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Heartburn is a burning agony starting behind the breastbone and radiating upwards.  The hydrochloric acid from the gut leaks into the esophagus and causes heartburn.  Occasional heartburn due to rich food or other lifestyle causes is assessed as mild or episodic.  Heartburn occurring twice or more in a week is moderate or frequent.  Everyday issues even with a correct diet and approach to life is severe or prolonged.  5 to 15 percent of heartburn sufferers suffer from persistent heartburn.  

Chronic heartburn is due to the lower esophagus sphincter muscle tone becoming puny, or eroded by stomach acid, and the one-way valve isn’t able to seal the acid within the gut.  It could also be caused by other things like motility problems, high stress, the liner of esophagus becoming sensitive, and repeated medication for other lingering conditions.  

In some extreme cases, the mere act of bending down will bring acid into the esophagus.  If the prolonged condition prevails for long, it may lead to tricky conditions like trouble in swallowing, coarseness of the throat, chronic laryngitis, breathing Problems like asthma or pneumonia, dreadful cough, and others.  

Before prolonged heartburn is diagnosed it is important to rule out more serious illnesses which cause heartburn only as a symptom.  These include hiatal hernia, GERD, peptic ulcer, gall bladder disease, gastritis and a tear in the esophagus.  Enquiry for these ailments wants in depth hardware and experts.  

Prolonged heartburn is treated with strict lifestyle changes, which include modifying eating and sleeping habits, avoiding stress, finishing smoking, reducing weight, avoiding pressure on the belly, and exercising.  

Over The Counter medication with antacids, H2 blockers and proton pump inhibitors can be used as short- and medium-term relief from heartburn.  But the major objective of the doctor will be to prescribe and manage it in the long term.  

Treatment for chronic heartburn involves total commitment from the patient to go along with the physician’s recommendation and take the prescribed medication till the consultant stops it.  If all else fails to overcome chronic heartburn, surgery may be the last resort.  This is done to tighten the LES muscles and prevent acid from leaking into the esophagus.

Natural Heartburn Treatment? ACID REFLUX DISEASE DIET? Use just Two simple food items! Foods to avoid with acid reflux

This entry was posted on Sunday, August 1st, 2010 at 8:41 am and is filed under Diseases, Conditions and Treatments. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.