Hello! I have been a doctor for 21 years. My name is Georgy Olegovich Sapego. In this article I will talk about the treatment of heartburn without medication.
People love giving advice on heartburn. In fact, everything is worse there. There are fewer ways to treat heartburn without medication than it seems. In this article I will explain how everything works, and how to practically apply it.
Heartburn occurs when acidic stomach contents are often thrown into the esophagus. We all have more or less acid in the esophagus, but not everyone gets heartburn.
In this case, many factors are added and subtracted.
If a person salivates regularly, the acid is flushed out of the esophagus.
If there is a lot of visceral fat in the stomach, then it constantly presses on the stomach.
If the muscle sphincter between the stomach and esophagus relaxes, the acid is more easily sprayed up.
When food is poorly digested and stays in the stomach for a long time, gastric juice will more often enter the esophagus.
New first
It wasn't until December 2019 that coffee, tea, and soda were finally confirmed to increase heartburn. Unexpected, right? Previously, they fantasized on this topic, assumed and believed, and now they finally checked it out. Removing two servings of coffee, tea, or soda every day will reduce heartburn.
Weight
Losing weight will help people who are overweight or who have recently gained a lot of weight. Remember the visceral fat that weighs on your stomach? This is the amount that needs to be reduced.
And also, the less the layer of subcutaneous fat under the belt, the less this fat presses on the belly from the outside.
Body mass index
For this recommendation to work, you need to reduce the body mass index by 3 units. Body mass index is your weight in kilograms divided by the square of your height in meters. That is, for a person who is 170 centimeters tall and weighs 80 kilograms, the body mass index will be 28. If you subtract 3 units, you get 25. This is the target body mass index. That is, to grow 170 centimeters, the weight must be reduced by 7 kilograms. It's a lot. So don't expect a pound to decide anything.
Body position
Raise the head of the bed and everything. You've probably heard. The head of the bed (literally under the legs of the bed) is raised for those who have heartburn at night or who have problems with the larynx such as hoarseness and soreness.
In general, throat problems in people with heartburn may not be due to acid but to digestive enzymes that end up in the throat at night.
So it is recommended to put a block 15 - 20 centimeters high under the legs of the bed from the side of the headboard. Have you tried it? This is very high.
Now they also offer special plastic wedges that can be placed under the mattress. They don't even seem to extend over the entire length of the bed. This is a trendy feature, and so far not everything is clear with wedges. In any case, lifting only one pillow will not work. It doesn't work that way.
It is also helpful to refrain from lying down after eating. Well, 2 - 3 hours before bedtime, it is better not to eat or drink.
Last checked
We must try to eliminate from the diet that provokes heartburn.
Once again, it is advisable to try to remove two servings of coffee, tea or soda from the daily diet. They definitely provoke heartburn. But you can drink water, milk or fruit juice.
It is best to limit chocolate and mint, because they cleverly relax the muscle mass between the stomach and esophagus.
It is better to eat less fat, because it splashes in the stomach for a long time. And the longer the stomach digests food, the more chances that during this process acid will fly into the esophagus.
All sorts of unverified chips
These rules are quite logical, but no one really checked them.
It is better not to tighten the belly with tight belts and corsets, because they put pressure on the stomach.
You can try chewing gum or sugar-free lozenges to help flush excess acid from your esophagus with your saliva.
It is advisable to stop smoking and alcohol because they relax the lower esophageal sphincter.
Exercises
It may very well be beneficial to do exercises for the diaphragm.
Here's the explanation: The esophagus passes through the diaphragm. The diaphragm is a muscle. If you shake it, it will become stronger and denser and will not allow excess food to enter the esophagus.
For the diaphragm, diaphragmatic breathing is done. You need to breathe in so that the belly is inflated. On exhalation, the stomach should calmly fall off. These exercises work if you repeat them for at least 30 minutes a day.
Have you tried pumping up the diaphragm? You can read about it in my article about rehabilitation after pneumonia.
