Have you or anyone close to you ever suffered from acid reflux? If so, you probably know how painful it can be. Acid reflux can be extremely painful. You can alleviate the symptoms you feel concerning acid reflux with the following helpful tips.
Eat dinner about 3 hours prior to bed. By keeping your body upright after eating, your food is digested more easily. The acid could easily rise if you lay down. For this reason it is a good idea to wait at lease three hours before going to bed.
Stress can cause acid reflux. During stressful times, stomach acid production increases significantly, which leads to reflux. Follow each meal with a period of relaxation. This could range from meditation to something as simple as watching TV.
If you smoke and suffer from acid reflux, you need to consider quitting. Nicotine can cause acid reflux to worsen. You should quit at your own pace instead of quitting cold turkey and taking the risk of upsetting your stomach even more. Take your time when quitting.
Refrain from drinking alcohol, which can irritate your stomach lining. Your stomach lining deteriorates and acid builds up when you consume alcohol, and this worsens your acid reflux. If you are going out with friends, limit your alcohol intake if you want to feel good when you get home.
Also, try and keep those stress triggers contained. Acid forms in the stomach when you are under too much stress, causing both inflammation and heartburn. Therefore, you need to determine your stress triggers and eliminate or reduce them.
Drink only between meals. Your esophageal sphincter experiences constant pressure whenever your stomach is filled with liquid. The pressure causes the contents of your stomach to reach the esophagus and cause damage to it’s lining.
Give slippery elm lozenges a try. Slippery elm bark, the main ingredient in these natural lozenges, coats your digestive tract in a protective layer. When taken as a lozenge, slippery elm can lessen the cough associated with reflux, and can soothe your irritated throat. Slippery elm lozenges can be purchased at many health food stores.
Learn about the pH of food. Lemons, while acidic foods, are alkaline once digestion takes place. This sounds confusing if you are an acid reflux sufferer. Check into food pH stats so that you can avoid foods that might trigger reflux.
Stay calm. Eating when you are stressed out causes excessive heartburn and stomach acid. Relax after your meal by doing deep breathing or meditation exercises. Try to stand upright, to prevent acid from coming back up.
When people have acid reflux, chewing cinnamon gum can offer them some relief. Chewing some gum will cause your glands to produce more saliva, which can neutralize your stomach acid. Chewing gum makes you swallow more, too. This helps push the stomach acid back into the stomach where it belongs.
After reading this article, you can help avoid acid reflux flare-ups. In the past, you may have thought that riding out the pain would lead to relief. Your will actually be able to treat it now. Using the tips and advice you learned here, acid reflux will soon be a distant memory.