Monday, April 23, 2012

Acid Reflux Factoids – What You Need To Know

Acid reflux is a condition nobody wants to experience — it can be very uncomfortable and distressing. Treat it not and the condition can escalate to a chronic state, and symptoms can reoccur even after being remiss for a good period of time.

Gastro-esophageal reflux disease, also referred to as acid reflux, is a physiological condition that causes the regurgitation of the stomach content into the esophagus and throat. An unbalanced diet, physical and emotional duress and an unhealthy quality of life are considered the most common causes of acid reflux in an individual.

Acid reflux has the potential to become exacerbated, especially if the patient in question is a chronic sufferer. However, the main cause for acid reflux is apparently a lack of physiological congruence in the sphincter area, which may include, but not be limited to a weakness in the lower esophageal sphincter, unfettered sphincter contractions or the sphincter’s irregular positioning which could cause low levels of pressure at the bottom of the esophagus. If this is ever the cause of acid reflux, an individual’s best option is to undergo surgery to correct the abnormality, or some other medical procedure that can normalize one’s physiological balance.

The best way of controlling the condition is through the means of good diet. Appropriate diet has a great importance in preventing and controlling acid reflux. Because it is known that the inordinate production of stomach fluid can lead to such an uncomfortable state, having an appropriate diet could be just the salve a sufferer needs to circumvent acid reflux and its symptoms. The following foods are strictly forbidden in a good diet against acid reflux: milk, fatty foods, caffeine and caffeine byproducts, alcoholic beverages, cigarette smoking, fried foods and spicy foods.

Other means of controlling the symptoms of acid reflux are medications and surgery. Medical treatments include all kinds of drugs (antacids, histamine antagonists, proton pump inhibitors, etc) that can be effective in preventing the gastric acids from reaching inside the esophagus. Surgery on the esophagus is supposed to be a procedure that generates permanent results. If abnormal activity of the lower esophageal sphincter is the cause of acid reflux, surgery can improve its functioning either by tightening the inner walls of the esophagus in order to increase pressure, or by reshaping the sphincter to better seal the lower end of the esophagus.

Anybody can get acid reflux at any point in their lives, regardless of gender or physical make-up. Typically acid reflux is a condition associated with infancy and early childhood, but there are millions of teenagers, adults and those of advanced age who suffer from this condition. It is important to act quickly when suffering from acid reflux, as it can lead to complications. Acid reflux can mutate and transmogrify into other types of diseases if not treated expediently, such as lesions in the throat, further gastrointestinal concerns, esophageal deterioration, problems in breathing and sleep apnea.

 If acid reflux does get aggravated, it is quite possible for its symptoms to become more dramatic and pronounced. If an individual suffers from chronic acid reflux, symptoms are more than likely to recidivate and surgery or other forms of continuous treatment may become de rigueur in order to properly and completely cure the condition.



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Sunday, April 22, 2012

Some Acid Reflux Causes You Should Be Aware Of

 Is your life affected by acid reflux? Is heartburn something you occasionally suffer from?

In some cases, an attack is triggered by lack of sleep. The body needs roughly eight hours of sleep every night. This time is used to relax and repair your body from the stresses of the day. Not resting enough can cause problems for your mind and body. In some cases, your mental function becomes impaired.

 Lack of sleep can also result in a lack of coordination. Without enough sleep, your stomach may produce more acid which increases your chances of suffering from an acid reflux attack. If you get enough sleep, the frequency of your attacks should decrease.

Do you exercise regularly? While doing certain exercises too strenuously can trigger an attack, not exercising is another acid reflux trigger. This is because, when you don’t exercise, your body gets sluggish. A sluggish body is not able to process the stomach acid that builds up properly and this can lead to an acid reflux attack. Try to get at least a little bit of exercise every day. The exercise does not need to be high impact-a brisk walk is often enough.

Acid reflux is a really annoying disorder to have. While it usually doesn’t stop you from leading an almost completely normal life, there will be times when you can be out of commission for a few hours. This usually only occurs if you are experiencing a particularly bad attack.

Thankfully you can do quite a lot to cut down on the acid reflux causes in your life. A few are discussed in this article.

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Saturday, April 21, 2012

Acid Reflux and Vinegar - Does It Work?

Millions of people have the symptoms of acid reflux each and every year. It may be that because of high fat, high sugar diets that acid reflux is becoming more and more common.

  It does not help that a growing number of people are becoming less active than they used to be.

Acid reflux can be referred to as a bad case of heart urn that keeps coming back. It is thought that an increase in abdominal pressure is the reason for the reflux. The pressure does not allow the esophageal sphincter to close properly and the stomach contents are able to flow back up along with the stomach acids. These things irritate the throat and cause horrible pain.

There are many over the counter and also prescription medications that work for acid reflux. Many sufferers are not using the medications; instead they are choosing to go on a more natural route. They feel that the side effects and cost could be avoided with natural remedies.

Acid Reflux and Vinegar: A User-Beware Homeopathic Remedy
Apple cider vinegar may be an all natural remedy for acid reflux. There have been many different people that have stories of the acid reflux and vinegar working. You can find stories like these on message boards devoted to acid reflux. You would think that the vinegar would be more acidic to the stomach and the two would work against each other. There is no real correlation between the vinegar and the acid reflux.

It is thought the acid reflux and apple cider vinegar remedy may be helpful to the acid reflux because of the fact that acid reflux may be from low acid in the stomach and not high acid. It may be that the undigested food will ferment in the stomach because the level of acid is low for proper digestion. The vinegar may help to add acid to the digestion process and speed things along. This action then reduces the acid reflux symptoms. However, the acid reflux and vinegar remedy has not been properly tested and is only a theory.

It is also thought by some that the vinegar acts as a placebo with the acid reflux. If many people say it works then you will think that it has to work too. Placebo means that it does not have any effect, and in the case of acid reflux and vinegar, you use your mind to make this particular remedy work. In clinical trials for medication, the placebo is given as the actual drug and participants think it is the real thing. It is usually a sugar pill with no medicinal value. The participants expect the placebo to be the actual medication and do what the medication does.

Some of the acid reflux sufferers do not even care if the acid reflux and apple cider vinegar remedy really works. They just want it to work. They simply want to feel better, to not experience acid reflux anymore. Thus, they tend to try many different things to find that relief, including homeopathic remedies like the acid and vinegar remedy. Vinegar will probably not cause any side effects to acid reflux sufferers who take the acid reflux and vinegar remedy in reasonable quantities.

However, there are a number of acid reflux sufferers who have reported that the acid reflux and vinegar remedy did not work for them; they reported that the vinegar only exacerbated their acid reflux and the pain that accompanies it.






 
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