Posts Tagged ‘How to prevent symptoms of heartburn’
Prevent heartburn. Here’s how…
Before anything else, let’s be clear first: what is a heartburn?
Heartburn is a feeling of burning, warmth, heat, or pain that often starts in the upper abdomen just beneath the lower breastbone (sternum). This discomfort may spread in waves upward into your throat, and you may have a sour taste in your mouth. Heartburn is sometimes called indigestion, acid regurgitation, sour stomach, or pyrosis. *Source
How do you prevent the symptoms of heartburn? The following changes to your lifestyle can help:
- Change of eating habits.
- eat several small meals instead of two or three large meals
- wait 2 to 3 hours before you lie down after a meal
- late night snacks should be avoided
- chocolate, mint, and alcohol can make heartburn worse
- Spicy foods, foods that have a lot of acid (like tomatoes and oranges), and coffee can make heartburn symptoms worse in some people. If your symptoms are worse after you eat a certain food, you may want to stop eating that food to see if your symptoms get better.
- Do not smoke or chew tobacco.
- If you get heartburn at night, raise the head of your bed 6 in. (15 cm) to 8 in. (20 cm) by putting the frame on blocks or placing a foam wedge under the head of your mattress. (Adding extra pillows does not work.)
- Do not wear tight clothing around your middle.
- Lose weight if you need to. Losing just 5 to 10 pounds can help.
