HEARTBURN - HOME REMEDIES

HEARTBURN - HOME REMEDIES

Heartburn can be caused by a number of things, but in most cases, it is an acid reflux. A condition in which the patient complains of a burning pain or a hot sensation that begins in the stomach and extends upto the throat when the digestive acids back flow through the sphincter that separates the stomach from the esophagus, is termed as heartburn. This burning pain is often followed by sour, acrid eructations. Causes of heartburn usually are stress; eating a lot of spices, sweets or fatty food; alcohol; overeating; smoking cigarettes; some drugs change the pathology in the stomach (e.g. hiatus hernia). It is commonly seen in people who are overweight or in pregnant females, since the excess of fat loosens the esophageal sphincter thus resulting in heartburn. It is often connected with dyspepsia and other affections of the stomach and thus can be helped by their individual treatments. 

When this complaint occurs, the first thing that the person should do is to stand or sit up to prevent any further acid reflux from the stomach into the esophagus. Eat small meals, but more often, and avoid heavy meals especially at night and take your meals early so as to avoid the acid reflex when lying down flat on the bed. Try not to eat or drink anything for two to three hours before sleeping. Do not lie down or bend down immediately after a meal. Take a walk for an hour or two after a meal. Reducing weight is of utmost importance in obese persons. 

HOME REMEDIES

#1. Avoid spicy food, too much of sweets, fatty food, caffeine (which is present in tea, coffee, chocolate, cola), mint, alcohol, oyster shells and carbonated drinks. 

#2. Stop smoking completely since it increases the acid secretion in the stomach and also weakens the esophageal sphincter thus resulting in a reflux of the stomach acid into the esophagus. Oranges and grapefruit (chakotra) are to be cut to a minimum. Take a bland diet preferably for a few days. 

#3. Squeeze the juice of one lemon in a glass of tomato juice and mix it with a spoonful of honey. Take this twice a day.  

#4. For heartburn in pregnant women, a slice of lemon sugared can be kept in the mouth for relief. 

#5. Small pieces of onions with half-formed sweet curd and sugar relieve the burning retrosternally. 

#6. Boil cabbage in water, drain the water, cool it and then take it twice a day for a few weeks. Also the juice extracted from raw cabbage taken in combination with carrot juice (in quantities of 125 ml each) is useful for acidity and heartburn.