweight, losing weight can help relieve your symptoms.

Chew gum.

Chewing gum can provide short-term heartburn relief by stimulating the production of saliva, which dilutes and flushes out stomach acid.

Drink warm liquids.

Drinking a glass of lukewarm water or herbal tea after a meal can dilute and flush out stomach acid.

BeatTheBurn.mackaonline.com

Is Heartburn Serious?

Is Heartburn Serious? this is the big question we all worry about especially when suffering a extreme case in the middle of the night. Through our minds we are thinking something this painful cannot not be good....

If you suffer from mild heartburn you may consider it more of a nuisance than a condition that can cause any serious complications. But if it occur frequently such as in chronic sufferers (episodes occurring several times a week or more frequently), if it's left untreated can lead to severe complications.

For people who suffer from Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), heartburn can be chronic, and severe. With the passage of time, chronic acid reflux causes enough serious damage to the lower esophagus to generate a state known as Barrett's esophagus and possibly cancer. This explains why a rapid intervention to resolve GERD is imperative. Other than heartburn, acid reflux can also be detected by a salty taste in the oral cavity, dry coughs, nauseous sensations, recurring hoarseness and nocturnal bouts of asthma.

If you think you have a chronic case of Heartburn or GERD see your doctor, don't just look for solutions online!!

You may find a solution online but get it checked out properly in case it is something else!!!!

What is Heartburn?

You've enjoyed a big meal and are relaxing in bed ready for sleep and suddenly, a burning sensation begins to build in the upper abdomen, behind the breastbone, and makes your chest and throat feel like it's had acid poured down it. The burning and pain may travels from your diaphragm all the way to your throat, and there is that sour taste and the sensation of food re-entering your mouth.

You're suffering from heartburn.

First thing you should realise is that despite the name, it has nothing to do with the heart. It's a digestive problem that occurs when stomach acid comes into contact with the lining of the esophagus, causing irritation.

Most people suffer from heartburn occasionally, usually after a meal.

Is you heartburn serious?

If you have heartburn once a month, it's considered mild. If you have heartburn once a week, it's moderate. It's when your heartburn occurs daily that it's considered to be severe.

About 20% of all adults will have heartburn at least once a month. often you can manage these uncomfortable episodes with a change in diet, over-the-counter antacids and weight lose.

Even if you suffer from moderate heartburn you can often find relief with these remedies. But for many people , the heartburn is severe. For those people, the simple remedies, good for mild heartburn, give only partial or temporary relief.

What Causes Heartburn?

Heartburn is caused when stomach acid refluxes--backs up--into the esophagus. This can occur for a number of reasons:

• When the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), the valve that keeps stomach acid in the stomach, is weakened or relaxed and doesn't do its job properly. This is the most common symptom of Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD).
• Certain foods, such as chocolate, fried and fatty foods, peppermint, coffee, alcohol, sugars, can weaken or relax the LES.
• Eating large meals or shortly before bedtime.
• A hiatal hernia.
• Pressure on the stomach, including frequent bending over, tight clothes, lifting, obesity.
• Certain medications.
• Smoking.
• Stress can increase acid production and slow down the emptying of the stomach.

Information source
http://heartburn.about.com/ an excellent resource for information on Heartburn, Acid Reflux and GERD

Introduction

Hi I thought I should start this blog off with a bit of an introduction.
My Name is Ian McGregor

I have in the past been a sufferer of HeartBurn (or Acid Reflux), and as a martial artist and generally interested in my health and well being I decided I really wanted to be rid of it.
Thankfully I was never a chronic sufferer of this condition, but it was bad enough as it was, keeping me awake at night, the pain and keeping my wife awake (now thats dangerous enough... :-) ).

I tried many different solutions over time, most of them only temporary, but finally I was able to be rid of it completely by following one book, Heartburn No More (tm).

I hope you 'll find some helpfull information here