|||MAG||| July 19 - 25, 2008
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NO More Acidity or Heartburn!
Heartburn is very uncomfortable and it’s not always clear what causes it. As a first line of defence, use over-the-counter antacids
or an acid suppressor. But the long-term goal is to pinpoint - and avoid your personal heartburn triggers.
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What’s Wrong
When excessive acidity forces the stomach acid to back up into your oesophagus, you feel a burning pain-heartburn. A muscle called the lower oesophageal sphincter that keeps the acid in the stomach, allows it to leak upwards, a problem known as reflux. Large meals and certain foods can lead to acidity. You’re more likely to have heartburn if you’re pregnant, overweight or a smoker. Medications-aspirin, some antidepressants and sedatives-can aggravate heartburn.
Douse the flame
* As soon as you feel the telltale flicker of heartburn, drink a large glass of water. It will wash the acid back into your stomach.
* To make a heartburn-easing tea, add a teaspoon of freshly grated ginger to a cup of boiling water, steep for 10 minutes, and drink. Ginger helps relax oesophageal muscles, so stomach acid doesnít get pushed upwards.
* A herbal tea made from fennel seeds (saunf) can help. Add 2 tsps to a cup of boiling water infuse for 10 minutes, strain and drink.
* Ayurveda Perscribes teas of crushed cinnamon or cardamom, Steep a spoon of the herb in a cup of boiling water, strain and drink.
Put it in neutral
* Alkaline bicarbonate of soda (bicarb) neutralizes stomach acid. Mix 1 tsp of bicarb and drops of lemon juice in a cup of water. Donít drink diluted bicarb on its own: lemon juice helps dispel the gas which bicarb creates when it comes in contact with stomach acid.
* Carrot, cucumber, radish or beetroot juice help tame the acid in the stomach due to their alkaline nature. Add salt or pepper for flavour. If vegetable juice doesn’t appeal to you, eat some raw.
* Saliva helps to neutralize stomach acid. So chew a piece of sugar-free gum or daydream about chaats or buttery parathas - whatever it takes to get you to generate and swallow extra saliva.
The power of prevention
* No matter how bad you feel, stay upright. Gravity helps to keep acid in your stomach.
* If night time heartburn plagues you, eat meals two to three hours before bedtime. This will give acid levels a chance to decline before you lie down.
* Sleep on your left side. That way fluids pool away from the lower oesophageal sphincter.
* Eating too much in one sitting can force open the lower oesophageal sphincter, the thick ring of muscle that separates the stomach from the oesophagus and keeps stomach acid where it belongs.
* Give up smoking - smoking relaxes the lower oesophgeal sphincter. Breathing second hand smoke is as bad. Alcohol too has the same effect.
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Foods to avoid
Prone to heartburn? Avoid these triggers.
Milk: It feels soothing, but the fats, proteins and calcium it contains can stimulate the stomach to secrete acid.
Coffee, tea & cola: Caffeinated drinks relax the lower oesophageal sphincter and irritate an inflamed oesophagus.
Chocolate: It’s loaded with two heartburn triggers - fat and caffeine.
Bubbles: The carbonation in fizzy drinks expand your stomach, which has the same effect on the lower oesophageal sphincter as overeating.
Fried and fatty foods: They sit in the stomach for a long time and cause excess acid production.
Peppermint: It relaxes the oesophageal sphincter, as do tomatoes.
Should I Call
the Doctor?
Occasional heartburn isn’t serious but a recurrent one could be a sign of gastroesophageal reflux disease, that cause ulcers of the oesophagus and chronic cough. See your doctor if you often get heartburn three or four times a week, wheeze or become hoarse, find it difficult to swallow or lose weight rapidly. These could be signs of cancer. Severe heartburn can be mistaken for a heart attack. If it occurs after a meal and is soothed by water or antacids, itís probably heartburn. But if you feel a pain, tightness or dull pressure in the chest, shortness of breath or light-headedness or cold sweat, get immediate medical help.
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