Chest and throat burning And Heartburn Home Remedies

When we eat food, stomach acid moves down the body along with the food. If the opposite happens, i.e. the stomach acid goes up into the throat instead of down, then we feel heartburn. This is called acid reflux or heartburn . Many of us call it gastric, gastric pain or acidity.

If such burning occurs repeatedly, then this disease is called gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (gastro-oesophageal reflux disease).

Symptoms of acid reflux

The main symptoms are:

Heartburn. Burning sensation in the middle of the chest.
An unpleasant sour taste in the mouth, due to the stomach acid coming into the mouth.

You may also have other symptoms:

flatulence,
nausea,
Repeated coughing or hiccups,
hoarse voice,
Bad breath.

Symptoms may become more severe after eating, sleeping, or being overweight.

Causes heartburn

Many people experience heartburn from time to time for no particular reason. However, sometimes certain things trigger or increase the intensity of this burning sensation. For example:

Certain foods and drinks – fatty or spicy foods, coffee, chocolate, alcohol, etc.
smoking,
stress and anxiety,
Being overweight,
pregnancy,
Hiatus hernia is a disease in which part of the stomach protrudes into the chest.
Some medicines such as ibuprofen. If you are taking these medicines on doctor’s advice, do not under any circumstances stop the medicines on your own without doctor’s advice.

Heartburn Home Remedies

You can cure or reduce acid reflux by making some simple changes in your daily life. For example:

This problem is more if you eat on a full stomach. Eat small meals throughout the day.
Avoid eating foods or drinks that aggravate your problem.
Do not eat anything within 3-4 hours before going to bed at night.
While sleeping in bed, your head and chest should be 10-20 cm higher than waist. It prevents stomach acid from reaching the throat. Do not prop up your head with a pillow. Raise one side of the bed with something under the mattress or under the bed and put your head on that side.
Don’t wear clothes that are tight around the waist.
If you are overweight, lose it.
Do not smoke.
Do something that calms your mind regularly.
Do not take ibuprofen or aspirin by itself, as these drugs can worsen indigestion. But if you are taking these medicines on the doctor’s advice, then by no means stop the medicines on your own without the doctor’s advice.

If you have heartburn, when should you seek medical help?

If lifestyle changes do not help.
If this problem occurs almost every day for 3 weeks or more.
If you feel severe pain.
If aged 55 years or above.
If other symptoms occur, such as:

Unexplained weight loss
Stinging of food in the throat or difficulty in swallowing food,
frequent vomiting,
Vomiting or passing blood in stools, black stools or dark brown things like coffee beans in vomit,
feeling like a wheel in the stomach,
Suffering from iron deficiency anemia.

The doctor will check if your symptoms are due to any serious disease and give you appropriate treatment.

How can doctors help you?

The doctor may give you a medicine called an antacid to reduce the symptoms. It is best to take this medicine with or immediately after food, as this is when heartburn is most likely to occur. Taking it with food may also increase the duration of the drug’s effectiveness.

Your doctor may also prescribe other medications that reduce the amount of acid your stomach makes. For example:

Omeprazole
Lansoprazole

You may be given one of these medications for a couple of months to see if your symptoms improve.

If your symptoms worsen after stopping the medication, definitely go back to your doctor. You may need to take the medicine for a longer period of time.

Tests and operations performed

If your symptoms are more severe or medication is not helping, you may be referred to a specialist doctor. What the specialist doctor can do is:

A test called a gastroscopy, in which a thin tube with a camera is inserted through the throat, can be used to find out the cause of the problems. Many people know this test as an endoscopy.
An operation to stop acid reflux, called laparoscopic fundoplication. This operation is done by opening the stomach without cutting the stomach.