Pillows and Position as Immediate Remedy for Acid Reflux?

When we eat, the contents in the stomach normally proceed into the intestines with the aid of digestive muscle contractions. However, for those who have acid reflux disease, the digestive contents travel back into the esophagus. And since the digestive materials contain acids, a patient suffers from inflammation in the throat which may be associated with pains in the abdomen and breastbone. Other symptoms include dyspepsia, vomiting, regurgitation, and respiratory-related indicators.

We who have Acid Reflux deal with this disease almost every day! Acid reflux is a chronic health condition. Once it has started to transmit in the body, it will continue to inhabit indefinitely. Although treatments are available, symptoms usually tend to be applied repeatedly. And this means that treatments also need to be employed recurrently.

Its all in the stomach apparently. The act of stomach liquids backing up into the esophagus is actually normal. It also happens to those without acid reflux disease. In the case of acid reflux patients, however, the stomach contents have more acid than the normal and that the acid tends to stay in the esophagus in a longer period of time. That can’t be good, right?!

Surely the body has a way to deal with this problem – right? The human body, of course, has its own mechanisms to lessen the harmful effects brought about by the refluxed acids. An example of such is the salivary glands found in the mouth. These glands produce saliva, a liquid which contains bicarbonate. When we swallow, the saliva containing bicarbonates passes through the esophagus. Who new that our saliva played such an important role in this?

And these Bicarbonates do exactly what? Bicarbonates have the ability to neutralize acids, which may have remained after an earlier regurgitation. Also, studies have shown that most cases of reflux happen during daytime. At this time, individuals are usually on an upright position. With the aid of gravity, reflux is minimized because the stomach contents are held back down. Moreover, when awake, individuals recurrently swallow. And this practice maximizes the benefits that saliva does in reducing the level of acids in the throat. We surely did not know all this about Acid Reflux – did you?

Of course the body does find ways to protect itself. The mentioned natural ways of the body to protect itself are important in the maintenance of the esophagus. But saliva, swallowing, and gravity can only work when a person is in an upright position. During night time, when individuals are asleep, gravity cannot help much. Also, the saliva secretion is trimmed down and swallowing does not take place.

It is for these reasons why acid reflux which comes about at night becomes more severe sore in the esophagus because the acids stay longer and therefore do more damage to it. Very interesting all this acid reflux information we were not aware of!

So who does experience acid reflux? Acid reflux can be more susceptible to the pregnant and obese. The increased levels of hormones during pregnancy and high levels of fats in the body can induce acid reflux because of the pressure in the lower esophageal sphincter, a muscle that prevents the stomach contents from moving back to the esophagus, is reduced.

 As such, it will be easier for the partially digested contents to come back because less force is holding them back down. In addition, for the pregnant women, the pressure in the abdomen rises due to the developing fetus in the womb.

So, in conclusion, just how do we best deal with acid reflux? There are ways to help the body minimize the occurrences of reflux. One of the easiest to implement is positional therapy. This is done by elevating the head and the torso when in a sleeping position. Pillows, which are readily available, can be positioned to raise the torso at about six to eight inches. This position can provide maximum effectiveness in holding back reflux. Surveys have shown that the use of increased recommended elevation results to greater efficiency. Perhaps now is the best time to go buy a few extra pillows!

Knowing your Body - Acid Reflux Disease Symptoms...

Acid reflux disease is a condition in which the stomach acids abnormally reflux into the esophagus. This phenomenon is irregularly experienced by most people, most especially after eating. Our body uses gastric and stomach acids to break down the food that we eat.

Normally, after the digestion in the stomach, the food is delivered by the digestive muscles to the intestines for extra digestion.

But in patients who have acid reflux disease, the acidic stomach contents are moved back to the esophagus, which then causes inflammation. Cigarettes, alcohol, caffeine, pregnancy, and fatty foods are some factors which worsens acid reflux conditions. Our present knowledge about acid reflux based on medical researches tells us that this disease is common in men as it is in women. There is no sexual preference. Moreover, the prevalence of acid reflux is more frequent in people of 40 years of age or more.

Symptoms of acid reflux may be typical or atypical. But based on the diagnosis of acid reflux patients, only 70% of those who have this disease manifest typical symptoms. Typical or esophageal symptoms concern indicators which are related with the esophagus. Such symptoms include the following: Heartburn. This is a condition in which the patient feels a painful burning feeling in the esophagus. The pain often develops in the chest and may swell to the neck or throat.

This is most probable to occur in relation with these activities: after a heavy meal, lifting, bending over, and lying down. Based on one study, about 75% of acid reflux patients experience this symptom at night. These nigh-time patients also tend to experience more harsh pain than those whose symptom occurs at other times. Dyspepsia. Researches show that about half of acid reflux patients have dyspepsia.

This is a syndrome which consists of pain and distress in the upper abdomen, nausea after a meal, and stomach fullness. It is not a rule however, that those who have dyspepsia have acid reflux. Regurgitation.

This is when the gastric contents back up into the pharynx and sometimes as far as the mouth. In cases where the acids have spilled into the tracheobronchial tree, respiratory complications can be stimulated. There are many instances, though, that acid reflux patients do not manifest symptoms such as regurgitation and heartburn. Instead, they experience atypical or extraesophageal symptoms which include the following:

Throat Symptoms. Although it does not commonly happen, acid reflux patients suffer from symptoms that occur in the throat. Hoarseness, the feeling of having a lump in the throat, dry cough are undergone by those who have acid laryngitis, a throat symptom. Patients can also have difficulty in swallowing, a condition known as dysphagia. In critical cases, the food may get trapped in the throat or even choke, which can result to a severe chest pain.

Other throat symptoms are chronic sore throat and persistent hiccups. Vomiting and Nausea. When a patient suffers from nausea which persists for weeks, he may have acid reflux. There are few instances where vomiting can occur as often as once a day. Respiratory Symptoms.

Coughing and wheezing are counted as respiratory symptoms. These result from the overrunning of the stomach acids into the tracheobronchial tree creating bronchoconstriction. Acid reflux disease can last for several months if not given proper medical attention.

Drug treatment may only be required for a short time. But when the symptoms tend to repetitively occur, the drug treatment may have to be reapplied.

Why Natural Remedies Are Healthier And Cheaper

You are probably comfortable with the high cost of health care insurance nowadays. Even when your employer will cover any much of your health care insurance, you’ve got undoubtedly seen those deductions going up, the co-pays getting higher, while the overall excellence of the healthcare has not yet improved significantly. A sizable element of for the reason that with the variety of drugs and chemicals which are prescribed for even the most minor of ailments, and also the costs of such prescription medications is stratospheric and obtaining higher all the time.

Exactly what do you decide to do about it? One of the things you ought to seriously consider so that costs manageable is Natural Remedies. These are typically remedies that have been around for hundreds or even thousands of years. Remember, people which were found then had a number of these same ailments that you’re dealing with, they usually needed a way to deal with them and alleviate the pain sensation. Ab muscles interesting thing about this is the fact the majority of natural health remedies are available as OTC (Which are non-prescription) medications which do not have to have a doctor’s prescription, and lots of have been found being every bit as effective (or higher effective) than their prescription high-priced counterparts.

You may have to search for a local health store to seek out a few things, and you can be assured how the fees are gonna be a really pleasant surprise, when compared with what we buy their prescription equivalents, they usually do not contain nearly countless (or any in any respect) nasty unwanted effects. Such as, for those who have a migraine, you might have browse the warnings to the prescription medication, something about “may cause vomiting, dizziness, drowsiness, diarrhea, and/or cravings for artichokes”. Let’s understand this – by solving one problem, I am introducing five others? No thank you, I would personally rather keep with the migraine.

Natural options is there to fix many different problems. And as opposed to nasty unwanted effects, treatments can produce some POSITIVE unwanted effects. Such as, some treatments for headaches will even produce better circulation of blood and work out the delivery of oxygen on the cells with the body more efficient.

Should you suffer from insomnia, perhaps you are taking some sort of medication so that available some rest in the evening which means you will not be totally toasted at the office and will be functional. But the truth is ought to know that the natural remedy Valerian is non-toxic along with providing a considerably improved sleep quality in the evening.