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7 Ways to Prevent Heartburn
Everyone knows that an ounce of prevention is worth more than a pound of cure. So how can you prevent heart burn in the first place?
Studies have shown that chronic heartburn can lead to Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD). And that, in turn, can cause tooth decay, throat ulcers, and, potentially, esophageal cancer.
Over-the-counter antacids like Tums or pepcid ac my provide symptomatic relief, nothing is being done about what is causing the heart burn. The problem is they decrease the amount of acid in your stomach that your body needs to digest your food and prevent bacteria and other “bugs” in the air from getting into your system.
In a recent review of over 2,000 studies published in the Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers found that simple lifestyle changes can reduce the incidence of heartburn. The two that are most effective are to
1. Lose weight and
2. Elevate the head of your bed by 6 to 8 inches. (Simply using pillows to raise your head doesn't seem to work as well.)
5 other things you can do that can help.
3. Take a natural acid or supplement to help increase the amount of HCL (stomach acid) in your stomach.
Now, I know at first thought, this may seem contradictory to helping your problem. But let me explain:
You have two types of acid your stomach can produce. HCL and Phosphoric Acid. HCL is what your stomach normally makes to digest your food. IF everything is working fine, you have no problems. But often what happens is you are not making enough HCL so your body begins making Phosphoiric Acid. And Phosphoric Acid is actually what causes the ulcers, heart burn, and all that other nasty stuff. So when you get your body producing more HCL, the heart burn and other things like it often go away.
This is why things like antacids usually make it worse, even thought they help reduce the symptoms.
In my opinion, this option is the most important to increasing your health and eliminating heart burn naturally.
4. Drink adequate amounts of pure water. Drink enough so your urine is clear or light yellow .
5. Chew one or two cloves of raw, fresh garlic daily to eradicate H. pylori (a bacteria that commonly infects the stomach).
6. Avoid sugar and refined carbohydrates.
7. Take a high-quality probiotic supplement (which encourages "friendly" bacteria to grow). |
