Heartburn is a terribly painful affliction. Almost everyone knows the discomfort of occasional heartburn. If it happens more than occasionally for you, you might want to learn how to stop heartburn. While the cause of heartburn, acid in the esophagus, is the same for everyone, the way the acid gets there varies from person to person.
The esophagus is the tube that carries your food from your mouth to your stomach where it is digested with the help of gastric acid. The doorway between the stomach and the esophagus is a sphincter that opens to allow food in and closes to keep acid in. There is a flap to assist in confining the acid. The possible reasons that your sphincter is having a problem containing the acid are many. Until you pin down the reasons, you won’t know how to stop heartburn.
Sphincter Muscles
When the muscles of the sphincter close, pressure builds in the esophagus. There is less pressure in the stomach which makes it quite difficult for the acid to splash up through the sphincter. The time when it is easier is when the sphincter is either open or when the muscles relax. Obviously, the sphincter is open when you are swallowing food. If you have the habit of literally eating on the run, you may have a persistent problem with heartburn. Another way to learn how to stop heartburn is by sitting still and carefully chewing and swallowing.
The sphincter also opens when pressure builds up in the stomach. This happens when the stomach can’t empty fast enough to keep up with food intake. In other words, you may be eating too much. When that happens, the sphincter opens to let out extra air and make more space. The polite word for this is “belching.” When the air comes out, a little acid rides along. Some air is no problem, but a lot of air means enough acid to cause at least mild heartburn. Eat slowly, don’t swallow a lot of air and don’t eat too much at one time is how to stop heartburn if this is your problem.
Some problems with the sphincter muscle might be beyond your control. A too full stomach isn’t always due to overeating. Some stomachs take longer than average to empty. This situation is common for those with diabetes. Asthma sufferers may take medicine to relax the muscles of the esophagus to allow better air flow. This type of medication can also relax the muscles of the esophageal sphincter allowing better acid flow.
Even if the muscles don’t relax enough to open the sphincter wide, the pressure can equalize making a tight waistband enough to cause acid reflux. For anyone with frequent heartburn seeing a doctor is the best way to learn how to stop heartburn.
Heartburn in pregnancy is caused by a muscular weakness. The muscle involved is the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), a ring of muscle between your stomach and esophagus. The LES is designed to relax when you swallow food so that the food can enter the stomach. Once the food is in the stomach, the LES is to tighten, keeping food and stomach acids from flowing back into your esophagus. If the LES always worked properly, no one would ever suffer heartburn in pregnancy.Like many other parts of the body, however, the LES is affected by pregnancy. Heartburn in pregnancy is a frequent complaint.Common Question about Heartburn in Pregnancy When does heartburn start in pregnancy? How soon in pregnancy do you get heartburn? When should I expect heartburn in pregnancy? The question varies, but the answer is always the same. Heartburn in pregnancy usually begins around the fifth month. From that point forward, it may come and go until you give birth.How do you treat heartburn in pregnancy? Pregnancy Heartburn TreatmentPregnancy heartburn treatment begins with an understanding of the relationship between heartburn and pregnancy. Why is it that at this time when you are so happy to be expecting, you suddenly have heartburn?With pregnancy, the placenta produces progesterone, a hormone that relaxes the uterus’ smooth muscles. It relaxes some other muscles, too, one of which can be the LES separating the esophagus and stomach. As progesterone relaxes the LES, it fails to close and/or remain tightly closed. This allows acids to flow back into the esophagus, causing heartburn. Progesterone also affects the contractions of the esophagus, slowing the wavelike action. This, too, contributes to heartburn in pregnancy.As your pregnancy progresses and your baby grows, your abdominal cavity will become crowded. The limited space will be taken up increasingly by the growing, moving infant. This puts pressure on the stomach, which in turn pressures the LES to open. Heartburn can quickly result as stomach acids are pushed into the esophagus.Steps of Pregnancy Heartburn TreatmentYour healthcare provider will warn you not to take medications that might harm the baby. There are steps you can take, however, to treat heartburn in pregnancy.1. Watch your weight gain. Ask your physician how much you should reasonably gain, and be careful to keep your weight to that limit. Excess weight will place more pressure on the LES and increase heartburn.2. Avoid tight clothing, especially around your waist and abdomen. Tight clothing also contributes to pressure on the LES muscle ring.3. When bending, bend at the knees rather than at the waist. Bending at the waist is a common cause of heartburn in pregnancy.4. Eat several small meals during the day in place of three larger meals. Eat slowly and chew your food well.5. Have your last meal or snack at least two to three hours before bedtime. Allowing food to digest before you lie down can reduce heartburn.6. Although you will want to drink eight to ten glasses of water daily, you should Avoid drinking large amounts of liquid during meals. Try to remember that a distended stomach will pressure the LES and cause heartburn.7. Ward off potential heartburn by chewing gum after eating. The chewing action can help release air bubbles that contribute to heartburn and the gum stimulates the production of saliva, which can help neutralize acid.CAUTION: The author is not a professional physician, and offers this information about heartburn in pregnancy for educational purposes only. Please seek advice from your health care provider.About the author 02007, Anna Hart. Anna herself suffered heartburn in pregnancy, and she empathizes with your problem. She invites you to read more of her articles about heartburn at www.heartburnreliefblog.com. Anna continues to research and post regular information on that site. If you are eager to help your children understand heartburn in pregnancy, you will enjoy Anna’s article on how to demonstrate it for them.
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Heartburn or pyrosis is a painful or burning sensation in the esophagus, just below the breastbone caused by regurgitation of gastric acid. The pain often rises in the chest and may radiate to the neck, throat, or angle of the jaw. Heartburn is also identified as one of the causes of asthma and chronic cough.Heartburn Diagnosis.Physicians normally diagnose gastro esophageal reflux disease (GERD) based on symptoms alone. When the clinical presentation is uncertain, other tests can be performed to confirm the diagnosis or exclude other disorders. Confirmatory tests include:Upper Gastrointestinal (GI) Series: A series of x-rays of the upper digestive system are taken after drinking a barium solution. These can demonstrate reflux of barium into the esophagus, which suggests the possibility of gastro esophageal reflux disease. More accurately, fluoroscopy can be used to document reflux in real-time.Ambulatory pH Monitoring: A probe can be placed via the nose into the esophagus to record the level of acidity in the lower esophagus. Because some degree of variation in acidity is normal, and small reflux events are relatively common, such monitors must be left in place for at least a 24-hour period to confirm the diagnosis of GERD. The test is particularly useful when the patient’s symptoms can be correlated to episodes of increased esophageal acidity.Endoscope test: The esophageal mucosa can be visualized directly by passing a thin, lighted tube with a tiny camera attached (an endoscope) through the mouth to examine the esophagus and stomach. In this way, evidence of esophageal inflammation can be detected, and biopsies taken if necessary.Manometer test: In this test, a pressure sensor (manometer) is passed through the mouth into the esophagus and measures the pressure of the lower esophageal sphincter directly.Biopsy test: A small sample of tissue from the esophagus is removed. It is then studied to check for inflammation, cancer, or other problems.Heartburn Treatment.Prevention: If heartburn occurs when lying down, raising the head with pillows or sitting up frequently provides relief 0 although care must be taken to avoid placing continuous strain on the neck. Avoidance of certain foods shortly before bedtime is frequently advised to avoid future attacks.Medications: Antacids, H2-receptor antagonists and proton pump inhibitors are used - in that order - to treat heartburn.Antacids: Daily treatment with Antacids is effective for 25-30% of people with GERD. Acid-blocking medications are the most effective for mild forms of the condition.H2-receptor antagonists: With the advent of proton-pump inhibitors, H2-receptor antagonists are not widely used.Proton-pump Inhibitors: Proton pump inhibitors are a class of medications which can be effective for people who do not respond to antacid or acid blockers. Proton-pump inhibitors directly block acid production in the stomach cells and provide more effective relief than less powerful medications. In order to prevent heartburn the medication disfigures and disables the proteins (proton pumps) that control the pH of the stomach, allowing the body to digest them.Restricting Diet: Restricting diet is very important, since 90-95% of sufferers of heartburn or esophageal disorder can link their symptoms to specific foods. Therefore, it is important that heartburn sufferers manage their diets as a way to treat their heartburn. Sufferers should choose the kinds of foods and drinks which have little risk of causing acid reflux, while some kinds of foods or drinks should be avoided as they are major heartburn triggers.About the author Find more information about Heartburn www.heartburn-e.com and what to do about it when you got a painful Heart Burn that simply will not go away. Check it out!
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