Heartburn

Written By Katie Di Lauro • 1 min read

Heartburn, acid reflux, and agita are a few names for this common complaint. If you have heartburn you may be relying on over-the-counter remedies, having trouble falling asleep with discomfort, or avoiding activity due to concern it will spark pain.  Acid reflux, or Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD),  affects at least 18-27% of Americans. The most common symptoms are burning in the chest and regurgitation, a sour taste in the mouth, chronic cough, chronic hoarseness, a sensation of a lump in your throat, and/or slight difficulty breathing. GERD generally develops from dysfunction in the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) that allows gastric acid from the stomach to enter the esophagus, resulting in that burning sensation. If you struggle with GERD, let’s review a few root causes to help you eliminate pain…

Common foods that may trigger heartburn:

• Alcohol
• Carbonation
• Chocolate
• Citrus
• Coffee
• Fatty foods
• Onion
• Peppermint
• Spicy foods
• Tomatoes
• Garlic
• Smoking or other tobacco use

Nutrition Recommandations: 

• Embrace an eating pattern that is high in fruits, vegetables, and dietary fiber, and low in sodium and fat (especially saturated fat)
• Adopt an eating pattern similar to the Mediterranean diet
• Consume smaller meals and chew foods thoroughly
• Avoid late-night eating

Lifestyle Recommendations: 

• Avoid lying down for 2 hours after eating and keep your head elevated when sleeping. If possible, raise the head of the bed when sleeping
• smoking cessation
• Adopt or increase physical activity
• Improving sleep – sleep deficiency has been found to increase acid reflux
• Visit your doctor to rule out H.pylori
• For chronic and severe heartburn, visit your gastrointestinal doctor for an endoscopy

Helpful Supplements:

• Aloe
• DGL (Deglycyrrhizinated Licorice)
• Mastic Gum
• Zinc Carnosine