The cause of heartburn is refluxed gastric acid that enters the esophagus and then inflames the lining. This leads to the familiar symptom of heartburn as the throat or chest area discomforting burning feeling, produced either when eating a meal or afterwards.

This distressing and disagreeable ailment is experienced frequently by people in the western hemisphere. It does not automatically mean that you are suffering from a medical problem, if as a healthy person, you get heartburn on an occasional basis. However, if heartburn turns out to be recurrent, it can lead to a problem of acid reflux disease, also known as GERD (gastro esophageal reflux disease).

GERD symptoms are not just limited to heartburn. They can also be experienced as regurgitation, pains in the thorax, bouts of asthma, a hoarse voice and a dry cough, amongst others.

Medical research done in the recent past shows a connection between GERD and cancer of the esophagus. This justifies the need to treat acid reflux in a timely and effective way. GERD can occasion even further suffering if it is neglected and left untreated, possibly being transformed into yet more serious problems.

Some causes cannot be treated or managed, an example being the inherited characteristics that lead to the complaint of heartburn. Other causes may be interlinked, such as bad sleep hygiene, an overly stressful lifestyle, accumulation of toxins, Candida infections and poor diet plans, which can all either directly or indirectly provoke acid reflux. To effectively treat GERD, it is crucial to recognize and treat the underlying reasons of this medical impairment.

To fight heartburn, there are three major types of treatments that a sufferer has available. Medications constitute the first category, whether these are prescription or over the counter. Regrettably, such medicaments are only a short-term answer and may also provoke undesirable side effects. Examples for acid reflux alleviation are H2 blockers, antacids and PPIs. These products concentrate on diminishing the symptoms of GERD by balancing out or diminishing the production of stomach acid.

The second broad category for trying to resolve acid reflux is surgery. There are however major disadvantages to this second category. Surgery is by nature intrusive and can therefore provoke other health problems. It only addresses the physical aspect of heartburn (a malfunctioning sphincter), without any action to get rid of the hidden causative agents that are in fact at the root of the problem. Surgery’s objective is to provide reinforcement of the sphincter muscle that seals off the esophagus from the rest of the digestive system, so as to stop gastric acid from getting back into the esophagus. When GERD begins, it is habitually because this sphincter is not shutting when it should, and not blocking the reflux of stomach acids towards the esophageal cavity in the reverse direction.

The third eventuality for heartburn patients is the holistic, all natural approach. This approach is the most efficient and the most effective, as it is the only one to combat the internal malfunction in a holistic way, while at the same time eliminating the symptoms and regaining your body’s natural internal equilibrium. It is possible to heal GERD effectively, permanently and safely through the adoption of a program specifically made to target the root causes of acid reflux.

Believe it or not heartburn, also called acid reflux, is caused by hydrochloric acid backing up into your esophagus or gullet. If you remember that stuff from your schooldays you’ll understand why it results in a really painful burning sensation in the middle of your chest.

It works like this; at the base of your esophagus, which is the tube your food goes down, there is a circular muscle called a sphincter. Its job is to open up for food to enter the stomach, but then close tightly again to prevent it from coming back up. If it fails to function properly, digestive acids can seep into the esophagus causing discomfort and, sometimes, severe pain.

No-one really knows what causes the sphincter to malfunction in this way. However, there are many things in your diet and lifestyle that can contribute to the problem, causing chronic heartburn issues. The good news is that because diet and lifestyle are involved, modifications to both can bring relief from heartburn symptoms.

Lifestyle Causes of Heartburn

You may be surprised to learn that a major cause of heartburn is smoking. The chemicals found in cigarette smoke are known to weaken the sphincter, making it easier for acids to pass through. If you smoke and you also suffer from heartburn, now is the time to stop.

Another contributing factor to heartburn can be eating large meals. If you suffer from regular or chronic heartburn, try eating less food more frequently to alleviate that full feeling in your stomach. It is often after meals that heartburn will strike, particularly when you lean forward or engage in some other activity that involves stooping.

Wearing tight fitting clothing, especially around the waist, is also not a good idea for known sufferers of heartburn. If you are affected, try wearing looser fitting clothing and see if you notice an improvement.

Another problem for many people, especially those who work long hours, is eating substantial meals shortly before bedtime. This can cause problems while you are sleeping. Whenever possible, try to eat your last meal of the day at least three hours before retiring and take a walk around the block afterwards to help digestion. If you still find you are waking up with heartburn pain, you can raise the head of your bed around 15 centimeters, so that you are not lying completely flat while you sleep. There are also pillows available which raise your head and shoulders and thus help to prevent the back-flow of acid.

Even if these lifestyle changes do seem to help relieve the heartburn you experience, it is also important to consider dietary changes.

Dietary Causes of Heartburn

Fatty and fried foods, caffeine, chocolate and alcohol are all known to be contributing causes of recurring heartburn, mainly because they can cause the esophageal sphincter muscle to relax. Other foods to eliminate until you are certain of the cause are citrus fruits and juices, including tomato products.

If avoiding these foods and beverages don’t help, try keeping a diary of the food you eat on a daily basis to see if you can pinpoint eating which specific food is invariably followed by heartburn.

While recurrent heartburn is rarely serious on its own, it can lead to much more serious conditions such as ulcers and it can be very difficult to cope with the constant pain. You should also be aware at there are times when it may be symptomatic of something else. This is especialy true if you get attacks some time after having eaten or that are associated with being in an upright positon, whether sitting or standing.

In many cases, however, by identifying the cause of your heartburn, you can avoid those things in your diet or lifestyle that are contributing to your pain and discomfort.

Millions of people suffer from the symptoms of heartburn every day. Those with acute cases of heartburn may have a condition called acid reflux or gerd (gastroesophageal reflux disease).

Any form of heartburn is an unpleasant experience, to say the least. The splashing up of stomach acid into the esophagus and throat can be quite painful and potentially dangerous. In extreme cases, where the esophagus is continually damaged by the reflux of stomach fluids, a condition called Barrett’s Esophagus can develop. This condition is a precursor to esophageal cancer.

Barrett’s Esophagus occurs when chronic acid reflux or esophagitis is not controlled. Through constant inflammation and damage, the normal cells that line the esophagus called squamous cells turn into specialized columnar cells. Columnar cells are not normally found in human beings and can become cancerous.

The physical cause of heartburn is the improper functioning of the LES (lower esophageal sphincter). This ringed muscle at the bottom of the esophagus, relaxes in order to allow food to enter the stomach. This muscle then retracts in order to keep the digestive fluids where they belong. It is when this muscle is too relaxed or damaged, that the stomach fluids can escape up into the esophagus thereby causing acid reflux.

There are many possible causes of acid reflux. The foods that we eat play an important role. Food that is too acidic can aggravate this ailment. Not chewing food properly, eating meals that are too large and lying down within three hours of eating can all contribute to acid reflux.

Certain foods and beverages can cause the LES to become lazy. These culprits include smoking, drinking alcohol and prescription drugs. Raw onions and garlic, fried foods, chocolate and foods that are too spicy can also cause the LES to relax.

There are two ways to treat this condition. They are the allopathic medical and the holistic approaches to disease. The allopathic medical way is to prescribe certain drugs such as H2 receptor antagonists, which include Tagamet and Zantac, or PPI drugs (proton pump inhibitors) like Nexium and Prilosec. These medicines slow down the production of stomach acid and are the two main types of pharmaceutical acid suppressors.

This pharmaceutical approach is dangerous in that it impedes the proper digestion and assimilation of food. There are also numerous harmful side effects associated with these drugs. Drugs only treat the symptoms of a disease or condition. They are not intended to cure. If the drug companies created drugs that cured they would soon go out of business.

The alternative way to treat acid reflux is holistically. Holistic by definition means considering a whole thing or being to be more than a collection of parts; Treating the whole person rather than just the Symptoms of a disease.

Using alternative remedies, which are natural and have no side effects, is certainly the safest and most effective approach. These treatments are also far less expensive than drugs. Holistic treatment, unlike drugs, can actually cure the condition or disease.

In order to develop acid reflux, we must first have an acidic system. By treating the whole body, acid reflux will disappear. What we eat and drink determines the PH of the body.

Vegetable juices, like raw potato, celery and cabbage are very alkaline in nature and are helpful in correcting an acidic stomach. Papaya juice contains the digestive enzyme papain, which has a soothing effect on the stomach and aids in the breaking down of protein.

Slippery Elm, bladderwrack and marshmallow, belong to a category of herbs called demulcents. These herbs aid digestion by decreasing inflammation and by soothing the affected areas. They form a protective barrier against stomach acid and other digestive irritants.

There are many holistic ways to cure acid reflux. Meditation can be of great help. Start by doing deep breathing exercises for ten minutes. Keeping the eyes closed, visualize you stomach, LES, esophagus and throat as young, pink, tender and perfect. Continue to breath and picture yourself in perfect glowing health. See yourself eating slowly in a relaxed atmosphere, enjoying your food. Picture the food being digested and assimilated in a perfect manner. Feel all the parts of your body working in perfect harmony together.

Yoga can also be very beneficial to the body as a whole. Loosing weight and regular exercise are important as well. Drinking copious amount of pure water not only flushes the system of toxins, but dilutes stomach acid during periods between meals.

The holistic approach to healing is the medicine of the future. We can all be a part of that future now.

© 2006 Wind Publishing

For more information on how to heal acid reflux the natural way, go to: http://www.refluxgoneforever.com

Going through the final part of this article, we will see just how important the subject can be to many people.

Heartburn occurs when stomach acids back up into the throat, causing throbbing in the interior of your chest. There is a muscle located at the basis of the throat, called the sphincter, which routinely will prohibit acids from entrance back up. If that sphincter does not meaning correctly, the acids will certainly back up into the throat. The cause of a malmeaninging sphincter is chiefly nameless.

However, there are many gear in your diet and lifestyle that can contribute to the conundrum, causing unending heartburn issues. The good newscast is that because diet and lifestyle are a slice of the conundrum, modifications to both can cause relief from heartburn symptoms.

promise groundss of Heartburn

One of the first lifestyle choices that can be a contributing cause of heartburn is smoking. The element in cigarette smoke actually weakens the sphincter, making it easier for acids to toss through. If you are a smoker, you may see relief from your heartburn if your stop smoking. Another cause of heartburn is intake large meals. If you endure from standard or unending heartburn, try intake lesser meals more frequently to alleviate the bursting emotion in your stomach.

wearisome tough correct clothing, especially around the waist, can be a contributing cause of heartburn as well. alter to ample correct clothing and see if you sight an improvement. lastly, intake too close to bedtime can cause conundrums while you are catnaping. Try to eat your last meal of the day more than three hours before retiring. If you still find you are waking up with heartburn throbbing, you can produce the president of your bed about six inches, so that you are not insincere completely even while you catnap. If nothing of these lifestyle changes look to help relieve the heartburn you are experiencing, it may be time to move on to food changes.

food groundss of Heartburn

There are some public causes of heartburn in our diet that you can try eliminating first to see if that causes relief. For example, oily and fried foods, caffeine, chocolate and alcohol are all known to be contributing causes of returning heartburn, because they can cause the sphincter muscle to relax and allocate acids back up. Other diet choices to refrain from are citrus fruits and juices, and tomato crop. If escapeing these foods and beverages don’t help, you can try care a food diary for numerous being to see if you can isolate which explicit foods are causing your heartburn.

recurring heartburn is seldom crucial, but it can be testing to manage with the endless throbbing. By identifying the cause of your heartburn, you can escape those gear in your diet or lifestyle that are contributing to your throbbing and discomfort.

If you thoroughly examine each part that we have discussed, you will see a common thread of which to explore.

When you eat at a buffet, do you consume just about all the food you can and worry about acid reflux or heartburn later? I see it all of the time, just about every one I see at a buffet or even a company potluck, loads their plate with more food than they stomach can handle at one time.

The medical industry has brainwashed most people to believe that if you have heartburn or acid reflux, you have too much stomach acid and that this is the cause of heartburn. Then, then they use Tums or some other over the counter remedy to quench their upset stomach. Or if they are seeing a doctor, the doctor will prescribe a acid blocker drug.

The drugs – acid reducers or blockers – that doctors prescribe usually have a negative impact on your health. Your stomach must have an acid pH of 1.5 to 2.5. With acid blockers or reducers, your stomach pH can move to 3.0 and higher – this means less acidic. A pH of 3.0 or higher can lead to many health problems that you won’t relate to your use to these blockers.

Heartburn, acid reflux or GED occurs when the Lower Esophageal Valve, LEV, opens when it shouldn’t. When this happens some stomach acid and digested food slips back into the esophagus. This will give you a burning sensation, since the esophagus lining is not design to be exposed to acidic stomach contents

If you ever get acid reflux or heartburn, the burning sensation, stomach pain, bleaching, and discomfort will make you look for a heartburn treatment. Here is a list of eating patterns that you should follow, if you want to be free of heartburn. Or, if, you just want not to have stomach digestive problems.

Heartburn treatment with digestive enzymes

Just before you eat, take 2 – 3 digestive enzymes to help you digest your food. You don’t want undigested food to stay in your stomach to long or it will decompose, create gas and turn into an acid source. And, if this undigested food gets into your colon, it can create colon cancer, if it occurs over many years.

Heartburn treatment with water

Limit the amount of liquid you drink when you eat. Drinking excess water dilutes your stomach acid and you need its low pH to digest your food. If you do drink liquid, use room temperature water, since cold water slows down your digestive process.

Heartburn treatment – eat less sugar

Limit your consumption of sugar when you eat. Sugar has no nutritional value and causes calcium to go out your urine. In addition, other minerals are used up during its digestion. For sure don’t drink soda or other sweet drinks during your meals.

Heartburn treatment – watch how you eat fruit

After you eat, don’t eat any fruit. Your stomach is busy digesting the food you just ate. Eating fruit will cause the fruit to remain in your stomach to long, waiting to be digested and will start decaying create gas, and will become acidic.

Heartburn treatment by using a good diet

Don’t stuff yourself at the dinner table. When you eat to much food where you combine meat, carbohydrates, sugar, sodas, fats, and processed foods, the food your stomach cannot digest turns into acid. This acid creates gas and can put pressure on a weak LEV causing it to open.

A weak LEV can be cause by eating too much acid food. It can be caused by mixing to many different foods during a meal. A balanced diet, which contains alkaline and acid food keeps your LEV strong and will not open when you occasionally eat more food than you should.

These are just a few heartburn treatments that can help you keep heartburn free. Your stomach needs strong acid to digest your food. Using acid reducers or blockers like Tums or other medication goes against the nature of your stomach. Without an acid stomach, you will become susceptible to a numerous diseases and a weak LEV valve.

Heartburn information is readily available from your physician. Heartburn information is readily available in books and on the Internet. Heartburn information, right and wrong, is available from family and friends.

Heartburn information tells why it happens, if it is accurate heartburn information. It explains the root cause of heartburn, and helps you understand that the burning pain is only a symptom of heartburn, not the cause. Heartburn information tells you how to treat not only the symptoms, but also the cause.

When heartburn information says why it happens, it should go on to answer this question: Will losing several pounds of weight from my waistline lower heartburn risks?

That is not the only question it should answer, but it is an important one, especially in our modern society. Daily warnings are being sounded about the growing problem of obesity, and when heartburn information says why it happens, it should include the matter of excess body fat.

Heartburn Information – Root Cause

A muscular problem is at the root of all heartburn. The muscle involved is, in shorthand, the LES. The LES (lower esophageal sphincter) is a ring of muscular tissue between the stomach and the esophagus. A healthy, strong, LES relaxes to allow swallowed food to enter the stomach. It then squeezes tight to keep that food and stomach acids where they belong.

The LES can be compared to fingers pinching shut the connection between a straw and a balloon full of water. If the fingers relax, water can slosh back up into the straw. If the LES relaxes at the wrong time, acid can slosh (reflux) back into the esophagus, causing a burning sensation.

Heartburn and Obesity

The link between heartburn and obesity has long been established, but more recent research is beginning to explain that link.

Pressure within the stomach can force open the LES in much the same way you could squeeze that full balloon, and force back the fingers holding its top. The more pressure on the balloon, the more likelihood that water will be forced out of the balloon. The more pressure on the stomach, the greater the likelihood that the LES will open and acid will flow back into the esophagus.

A recent study measured pressure within the stomach to see how it was affected by excess body weight (obesity). The study found, essentially, that each increase of 10 to 20 pounds of weight was linked to a 10 percent increase in stomach pressure. In other words, a person who gained 10 to 20 pounds was putting about 10 percent more pressure on his or her stomach. This, in turn, increased the pressure on the LES ring of muscle.

In 2006, an analysis was made of 20 studies on this subject. Those studies were extensive, including more than 18,000 patients. The analysis, in the U.S., showed that being overweight increased by more than 50 percent a person’s odds of developing GERD – a serious disease resulting from chronic heartburn.

Obesity with heartburn more than doubled the odds of developing GERD.

When heartburn information tells why it happens, it must include this vital fact. Heartburn is greatly aggravated by excess body weight. i.e., obesity.

Lose Both Weight and Heartburn

In light of the studies mentioned, it is only common sense to conclude that many who lose weight will also lose heartburn. If the reverse of the above cited weight-gain-to-pressure ratio is true, then a loss of 10 to 20 pounds of weight would reduce pressure on the stomach by about 10 percent.

Heartburn relief for many can be as simple as reaching and maintaining a healthy weight. This is the treatment for many diseases, and it requires no medication, but somehow, we are reluctant to discipline ourselves to accomplish it.

CAUTION: The author is not a professional physician, and offers this information for educational purposes only. If you have heartburn regularly, please seek advice from your health care provider.

The relief and treatment of heartburn, acid reflux, and GERD is a huge billion-dollar-a-year market, according to Tamas Bartfai, director of the Harold L. Dorris Neurological Research Center. Bartfai has had decades of experience as a consultant and executive in the Pharmaceutical industry, and has consulted with companies that are developing costly treatments for this common ailment.

With so much money being spent on medications to relieve heartburn and its companions, you would think at least one medication would be a cure. Sadly, this does not appear to be so. Heartburn medications seem to do nothing more than relieve symptoms. Some attempt to neutralize stomach acids. Others “turn off the pumps” that manufacture stomach acids.

The pharmaceutical community seems to offer nothing that will cure heartburn.

Glutamine for Heartburn

Glutamine for heartburn may be the answer. More specifically, L-glutamine for heartburn. L-glutamine for heartburn may not only be a cure, but be far less costly than other medications.

For example, In the U.S., L-glutamine can be purchased for about 5 cents per capsule. The prescription medication that “turns off the pumps” costs about $5.44 per capsule – at discount prices.

Why might glutamine be good for heartburn?

Cause of Heartburn

Heartburn appears to be a muscular problem.

Despite the pharmaceutical community’s emphasis on acids, the real cause of heartburn is a weakness in the lower esophageal sphincter (LES).

A sphincter is a circular band of muscle like a ring around a body passageway or opening. If you were teaching children about a sphincter, you might place a ring around one finger to illustrate.

The task of every sphincter is to relax or tighten as needed to open or close a natural body opening or passageway. If you made your illustrative ring of elastic, you would tighten and relax the elastic to show sphincter action.

1. A cow’s teat has a sphincter at the lower end. It relaxes to allow milk to flow, and tightens to stop the flow.

2. The human bladder has an involuntary sphincter at its neck. It relaxes to allow urine to flow, and tightens to stop the flow. A voluntary sphincter at the end of the urethra does the same.



3. An anal sphincter tightens to hold back waste, and relaxes to pass waste.



4. The lower esophageal sphincter (LES) relaxes to allow food to enter the stomach, and tightens to keep food and acid from flowing backward into the esophagus. It should prevent heartburn.

Weak Sphincter Problems

If the sphincter in any of the above becomes weak, problems can occur.

1. A milking machine can make a cow’s sphincter remain relaxed for two hours. This allows bacteria to enter the teat, and can result in mastitis.

2. A weakness in the bladder sphincter can cause urine to leak against your will.

3. When the anal sphincter weakens, fecal incontinence can occur.

4. A weakness in the LES allows stomach acids to reflux, flow backward into the esophagus. This causes heartburn.

When sphincters other than the LES weaken and cause problems, attention is turned to strengthening the weak sphincter. The cow’s sphincter is often subjected to cold after milking to tighten the muscle band. Exercise can tighten both weak bladder sphincters and weak anal sphincters. Biofeedback, electrical stimulation, and certain drugs also can be used to tighten these two sphincters.

Interestingly, none of these approaches seems to be used for the LES. Heartburn treatments address the symptoms, but neglect the weakened sphincter, which is the real problem.

Can Glutamine for Heartburn Help?



Glutamine for heartburn may be a solution.

Glutamine is an amino acid. Just as other amino acids are important constituents of proteins, so is glutamine. Glutamine occurs naturally in foods that are high in protein: beans, dairy products, fish, and red meat.

Glutamine as a supplement is used by weight lifters, body builders, and other athletes who want strong muscles. Glutamine as a supplement is also used to alleviate muscle cramps and pain, especially in older people. By replenishing the amino acids in the body, muscles are strengthened and pain relieved.

Glutamine has been shown to increase the body’s ability to dispose of damaged cells, and produce new cells. Glutamine is a powerful antioxidant, too. As such, it helps protect body cells from free radicals. Glutamine heals mucous membranes, including the lining of the esophagus that is being damaged by heartburn.

It is thought by some that glutamine for heartburn might strengthen the LES, improving its ability to tighten properly. This might completely prevent heartburn, acid reflux, and even GERD.

Glutamine for heartburn could possibly be a partial, if not a total cure.

Until heartburn, acid reflux, and GERD are understood and treated as the muscular problems they seem to be, physicians will continue to prescribe relief and treatments that address only the symptoms.

Disclaimer: The author does not sell glutamine in any form, nor will she profit from sales of glutamine for heartburn. The author is not a medical professional and offers this information for educational purposes only.

All food we eat passes through the gullet and into the stomach through a pipe and lodged in the stomach. So the basic cause of heartburn is that the food particles and the acid from the stomach leak back into the gullet or the esophagus. This condition also leads to severe pain in the stomach and chest. Most people have stomach acid reflux at some time in their lives, either as heartburn or acid regurgitation.

Americans and other westerners suffer from heartburn symptoms more often than people from asian and eastern countries. The other symptoms include burping and a feeling of bloating. If these symptoms occur more than two days a week for several months, a person may have Acid Reflux Disease, otherwise known as Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD). Most of us experience heartburn occasionally but if it persists then a visit to the doctor may be necessary.

Your diet and lifestyle have been pinpointed as some factors which may cause heartburn and acid reflux. Most people believe that particular food or drinks could cause heartburn and they are right, excess acid is the main cause of heartburn.

In some rare cases, though, the damage can be enough to cause cancerous cells to develop in this area. If you know what the cause of your heartburn is, you cab stop it from hurting and destroying your quality of life. Chronic heartburn is also dangerous on its own since the frequent contact with the acidic stomach contents will harm the lining of the esophagus and cause inflammation.

Late meals can also cause heartburn by stimulating the stomach’s production of digestive fluids. When you go to bed and do not have an upright position the acid come up more easily.

There are several remedies, also natural one’s that really works. Herbal remedies typically contain fennel, ginger or mint oil, alone or in combination. Depending on the heartburn causes, the remedies should differ. There are many natural remedies that you can add to your pantry for use when the symptoms flare up. Home remedies and over the counter products and prescription drugs are available to relieve heartburn.

If your condition is severe your doctor will probably inform you that you would most likely need medications indefinitely. To find out what works you will often have to try several remedies. Regretfully, one single doctor visit may not take care of the problem, but don’t give up.

A holistic treatment for heartburn includes treatment plans and hollistic cures for heartburn may be more time consuming than taking a little pill. On the other hand this treatment can be more effective in the long run and the holistic treatment has no side effects.

Most treatment plans or recommended ways to reduce heartburn include lifestyle changes along with dietary changes. But as always, the leading causes of heartburn vary and the best treatment for heartburn varies depending on the individual. Most common is an antacid that can be purchased over the counter from your local pharmacy.

Keep in mind that stress, smoking, alcohol, caffeinated and carbonated beverages may all lead to heartburn. Lifestyle changes like not lying down immediately after a meal and not lying down in a flat position can be a great relief. Also remember to avoid spicy foods, drinking beverages with caffeine, taking alcohol and smoking. Exercising regularly and reducing weight can also help control heartburn to a large extent.

Believe it or not heartburn, also called acid reflux, is caused by hydrochloric acid backing up into your esophagus or gullet. If you remember that stuff from your schooldays you’ll understand why it results in a really painful burning sensation in the middle of your chest.

It works like this; at the base of your esophagus, which is the tube your food goes down, there is a circular muscle called a sphincter. Its job is to open up for food to enter the stomach, but then close tightly again to prevent it from coming back up. If it fails to function properly, digestive acids can seep into the esophagus causing discomfort and, sometimes, severe pain.

No-one really knows what causes the sphincter to malfunction in this way. However, there are many things in your diet and lifestyle that can contribute to the problem, causing chronic heartburn issues. The good news is that because diet and lifestyle are involved, modifications to both can bring relief from heartburn symptoms.

Lifestyle Causes of Heartburn

You may be surprised to learn that a major cause of heartburn is smoking. The chemicals found in cigarette smoke are known to weaken the sphincter, making it easier for acids to pass through. If you smoke and you also suffer from heartburn, now is the time to stop.

Another contributing factor to heartburn can be eating large meals. If you suffer from regular or chronic heartburn, try eating less food more frequently to alleviate that full feeling in your stomach. It is often after meals that heartburn will strike, particularly when you lean forward or engage in some other activity that involves stooping.

Wearing tight fitting clothing, especially around the waist, is also not a good idea for known sufferers of heartburn. If you are affected, try wearing looser fitting clothing and see if you notice an improvement.

Another problem for many people, especially those who work long hours, is eating substantial meals shortly before bedtime. This can cause problems while you are sleeping. Whenever possible, try to eat your last meal of the day at least three hours before retiring and take a walk around the block afterwards to help digestion. If you still find you are waking up with heartburn pain, you can raise the head of your bed around 15 centimeters, so that you are not lying completely flat while you sleep. There are also pillows available which raise your head and shoulders and thus help to prevent the back-flow of acid.

Even if these lifestyle changes do seem to help relieve the heartburn you experience, it is also important to consider dietary changes.

Dietary Causes of Heartburn

Fatty and fried foods, caffeine, chocolate and alcohol are all known to be contributing causes of recurring heartburn, mainly because they can cause the esophageal sphincter muscle to relax. Other foods to eliminate until you are certain of the cause are citrus fruits and juices, including tomato products.

If avoiding these foods and beverages don’t help, try keeping a diary of the food you eat on a daily basis to see if you can pinpoint eating which specific food is invariably followed by heartburn.

While recurrent heartburn is rarely serious on its own, it can lead to much more serious conditions such as ulcers and it can be very difficult to cope with the constant pain. You should also be aware at there are times when it may be symptomatic of something else. This is especialy true if you get attacks some time after having eaten or that are associated with being in an upright positon, whether sitting or standing.

In many cases, however, by identifying the cause of your heartburn, you can avoid those things in your diet or lifestyle that are contributing to your pain and discomfort.

Heartburn, commonly felt as a burning feeling that flows upward from the stomach and rising through the lower chest can spread to the shoulders, neck, and jaw line.

The cause of heartburn is the acid from the stomach moving backwards into the gullet (esophagus).

The esophagus has a valve at the lower end that opens when we swallow and closes once the food has pass through. Sometimes this synchronization goes wrong and the valve does not close at the right time, this is usually after a mean. Behind the valve, food is being mixed with gastric acids for digestion. If the valve is not closed, the acid can reenter the esophagus and create the burning sensation known as heartburn.

For those people that have been diagnosed with acid reflux problems the chances of heartburn following a meal are significantly higher than for other people. The former groups also feel the condition worsening when they lie down or bend forward.

Heartburn is a very uncomfortable feeling and if it becomes regular then it can have serious implications on the quality of life. Sometimes heartburn is merely an indication of some other problem like esophagitis (inflammation in the esophagus) or of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). These conditions are far more serious than heartburn and require longer medication. Consult your doctor if heartburn becomes persistent.

The heartburn sensation really depends on many factors. In very mild cases, it could go away in as little as an hour or so. Moderate to extreme cases can stretch anywhere from weeks to months. Needless to mention, if left untreated this will only get longer and cause all sorts of additional problems. Since heartburn can come and go there is a tendency to simply ignore it as an occasional phenomenon and avoid medical attention.

There are many medicines available for the treatment of heartburn.

Histamines are chemicals that are released in the human body depending on several conditions. When acid production in the body increases the stomach, (already a very acidic place) becomes dangerous. To counter this higher concentration of acid medications that act as acid suppressants are used. These are also called anti-histamines or histamine H2-antagonists.

Proton-pump inhibitors work on the stomach walls. Cells in the stomach wall make acid. Use of proton-pump inhibitors causes these cells to produce lesser acid than they normally would.

Some other medications that are known as pro-kinetic agents increase stomach movement. They increase the pressure on the lower esophageal sphincter and resulting in a prompter emptying of the stomach.

Antacids are probably the most commonly used in the treatment of acid-related problems. These could be heartburn or indigestion. Antacids quite simply neutralize the acid in the stomach.