health knowledge
GERD or HEARTBURN
Dr. Victor A. Vesuna
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) commonly called heartburn occurs when stomach acids or bile backflows in the food pipe or esophagus. This irritates the linings of this structure causing food regurgitation, chest pain and sensation of lump in the throat, the chest pain of GERD may mimic an impending heart attack and this is one of the symptoms to watch for.
Measures to prevent GERD may involve lifestyle changes, one of the best ways to improve your dependency on medications is change in diet, making this work is knowing what foods will trigger GERD, this include cutting down on acid foods like citrus and high fatty meals, this diet may be limiting at first but it is not the end of eating good foods unless one makes it so, green leafy vegetables are the best things that one can eat when dealing with this disease condition, dairy products should be avoided as much as possible, coffee intake should also be limited.
The above recommendation is called the GERD diet, this diet aims to minimize reflux and irritation, large meals are discouraged because they cause stomach pressure leading to reflux, chocolates contains substances called methylxanthines which can also cause relaxation of the valve in the esophagus, peppermint and spearmint may also aggravate reflux hence tea and candy preparations of these herbs should be avoided, lastly nicotine weakens the lower muscles of the esophagus so smoking is strongly discouraged.
No alternative medicine is proven to reverse GERD, but still some complementary therapies may provide relief under a physician’s supervision, this include Turmerick, Aloe Vera and Melatonin.
The use of melatonin as a treatment for acid reflux came in several years ago by Polish researchers who published their findings in March 2007 in the Journal of Clinical Gastroenterology. Around 60 patients were recruited with the disorder and divided them into two groups. Half of the patients took 5 mg of melatonin every evening; the others received a placebo. After 12 weeks, more than half the patients in the melatonin group no longer had reflux symptoms and 30 percent of the rest of the group reported partial improvement. Less than 10 percent of the patients taking the placebo reported any improvement in their symptoms
Some experts say that melatonin is effective if taken with standard medications like omeprazole, although this studies are preliminary, its worth trying melatonin 5mg at nighttime for a few months and see if it works, after all melatonin in this dosage has no known side effects.
Relaxation and Calming exercises may also help some people and taking Chamomile tea may be helpful.
Although complementary therapies maybe helpful one should not stop taking standard medications unless there is an advice from a medical doctor.
Disclaimer : The information contained in this article is provided for general information only, we recommend that you consult your physician or local treatment center before pursuing any course of treatment. Reading this article does not establish a Physician – Patient Relationship.