Heartburn is a common complaint in today’s fast-paced, fast food world.? The feeling of burning in your upper stomach, perhaps in your throat…the tightness in your chest or even trouble swallowing…all can be symptoms of heartburn. When the acid pumps in your stomach are overactive, it starts to erode the esophagus, which is responsible for keeping acid down in the stomach. Esophagitis can occur, where there are tiny fissures (or tears) in the lining of the esophagus, and other more serious ailments can be caused if this condition is left untreated for a long period of time. Treatments for heartburn vary widely, from homeopathic remedies to prescription medication and even surgery, so first of all, see your doctor if your heartburn persists for more than a few weeks.

If your doctor okays, it you can try lifestyle changes first, including switching your diet away from fatty meals and acid-producers, such as alcohol and coffee. Maintaining a healthy weight is another way to combat heartburn naturally, so limiting fatty foods might have two benefits in your lifestyle. Other tricks include eating smaller, more frequent meals, and even elevating your head a couple of inches when you sleep can help keep acid down in your stomach where it belongs. Other specific food culprits that you might want to avoid include chocolate, tomato and tomato-based products, citrus fruits, fried foods, and pepper. Also, try staying hydrated. Eight glasses of water a day is not only good for your whole body, but it can help your body naturally dilute strong stomach acid and give your esophagus a break.

Other treatments for heartburn include over-the-counter medications, including Pepcid and Zantac. These work by decreasing the amount of stomach acid produced and are effective remedies against gastroesophageal reflux disease (or GERD), where acid from the stomach actually makes it past the esophagus into the throat. Other OTC remedies include antacids, which neutralize stomach acid. Brands include Tagamet and TUMS.? However, these medications are not meant as a permanent solution and should not be taken for more than two weeks, unless otherwise advised by your physician.

Prescription treatments for heartburn can include proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), which stop the release of acid in the stomach; this class is frequently prescribed as well for GERD sufferers. Another class of prescription medication is a promotilty agent, which helps patients who have slowed emptying of their stomach.? These medicineshelp hasten digestion, and are often effective against sufferers of GERD.? Prescription medications can often be pricey, and sometimes taking a pill every day for the rest of your life is not the most appealing option.

In that case, there are a number of natural methods for combating this problem on your own. Homeopathic treatments for heartburn include lifestyle changes, as mentioned above, and supplements like calcium carbonate to quell acid, and deglycyrrhizinated licorice (DGL), which can be found in a natural foods or supplements store. This latter product has inflammatory properties, and lines the stomach, intestines and esophagus, forming a barrier between tissue and acid. Fresh ginger can help some sufferers, which you grind up and add to foods or drinks like herbal tea. Chamomile tea is another good one to try, along with licorice root.

For further treatment ideas, the Reflux Remedy Report contains a host of natural ideas.? Visit their Web site at www.refluxremedy.com.

Sometimes before the cure for heartburn can do any good, you need to know more about what triggers heartburn first.

The antacid manufactures have made billions of dollars through the years promising heartburn sufferers quick ways to relief.

Problem is, they don’t work, never have and in fact Swedish scientists proved years ago antacids even make heartburn worse.

In fact it was the antacid manufacturers that invented acid rebound.

If you’ve never heard of acid rebound it’s because they don’t really talk about that one very much. You might hear your doctor mention it just before he up grades you to a proton-pump inhibitor (PPI) product, but otherwise you probably won’t.

Acid rebound is like heartburn on steroids.

Because antacids don’t cure heartburn, they can make the cause of your heartburn worse, which then leads you to getting hooked on even more expensive and dangerous heartburn treatments.

Acid rebound happens when you stop taking proton pump inhibitor (PPI) medications like Prilosec. It’s basically a worsening of your heartburn and acid reflux symptoms. This worsening of your heartburn is caused from your stomach acid producing cells going through withdrawal of the PPI drugs.

Unfortunately, for many heartburn sufferers the only answer for acid rebound is to go back on the medication that caused it and that’s NOT a situation you want to put yourself in, is it?

Even using these dangerous antacid and heartburn medications for as little one month can trigger acid rebound and worsen any gastro-esophageal reflux (GERD) symptoms.

Here are some other pharmaceuticals that can worsen your heart burn:

• Aspirin
• NSAIDs (nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) such as ibuprofen and naproxen
• Antihistamines such as Benadryl
• Antibiotics such as tetracycline
• Heart medications such as Procardia, Inderal, Tenormin, and Cardizem
• Anti-anxiety medications such as Valium or Ativan
• Osteoporosis medications, such as Fosamax
• Steroid medications such as prednisone
• Chemotherapy drugs and radiation therapy for cancer
• Nitrates and nitroglycerin
• Anticholinergics such as Antispas and Robinul
• Narcotics such as Demerol
• Iron supplements
• Theophylline
• Synthetic? or corn derived Vitamin C

One of my favorite remedies for heartburn is to drink alkaline water “in-between” my meals all day long. You can spend thousands on a machine to do it, or you can alkalize your water with coral ocean mineral tea bags or sprinkle some Himalayan or Celtic sea salt in your water bottle.

These ocean minerals are almost identical to the molecular structure of your blood and bones. Keeping your tissues and organs replenished with “ionic” minerals is a great way to preserve a healthy stomach acid environment.

For a quick and easy way to relieve heartburn try fresh ginger tea, warm lemon juice and water or raw apple cider vinegar. Personally all that in a cup of warm tea sounds good to me.

You were born to heal,

Todd M. Faass?

Health Ecologist

There are tons of different cures for heartburn available in many forms ranging from simple do-it-yourself options at home to medications either prescribed from a doctor or available over-the-counter.

The more natural cures for heartburn include many options such as drinking apple cider vinegar or eating lemon rinds before eating something that would cause heartburn. Eating almonds or lying on your side are also ways to relieve the pain. Chewing ginger or drinking ginger tea can also help neutralize stomach acid.? Even drinking a glass of water can help flush out harmful stomach acids.? Papayas have also been found to contain a digestive enzyme that can be helpful for preventing and alleviating heart burn.? It helps to break down food faster, preventing pressure from building in the stomach.

One of the most important factors in curing heartburn is to monitor the condition carefully because it affects everyone’s body differently and cures for heartburn vary from case to case. Because different foods trigger heartburn attacks in different people, it is important to keep track of what causes it and the frequency of the occurrences.? Though foods effect everyone different, some common food triggers include caffeine, onions, garlic and citrus.? If there is a pattern showing a certain type of food causes heartburn, you may want to avoid those items completely. If you enjoy the foods that cause heartburn for you, it is easy to be prepared with any of the effective cures for heartburn available when you eat them.

Even a change in the amount you eat and how often you eat it can help.? Eating large meals just a few times a day can cause pressure to build as your stomach tries to digest huge amounts of food.? Smaller, more frequent meals prevent this pressure from building and helps keep heart burn at bay.? Another dietary change that can help is not eating right before bed, and putting a pillow under your head when sleeping.? Both these remedies deal with allowing gravity to keep food and acid in the stomach where it belongs.

Medications and over-the-counter cures for heartburn are easy to obtain as they are sold at any local grocery store or pharmacy.? The problem with over the counter medications is they aren’t meant to be taken in the long term.? They are by no means a permanent solution for heart burn, and only provide a band aid for a problem that may require a tourniquet.? Prescription medications can be very helpful, as they are made to target the specific cause of heartburn by neutralizing acid or stopping its production all together.? However, they are very costly and may even involve taking a pill every day for the rest of the patient’s life.

Finding the best cures for heartburn may be a challenge at first, but once you find the most effective form for you, treatment becomes very simple and easy to handle. For more information on heartburn relief, visit www.refluxremedy.com and view The Reflux Remedy Report.

Just about everyone has experienced heartburn at some time or another during their life and many have sought out natural heartburn cures. Heartburn is a common name for acid reflux. People usually feel a burning pain in their chest that spreads upward to their neck. They may also experience bloating, belching and nausea. Heartburn can be an occasional incident after a heavy meal or extremely spicy one, or a frequent occurrence that is disruptive to daily life.

When you swallow food, it passes through your esophagus and into your stomach.? The stomach contains acids which digest the food. There is a muscle between your stomach and esophagus that opens to allow the food into the stomach and closes after the food has passed through. If this muscle doesn’t operate properly, the food and stomach acid can back up into your esophagus causing pain and discomfort in the form of acid reflux or heartburn.

There are as many remedies for heartburn as there are sufferers. Unfortunately, there is no one cure that works for every one. People need to learn their bodies and figure out what triggers their attacks. Sometimes it is a particular food. Caffiene is a common culprit.? Onions and citrus are others.? So if a person can determine their personal food trigger, they can easily solve their problem by avoiding that food.

However, when a change in diet isn?t an option, people sometimes reach forhome remedies. Drinking a bit of apple cider vinegar and water prior to a meal can help prevent the onset of heartburn. ?Also, eating a smaller meal can help prevent too much acid and pressure from building in the stomach.? Refraining from eating less than two hours before bed can also help keep stomach acids out of the esophagus and in the stomach where they belong.

If heartburn is already in full force, there are a number of natural things you can try.? Eating an apple has been found to be surprisingly successful in relieving heartburn pain.? Also, all forms of ginger, including candied and teas help to settle an upset stomach.? Papaya contains an enzyme that helps the body?s digestion process, which prevents uncomfortable pressure from building in the stomach.? Something as simple as drinking a glass of water can also eliminate heartburn pain, as it flushes unwanted acids through the digestive system.? Also, sitting up, or if heartburn is happening at night, sleeping on an extra pillow helps keep the head aligned properly with the stomach, making sure acids stay down.

Natural remedies are often preferable to over the counter medications or prescription drugs because of their low cost and convince.? Most people don?t need to run to the drug store to get a glass of water, and things like apples and ginger are significantly less expensive than a daily prescription routine.

For more natural heartburn cures, visit www.refluxremedy.com and read The Reflux Remedy Report.? The natural cure that will work for you could be there, so don?t wait!