Heartburn is a painful burning
feeling just below or behind the breastbone. It usually comes from the
esophagus. The pain often rises in your chest and may spread to your neck or
throat. Contents from the stomach can back up (reflux) into the esophagus.
Altering your diet and
lifestyle may help alleviate both heartburn and the more serious GERD, but
neither should be overlooked and left untreated.
Lifestyle changes
Some lifestyle changes that can help control your acid reflux
symptoms. These include:
Maintain a
healthy weight.
Quit
smoking.
Limit
alcohol.
Avoid
eating 3 hours before lying down.
Raise the
head of your bed.
Do not wear
clothing that is too tight around your waist.
Reduce
Stress.
Dietary Changes
Eat smaller more frequent meals
Eat Slowly
Chew thoroughly
Foods to Limit or Avoid, these may make it worse:
Spicy foods Fatty
foods Mint
Chocolate Alcohol Caffeine
Citrus fruits Tomato-based
foods
Keep a Food Diary:
Ultimately, every person responds differently to
foods. Food diaries that include the symptoms you experienced after eating the
food allow you to refer back to it to monitor any trends
you notice with certain foods.
Call your health care provider if symptoms worsen
or do not improve with lifestyle changes or medication.
Also call for any of the following symptoms:
•
Bleeding
•
Choking (coughing, shortness of breath)
•
Feeling filled up quickly when eating
•
Frequent vomiting
•
Hoarseness
•
Loss of appetite
•
Trouble swallowing (dysphagia) or pain with swallowing (odynophagia)
•
Weight loss
