Do you often feel that someone has lit a small bonfire in your chest? Do you want to know proven remedies and tips on how to get rid of heartburn?
Heartburn is a common problem that many of you must be suffering. Don’t think that you’re alone in this world who is suffering from it. Most of us will suffer from it at some point of time in our life. According to a report, nearly 44 percent of U.S. adults experience heartburn at least once a month.
Acid reflux or heartburn is characterized by a feeling of burning in the chest right behind the breastbone. We know that it’s quite annoying and you feel uneasy when it’s triggered. Before you move onto the remedies and lifestyle changes to cure heartburn, you should read the symptoms and causes of it.
Symptoms Of Acid Reflux
- A burning sensation in the chest after eating meals that lasts for a long time.
- If you’re experiencing chest pain after lying down, bending over or eating.
- Trouble swallowing food.
- Burning sensation in your throat
- If you feel there is hot, sour, acidic fluid at the back of your throat.
- Chronic hoarseness or Chronic cough.
- If you feel like food is sticking in the middle of your chest.
What Causes Heartburn (Acid Reflux)?
When you eat something, it passes from the mouth through the pharynx into the food pipe or esophagus. Then, it enters the stomach through an opening between esophagus and stomach. This opening usually closes as soon as food passes through it.
But if it doesn’t close, acids like hydrochloric acid (HCL) can get into your esophagus. This will result in acid reflux, which can irritate the esophagus and cause heartburn.
Sometimes, Hiatal hernia can also cause heartburn. It’s a condition in which part of the stomach bulges up through the diaphragm (the muscle wall between the stomach and chest) and into the chest.
Pregnancy can also cause acid reflux in women due to increased pressure within the abdominal cavity, which affects the functioning of LES – Lower esophageal sphincter.
There are many other lifestyle-related issues resulting in acid reflux like obesity, wrong eating habits, alcohol, smoking, tight-fitting clothes and lots more. If you often suffer from Heartburn, it may be an indication of GERD – Gastroesophageal reflux disease.
Are you annoyed due to the unpleasant feeling of acid reflux? Don’t Worry. We’ve searched the internet for hours to compile all the proven cures and lifestyle changes that can be beneficial in treating acid reflux.
6 Proven Home Remedies On How To Get Rid Of Heartburn Fast
1. Baking Soda For Heartburn
Baking soda or sodium bicarbonate is used to prepare a number of mouth watering dishes. It is used in a number of home remedies to treat pimples, blackheads, acne, dandruff, gas and lot more. You can also end the burning sensation of heartburn caused by acid reflux can by a spoonful of baking soda.
Baking soda can relieve heartburn because it is a base substance. It helps in balancing the pH level of your stomach and thus your burning sensation will be gone.
Did You Know?
Our pancreas naturally secretes sodium bicarbonate to neutralize the acid produced by our stomach. The people who smoke and have an unhealthy lifestyle usually have restricted capability of the pancreas, which increases the risk of acid reflux in them.
Requirements:
- 1 tablespoon of baking soda
- A glass of water
Instructions:
- Take a tablespoon of baking soda and mix it well with a glass of water.
- Immediately drink the baking soda water.
NOTE: Never consume more than 3 tablespoons of baking soda in a day. Also, don’t use this heartburn home remedy for more than a week straight because it can have side effects such as nausea or swelling.
2. Chewing Gum Can Chew Your Heartburn
Most of the people like chewing gum because it’s a great mouth freshener, while some people chew it to lose face fat. You may not believe us, but sugar-free chewing gum is an effective heartburn remedy.
According to a study conducted by the Journal of Dental Research, people with symptoms of GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) or chronic heartburn experience relief after chewing sugar-free gum for 25-30 minutes after a meal.
— How Chewing Gum can Help you to Stop Heartburn?
When you chew gum, your salivary glands are stimulated and it produces more saliva. As a result, any acid that has been secreted in the gastrointestinal tract (gut) will be diluted and cleared out of your body more quickly.
When the excess acid will be washed out of your body, you’ll feel relieved.
— Requirements:
- A piece of sugar-free gum
— Instructions:
- After eating your meal just grab a piece of sugar-free gum and chew it for 25-30 minutes.
3. Aloe Vera Juice Can Help You Breathe A Sigh Of Relief
Aloe Vera is a great herb that can be found in our gardens. It is used to treat various skin problems like razor bumps, hickies, acne scars, burns and lots more. It is also used to detox our body and can work like a magic bullet to treat heartburn because it is well known for its anti-inflammatory effects.
Whenever you feel that your stomach starts getting inflamed and irritated, or your esophagus is getting eaten away at – Just grab one-quarter cup of Aloe juice.
What do you need?
- ¼ Cup of Aloe Vera Juice or even less
Instructions:
- Just grab one-quarter cup of Aloe Vera juice and drink it half an hour before meals. Always check the juice bottle before drinking the juice for safety intake in a day.
- Before purchasing aloe juice, make sure that it has the laxative component removed because it can act as a laxative.
4. Fennel Seeds Can Keep Acid Reflux At Bay
Fennel seeds have a pH of around 6.9 and have proven to be effective in the acid reflux treatment. This herb is used to treat many other diseases or conditions such as bloating, constipation, flatulence, indigestion, pink eyes and lots more.
Fennel seeds contain volatile oil made up of components such as a-pinene, fenchone, limonene and trans-anethole. All these constituents are known to have a carminative effect and helps in providing relief from heartburn. Fennel seeds will also help to keep your breath fresh.
— Requirements:
- ½-1 tablespoon of fennel seeds
— How to Cure Heartburn using Fennel Seeds?
- After eating your meals, simply chew ½-1 tablespoon of fennel seeds.
- You can make tea using a tablespoon of fennel seeds.
5. Bananas For Heartburn
Banana is packed with a number of minerals and vitamins. It’s great for your health and has been used in various natural remedies to treat different conditions like diarrhea. You may not know, but it’s one of the best heartburn remedies. Now, whenever you feel heartburn just grab a banana instead of antacids.
How Will Bananas Help To Get Rid Of Acid Reflux?
Bananas are rich in Potassium, an alkalizing mineral with pH of 14. When you suffer from heartburn, you’re actually suffering from acid reflux. When an alkalizing mineral will enter your body, it’ll lower the acidity in your body and you’ll feel relieved.
Instructions:
- Simply grab an overripe banana and eat it.
6. How to Get Rid of Heartburn using Chamomile?
Chamomile is a popular herb that is used in various home remedies to treat various health conditions. It is also a popular home remedy for heartburn as it helps in reducing inflammation in the stomach by neutralizing acidity levels.
Chamomile is also helpful in relieving stress, which can also cause acid reflux. Just grab a cup of fresh Chamomile tea an hour before you sleep so that you can sleep well and have sweet dreams.
— Requirements:
- 1 tablespoon of dried chamomile flower petals
- A cup of water
- Strainer
— Instructions:
- Add a cup of water in a pan and when it starts boiling, add a teaspoon of dried chamomile flower petals to it.
- Boil the water for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove the pan from heat and let it cool down for a minute before straining them.
- Pour the chamomile tea into the cup and enjoy drinking it.
10 Lifestyle Changes That Can Help You To Get Rid Of Heartburn Fast
According to Mayo Clinic, heartburn problem can be a thing of the past if you make the following changes in your lifestyle.
1. Stop wearing tight-fitting clothes
If you wear super tight jeans, the waistband will sink into your abdomen region and it can worsen acid reflux problem. In the same way, if you wear tight shirts and belts – It will only aggravate your problem.
When you wear all these tight-fitting clothes, you put extra pressure on your lower esophageal sphincter and can face heartburn.
2. Initiate a low-carbohydrate diet to get rid of heartburn
According to a study conducted by Professor Yancy WS Jr. and colleagues at Duke University, initiation of a low-carb diet has helped in the treatment of GERD. If home remedies for heartburn or OTC medicines aren’t benefitting you, try to make this change in your diet.
3. Get rid of the extra pounds
If you’re overweight, you’re pushing up your stomach and putting extra pressure on your abdomen. As a result, the acid will back up into your esophagus and cause heartburn.
4. Track foods triggering your heartburn and avoid them
It can take time to track foods triggering your heartburn, but ultimately you’ll be successful and acid reflux will be a thing of the past. You no longer have to rely on OTC (over-the-counter) medications to keep the acid at bay. Just note the eatables after having a meal in a dairy and catch the culprits.
Some common foods that can trigger heartburn include high-fat dairy products, high fat meats, fried food, spicy foods, caffeine and alcohol.
5. Elevate the head of your bed
If you often experience heartburn at night, you should consider elevating the head of your bed so that your head and chest are higher than your feet. When you lie down flat on bed, it’ll press your stomach’s contents against the lower esophageal sphincter.
When the position of your head is higher than the stomach, gravity will help in reducing this pressure. If you’re thinking how you can elevate the head of your bed, then don’t worry. You can simply place 6-inch blocks under your bedposts at the head of the bed and end your quest for finding the answer to the question – How to get rid of heartburn?
Note: Don’t try to use pillows to elevate your head as it can add pressure on your stomach and further aggravate your problem.
6. Don’t just eat and sleep
You should never lie down or sleep immediately after having a meal. You should at least wait for three hours before sleeping because it’ll reduce the risk of acid moving towards your esophagus.
7. Stay away from drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes
Drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes can weaken your Lower Esophageal Sphincter. Consequently, your stomach contents and acid can easily splash up into your esophagus and you can suffer from frequent heartburn.
8. Steer clear of late night meals
Eating late night meals or skipping meals will only aggravate the problem of acid reflux. According to American Gastroenterological Association, you should eat meals 2-3 hours prior to sleep. It’ll help in reducing stomach acid and allow your stomach to partially digest its contents before sleeping.
You should also avoid eating large meals because they put pressure on your stomach. Try to eat frequent smaller meals because it’ll help you in preventing nighttime heartburn symptoms.
9. Check out your medicines
If you’re doing everything right and you’re still suffering from GERD, then you should review your medications. There are a number of medications that can increase your risk of GERD by interfering with the digestive process or by relaxing the LES.
They can further irritate an already inflamed esophagus and increase your problems. You can check out some common medicines triggering your heartburn.
10. Properly schedule your workout
It is advised that you should exercise at least 2 hours after having a meal. You may trigger heartburn, if you exercise immediately after having a meal or after 40 – 60 minutes.
When You Should Visit Your Doctor?
If home remedies for heartburn and lifestyle changes mentioned above aren’t helping you, it may be time to see your doctor. You should never ignore the condition of acid reflux for more than a week. If the pain is severe, you should consider visiting doctor immediately.
Here are the symptoms and conditions when you shouldn’t ignore heartburn:
- Your heartburn has become more severe and frequent.
- You’re facing difficulty while swallowing solid foods or pills.
- Your heartburn causes nausea and vomiting.
- If you’ve been using antacids for 14 days and still the problem persists.
- If you’ve a chronic cough.
- If you’ve lost weight drastically accompanied by heartburn.
According to Gary Gitnick, MD, chief of digestive diseases at UCLA, we should never ignore persistent heartburn. If chronic acid reflux is left untreated, it can scar and narrow your esophagus.
In the worst cases, untreated chronic heartburn (symptoms of GERD) can develop into esophageal cancer.
Concluding words
After reading the following home remedies for acid flux and making the lifestyle changes mentioned above, you’ll probably be able to get rid of heartburn. If it still persists after a week, you should visit a doctor as mentioned above.
If this article was helpful for you, it may be helpful for others. So don’t forget to share it with your friends and family so that even they can say bye-bye to the burning sensation.
