Common Remedies Against Heartburn

Feb 6
10:28

2012

Jamie Beuford

Jamie Beuford

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Heartburn is one of the most dreaded conditions the world over. The hot burning sensation in the chest, throat and stomach is one that many people would rather forget.

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Heartburn is one of the most dreaded conditions the world over. The hot burning sensation in the chest, throat and stomach is one that many people would rather forget. Its effects on the inner linings of the stomach and esophagus cause immense pain and torture to the human body. The acid reflux eats away and corrodes the linings sometimes to the extent of developing painful sores.

Once these sores are fully open, they are very painful and prevent swallowing. When they start to bleed,Common Remedies Against Heartburn   Articles they are at their worst and should be treated urgently. However there are ways to prevent them from progressing to that stage.

The moment heartburn strikes, you should stand up straight. This helps to keep the acid in the stomach thereby reducing the frequency of the refluxes. You should then take a glass of cold or warm water and down it slowly but consistently. Follow it up with some baking soda and half a cup of water. This is not recommended for pregnant women or those with high blood pressure as it may cause water retention and increased blood pressure.

Avoid milk during this period of heartburn. Many people take milk for heartburn because it is a base yet it makes things worse. Milk contains proteins and fats that induce the stomach to produce more acid making things worse. Taking mints also doesn’t help much because they have elements that relax the valve between the stomach and the esophagus. In this relaxed state, the valve allows more acid to flow back into the throat. Keep away from chocolate and peppermint. They might taste real good but cause severe damage to your throat by increasing the frequency of acid refluxes.

If you like a midnight snack, it is time to quit. A nighttime snack is a sure set off for more acid in the stomach especially as you get ready to go back to bed. Lying down immediately you eat is not just unhealthy but it causes severe heartburn.

Fruits are a remedy for many things including heartburn. Taking the right kind of fruits either whole or in juice form works a great deal in soothing heartburn. Paw paws and bananas make good fruit juices that quell down the effects of the harsh stomach acid.

Do not eat in a hurry. Swallowing food too fast grazes the food pipe and increases the time spent during digestion. The stomach acid stays in the stomach for long thus causing excessive damage to the walls.

Even though this next remedy will sound a bit odd, it works. Sometimes heartburn is caused by inadequate acid in the stomach due to indigestion. Therefore the only remedy would be to introduce acid into the equation. If you take a little bit of vinegar, you will cool down the heartburn and help speed up digestion.

Another queer remedy to heartburn is chewing gum. Apparently chewing gum during bouts of heartburn soothes the pain. It introduces a lot of saliva which is alkaline in nature into the stomach to neutralize the effects of the acid. This remedy has only been proven to work with sugar free chewing gum therefore you should be cautious when taking it up.