Heartburn Home Remedies
Just What Are The Top Heartburn Home Remedies ?
There are practically as many home remedies for heartburn as there are people affected with this painful condition.
Before we talk about home remedies, we should discuss the difference between someone who gets heartburn occasionally perhaps because of what they ate and those who get heartburn consistently, perhaps even daily.
If you get heartburn daily, you may have a condition known as GERD (Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease). Left untreated, your stomach acids can cause repetitive damage to your esophagus, throat or mouth. This repetitive damage can lead to one of the worst prognoses possible, Cancer.
GERD can also be indicative of a serious underlying condition such as sleep apnea. Sleep apnea occurs when your body enters a deep sleep and your muscles lose their tone completely. In some people, when they lose muscle tone in their throat, their throat closes. When the diaphragm heaves (trying to breathe), it pulls the stomach acid up to the esophagus and throat causing heartburn. Sleep apnea has been linked to heart disease, stroke, cancer and diabetes.
As you can see, if you are a chronic (ongoing) sufferer you really need to see your physician and not experiment with any home remedies for heartburn.
If you suffer from occasional heartburn, some of these remedies may be right for you.
First, what not to do. Occasional heartburn is often brought on by poor dietary habits. Do not eat too much at any one sitting. Your body may have a hard time digesting all of that food and will increase the production of stomach acid, possibly leading to heartburn.
Coffee, alcohol, chocolate, butter, cream and spicy foods are also common triggers for heartburn. They key is for you to pay attention to what foods cause your body to have heartburn and avoid those foods.
Now to the heartburn home remedies. Many people find that water or milk will provide some relief from heartburn. Milk actually increases the stomach acid but it also provides a small protective lining in the esophagus, throat and mouth.
If you experience heartburn mainly when lying down, use pillows to prop yourself up. Gravity can sometimes help you in your fight against heartburn.
Many people swear by ginger root. The best idea is to buy raw ginger root and make a tea out of it. Ginger root has a coming ingredient that settles the stomach and hence can settle the heartburn.
I have saved the best for last. The home remedy for heartburn that has the most anecdotal evidence is apple cider vinegar. Simply mix one teaspoon of apple cider vinegar in about a half a glass of water and drink. I know that this seems counter intuitive to add an acid to your stomach acid but it sure worked for me.
In summary, if you have severe or chronic heartburn please sees your physician to avoid any complications. If your heartburn is infrequent, try lifestyle changes such as avoiding trigger foods or sleeping upright. For immediate relief, try ginger root tea or milk or even apple cider vinegar!
