Saturday, March 14, 2009

Heartburn Causes and Treatment

For most people heartburn is just an occasional irritation. But for millions of people the heartburn pain requires the sufferers to try to medicate their symptoms. After chewing, the food travels down the esophagus or the food pipe to the lower esophagus sphincter commonly referred to as the LES. If the stomach acids is overproduced or if the LES is not working properly, the acids will travel up or reflux back into the esophagus. If the stomach muscles or not working properly or if an over production of the stomach acid occurs on a regular basics, the heartburn will also occur more often. From the symptoms of belching, heartburn, chronic sore throat, hoarseness, or even difficulty with swallowing. While your diet does not cause the GERD, what you eat will aggravate the most common symptom of the GERD which is the heartburn. Do not over eat and eat slowly may help. Avoiding certain foods that increase the acids in the stomach can also help.

There are several causes for an individual to suffer from heartburn symptoms and acid reflux. Some of the most frequent causes for the heartburn and acid reflux are the high consumption of coffee, tea and other drinks that contain caffeine as this constituent encourages the contents of stomach to move up into the esophagus quite occasionally. Chocolate is yet another foodstuff that can cause heartburn and acid reflux as it contains Theo bromine a natural compound that occurs in many plants like cocoa. This compound plays a role in relaxing the sphincter muscle ultimately leading to squirting of stomach acid into the esophagus.

Fried and fatty foods stuffs are yet another cause of heartburn and acid reflux disorder as it increases the pressure inside the stomach. Avoid tomatoes and tomato-based products as it can lower esophageal sphincter. Alcohol can also relax the lower esophageal sphincter muscles and finally become the root cause of heartburn and acid reflux. Tobacco not only causes heartburn and acid reflux but also passes from the lungs into the blood and causes other disorders. Taking large meals can be the next reason for this disorder as it can increase the pressure inside your stomach.

Citrus fruits and juices relax the lowering of esophageal sphincter. Avoid eating within 2 to 3 hours prior to bedtime and wearing tight fitting clothes, as these can also became the causes for heartburn and acid reflux. Persistent heartburn two or more days a week can finally lead to acid reflux or gastro esophageal reflux disease. This can be a serious disorder since stomach acid cans away the delicate esophagus lining. This can also result in asthma, pneumonia, hoarseness, and chronic cough.

No comments:

Post a Comment

chitika

Health News Health Advice Medicine Diet and Fitness