How to get rid of heartburn
Heartburn is a sense of discomfort or burning under the chest that is spreading upwards, sometimes to the neck. It appears periodically, mostly during the meal or physical exercise when leaning or just while you’re lying. It is caused by acid that enters the stomach through alkaline environment of the esophagus. In most cases this occurrence means that there is an increasing level of acidity of gastric juice.
So, how to get rid of heartburn? The best ways to do it are: proper diet, medicine that helps to reduce the acid level inside the stomach, drinking alkaline mineral waters and unorthodox ways (each nation has its own).
How does heartburn occur?
Normally, the esophagus has an alkaline environment and is protected against the acid inside the stomach through the esophageal sphincter. Sphincter is a muscle that teases the path from esophagus. It also teases the path between the stomach and esophagus and does not let the stomach’s contents to get back. This muscle is not developed well in nurslings, which is why they often have regurgitation. Besides the sphincter, the esophagus is also protected by the diaphragm – it embraces the path inside the stomach “helping” the sphincter to hold acid within the stomach’s borders. When some “aggressive” content gets from the stomach and into the esophagus, it causes heartburn in completely healthy people. Although periodical appearance of such symptoms does not necessarily mean that you have some disease.
How to get rid of heartburn fast:
- A diet. To cure heartburn, one should exclude products that increase stomach’s secretion: food that contains lots of fat, coffee, alcohol, quit smoking, fruit juices, soda beverages. It is recommended to drink more milk, steamed vegetables, add curd into food, porridges. The food should be consumed in little portions, 4-5 times a day. Last mealtime should be 2-3 hours before going to bed. It is also said that lifting up the head of the bed for approx. 15cm is also very useful. A diet is also a great way to get rid of heartburn naturally.
- There are numbers of pills which will help you to fight heartburn. The most important are : 1) remedies that help you to lower the level of acid inside the stomach; 2) Antacids are one of the means to neutralize the acid inside the stomach.
Surely, running to the nearest drugstore and buying only these two remedies may help you, but consulting with a doctor or a pharmacist will be of better use. Consulting with a specialist may help you to get rid of heartburn fast, but a proper diet has lesser impact on your system.
When medicine fails, some people refer to unorthodox ways of treatment.
How to get rid of heartburn naturally?
- Juice of celery (one tablespoon half an hour before a meal);
- A plain potato is great aid against heartburn when consumed uncooked. Freshly made potato juice is very effective when consumed by little gulps before meal;
- An infusion of 2 teaspoons of mint, Artemisia and one teaspoon of Chamomile (for 1 l. of boiled water) also helps against heartburn when consumed ? of a glass 30 minutes before a meal.
As you can see there are many ways to get rid of heartburn, starting from diet and finishing with herbs. All those ways helped people, but there is no sense in trying them all at once. Now that you know how to get rid of heartburn, you’ll know what will help. If you are uncertain, please consult a doctor for your own sake.