What is gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and how to cure it

👉Acid Reflux – 6 Fatal Consequences👈

Overview

Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) occurs when stomach acid repeatedly flows back into the tube connecting your mouth and stomach (esophagus). This backwash (acid reflux) can irritate the lining of your esophagus.

Many people experience acid reflux from time to time. However, when acid reflux happens repeatedly over time, it can cause GERD.

Most people are able to manage the discomfort of GERD with lifestyle changes and medications. And though it's uncommon, some may need surgery to ease symptoms.

Symptoms

Common signs and symptoms of GERD include:

• A burning sensation of your chest (heartburn), usually after eating, which might be worse at night or while lying down
• Backwash (regurgitation) of food or sour liquid
• Upper abdominal or chest pain
• Trouble swallowing (dysphagia)
• Sensation of a lump in your throat

If you have nighttime acid reflux, you might also experience:

• An ongoing cough
• Inflammation of the vocal cords (laryngitis)
• New or worsening asthma

👉Acid Reflux – 6 Fatal Consequences👈

When to see a doctor

Seek immediate medical care if you have chest pain, especially if you also have shortness of breath, or jaw or arm pain. These may be signs and symptoms of a heart attack. Make an appointment with your doctor if you:

• Experience severe or frequent GERD symptoms
• Take over-the-counter medications for heartburn more than twice a week

Causes

GERD is caused by frequent acid reflux or reflux of nonacidic content from the stomach.

When you swallow, a circular band of muscle around the bottom of your esophagus (lower esophageal sphincter) relaxes to allow food and liquid to flow into your stomach. Then the sphincter closes again.

If the sphincter does not relax as it should or it weakens, stomach acid can flow back into your esophagus. This constant backwash of acid irritates the lining of your esophagus, often causing it to become inflamed.

Risk Factors

Conditions that can increase your risk of GERD include:

• Obesity
• Bulging of the top of the stomach up above the diaphragm (hiatal hernia)
• Pregnancy
• Connective tissue disorders, such as scleroderma
• Delayed stomach emptying

Factors that can aggravate acid reflux include:

• Smoking
• Eating large meals or eating late at night
• Eating certain foods (triggers) such as fatty or fried foods
• Drinking certain beverages, such as alcohol or coffee
• Taking certain medications, such as aspirin

Complications

Over time, chronic inflammation in your esophagus can cause:

• Inflammation of the tissue in the esophagus. Stomach acid can break down tissue in the esophagus, causing inflammation, bleeding, and sometimes an open sore (ulcer). Esophagitis can cause pain and make swallowing difficult.
• Narrowing of the esophagus (esophageal stricture).  Damage to the lower esophagus from stomach acid causes scar tissue to form.  The scar tissue narrows the food pathway, leading to problems with swallowing.
• Precancerous changes to the esophagus (Barrett esophagus). Damage from acid can cause changes in the tissue lining of the lower esophagus.  These changes are associated with an increased risk of esophageal cancer.

👉Acid Reflux – 6 Fatal Consequences👈

By Mayo Clinic Staff

What Causes Acid Reflux Disease?

 

One common cause of acid reflux disease is a stomach abnormality called a hiatal hernia. This occurs when the upper part of the stomach and LES move above the diaphragm, a muscle that separates your stomach from your chest. Normally, the diaphragm helps keep acid in our stomach. But if you have a hiatal hernia, acid can move up into your esophagus and cause symptoms of acid reflux disease.

These are other common risk factors for acid reflux disease:

• Eating large meals or lying down right after a meal
• Being overweight or obese
• Eating a heavy meal and lying on your back or bending over at the waist
• Snacking close to bedtime
• Eating certain foods, such as citrus, tomato, chocolate, mint, garlic, onions, or spicy or fatty foods
• Drinking certain beverages, such as alcohol, carbonated drinks, coffee, or tea
• Smoking
• Being pregnant
• Taking aspirin, ibuprofen, certain muscle relaxers, or blood pressure medications

 

What Are the Symptoms of Acid Reflux Disease?

Common symptoms of acid reflux are:

• Heartburn: a burning pain or discomfort that may move from your stomach to your abdomen or chest, or even up into your throat
• Regurgitation: a sour or bitter-tasting acid backing up into your throat or mouth

Other symptoms of acid reflux disease include:

• Bloating
• Bloody or black stools or bloody vomiting
• Burping
• Dysphagia -- the sensation of food being stuck in your throat
• Hiccups that don't let up
• Nausea
• Weight loss for no known reason
• Wheezing, dry cough, hoarseness, or chronic sore throat

How Is Acid Reflux Disease Diagnosed?

It's time to see your doctor if you have acid reflux symptoms two or more times a week or if medications don't bring lasting relief. Symptoms such as heartburn are the key to the diagnosis of acid reflux disease, especially if lifestyle changes, antacids, or acid-blocking medications help reduce these symptoms.

If these steps don't help or if you have frequent or severe symptoms, your doctor may order tests to confirm a diagnosis and check for other problems. You may need one or more tests such as these:

• Barium swallow can check for ulcers or a narrowing of the esophagus. You first swallow a solution to help structures show up on an X-ray.
• Esophageal manometry can check the function and movement of the esophagus and lower esophageal sphincter.
• pH monitoring can check for acid in your esophagus. The doctor inserts a device into your esophagus and leaves it in place for 1 to 2 days to measure the amount of acid in your esophagus.
• Endoscopy can check for problems in your esophagus or stomach. This test involves inserting a long, flexible, lighted tube with a camera down your throat. First, the doctor will spray the back of your throat with anesthetic and give you a sedative to make you more comfortable.
• A biopsy may be taken during endoscopy to check samples of tissue under a microscope for infection or abnormalities.

Can Acid Reflux Disease Be Treated With Diet and Lifestyle Changes?

One of the most effective ways to treat acid reflux disease is to avoid the foods and beverages that trigger symptoms. Here are other steps you can take:

• Eat smaller meals more frequently throughout the day and modify the types of foods you are eating.
• Quit smoking.
• Put blocks under the head of your bed to raise it at least 4 inches to 6 inches.
• Eat at least 2 to 3 hours before lying down.
• Try sleeping in a chair for daytime naps.
• Don't wear tight clothes or tight belts.
• If you're overweight or obese, take steps to lose weight with exercise and diet changes.
• Also, ask your doctor whether any medication could be triggering your heartburn or other symptoms of acid reflux disease.

 

“These Three Everyday Ingredients Healed My Heartburn In The Nick Of Time (After Acid Reflux Caused This Deadly Disease)” (video)

 

Can Acid Reflux Disease Be Treated With Medications?

In many cases, lifestyle changes combined with over-the-counter medications are all you need to control the symptoms of acid reflux disease.

Antacids, such as Alka-Seltzer, Maalox, Mylanta, Rolaids, or Riopan, can neutralize the acid from your stomach. But they may cause diarrhea or constipation, especially if you overuse them. It's best to use antacids that contain both magnesium hydroxide and aluminum hydroxide. When combined, they may help counteract these gastrointestinal side effects.

If antacids don't help, your doctor may try other medications. Some require a prescription. Your doctor may suggest more than one type or suggest you try a combination of medications such as these:

• Foaming agents (Gaviscon) coat your stomach to prevent reflux.
• H2 blockers (Pepcid, Tagamet) decrease acid production.
• Proton pump inhibitors (Aciphex, Nexium, Prilosec, Prevacid, Protonix) also reduce the amount of acid your stomach makes.
• Prokinetics (Reglan, Urecholine) can help strengthen the LES, empty your stomach faster, and reduce acid reflux.

Don't combine more than one type of antacid or other medications without your doctor's guidance.

Is Acid Reflux Disease Ever Treated With Surgery?

If medications don't completely resolve your symptoms of acid reflux disease and the symptoms are severely interfering with your life, your doctor could recommend surgery. There are two types of surgical treatment used to relieve symptoms of GERD if daily use of medication isn't effective.

The most recently approved procedure involves surgically placing a ring known as a LINX device around the outside of the lower end of the esophagus, the tube that connects the mouth to the stomach. The ring consists of magnetic titanium beads held together by titanium wires. The device helps reflux by preventing stomach contents from backing up into the esophagus. In one study, patients were able to stop taking medicine or cut down the amount they took. You shouldn't get the LINX device if you're allergic to certain metals, and once you have a LINX device you shouldn't get any type of MRI test.

Another surgical procedure called a fundoplication can help prevent further acid reflux. It creates an artificial valve using the top of your stomach. The procedure involves wrapping the upper part of the stomach around the LES to strengthen it, prevent acid reflux, and repair a hiatal hernia. Surgeons perform this procedure through either an open incision in the abdomen or chest or with a lighted tube inserted through a tiny incision in the abdomen.

These procedures are done only as a last resort for treating acid reflux disease after medical treatment has proven to be inadequate.

In Summary:

10 tips to help prevent Acid Reflux symptoms:

1. Achieve and maintain a healthy weight.
2. Eat small, frequent meals rather than huge amounts a few times a day.
3. Reduce fat by decreasing the amount of butter, oils, salad dressings, gravy, fatty meats and full-fat dairy products such as sour cream, cheese and whole milk.
4. Sit upright while eating and stay upright (sitting or standing) for 45 to 60 minutes afterward.
5. Avoid eating before bedtime. Wait at least three hours after eating to go to bed.
6. Try not to wear clothes that are tight in the belly area. They can squeeze your stomach and push acid up into the esophagus.
7. When sleeping, raise the head of the bed 6 to 8 inches, using wooden blocks under the bedposts. Extra pillows don’t work.
8. Stop smoking.
9. Your healthcare provider may prescribe acid-reducing medications. Be sure to take them as directed.
10. Cut out possible trigger foods.

“These Three Everyday Ingredients Healed My Heartburn In The Nick Of Time (After Acid Reflux Caused This Deadly Disease)” (video)

What foods should you avoid:

Adjusting your diet and eating habits play a key role in controlling the symptoms of GERD. Try to avoid the trigger foods that keep giving you heartburn.

For example, many people get heartburn from:

• Spicy foods.
• Fried foods.
• Fatty (including dairy) foods.
• Chocolate.
• Tomato sauces.
• Garlic and onions.
• Alcohol, coffee and carbonated drinks.
• Citrus fruits.

Keep a record of the trigger foods that give you trouble. Talk with your doctor to get help with this. They’ll have suggestions about how to log foods and times of day you should eat.