by Char Brar

Created on: April 22, 2009   Last Updated: April 23, 2009

Heart burn is a common problem. The symptoms occur when the stomach acid backs up into the food pipe (esophagus). Esophagus is a tube that transports food from your mouth to your stomach. The stomach lining is much different than the lining of the esophagus. The stomach lining produces digestive juices including hydrochloric acid to help with digestion of food; hence it is tolerant of the acid inside the stomach. In contrast, the food pipe lining gets irritated from acid contact. To prevent food from backing up into it, the food pipe is separated from the stomach by the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). However when you eat heavy meals, fatty foods, caffeinated or spicy foods, stomach acid backs up into the esophagus along with food. As a result you may feel the acid taste in your mouth, or heart burn sensation in your epigastrum, behind the sternum (in your esophagus), or may just feel chest pain symptoms that are so severe that you feel like you are having a heart attack. These symptoms may last for hours or may be relieved with an ant-acid, H2 blockers like zantac, drinking cold milk, and/ or sitting up or walking around to help digestion.

The heart burn usually gets worse when you lay down. Upon lying down, the acid can easily leak back into the food pipe which is now leveled with the stomach. The acid may flow back from the stomach all the way into the food pipe, voice box, lungs, and mouth. Hence you may get irritation of the esophagus, vocal cords, and mouth. Thus you may experience symptoms such as chest pain, epigastric pain, cough, asthma, hoarseness in your voice, or just a bad taste in your mouth. If left untreated, you may get ulceration and bleeding in the food pipe. Overtime you may develop narrowing of the food pipe and strictures may form in your food pipe. If the heart burn persists for more than five to seven days, you must see your doctor to avoid serious complications.

If you have heart burn, the following steps should help for at home treatment:

1) Avoid eating heavy meals, acidic and spicy foods. Heavy meals take longer to digest, and stimulate higher acid production.

2) Avoid eating up to 3 hours before going to bed. For example, if you go to bed at 10 pm, then your last meal for the day should not be any later than 7 pm.

3) Eat small meals- 6 small meals spread throughout the day. Small amounts get easily digested and help move the food faster along the food pipe. Also frequent meals will help avoid the urge to binge on food, and keep sugar

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