In the article below, an experienced nutritionist gives you the explanations on the vinegars that should not be consumed by heartburn patients, and another kind of vinegar that actually works to significantly reduce your medical impairment besides being a good supplement for your food plan. In essence, we answer the question of the relevance or not of vinegar in your food plan against heartburn. There are many varieties of vinegars available for western consumers, but medical and paramedical practitioners are unanimous in their belief that just one of them is suitable for sufferers of heartburn.



Let's start by defining Heartburn as the painful burning sensation in the region of the throat or the thorax, often accompanied by a bitter or sour taste. Heartburn may indicate GERD (gastro esophageal reflux disease). Severe cases of GERD may also be identified by swallowing difficulties, bouts of asthma, weight loss and a chronically hoarse voice. Neglect or lack of proper treatment of GERD may make things even worse. The next phase is a state called Barrett's esophagus with the threat of cancer of the esophagus in addition. Even if people who are quite healthy also sometimes get heartburn (less than once a week), chronic heartburn strongly suggests GERD, or acid reflux, as it is also known.

In a healthy organism, a ring-like muscle allows food and drink to pass one way into the stomach, but then shuts off any reverse flow of stomach contents. Certain factors, detailed below, can weaken this muscle, leaving stomach juices free to get back into the esophageal cavity (this is what we term acid reflux), doing internal damage and leading to heartburn. In medical jargon, this ring like muscle is the LES (lower esophageal sphincter), and the complaint is termed gastro esophageal reflux disease. Therefore it is the role of the LES as a valve of muscle to shut off the esophagus from the stomach.

The multitude of causes of GERD means complex direct and indirect actions, as well as the interconnections between primary and secondary factors. Some factors initiate the problem, others simply make an existing problem worse. Factors liable to bring about GERD include:

1. Gastric acid production above normal levels. Often due to a genetic deficiency, the human body may over produce gastric acid, which is then that much more liable to flow back into the esophagus to corrode the inner walls.

2. Excessive growth of Candida, In certain contexts, Candida is no longer controlled properly and engages in explosive growth, overrunning the immune system and developing in excess of 79 different toxins that in turn can cause the body to malfunction in a number of ways, one of which is GERD. Candida is the mono-cellular fungal microbe found in virtually all human bodies (genitals and intestines are favorite dwelling places), in quantities that are usually kept under control by the natural flora and associated systems in the body.

It is a proven fact, in addition to the above, that a number of foods make the situation worse and stimulate Candida overgrowth. Together with white flour and sugar (and other refined carbohydrates of this type), these dangerous foods include most kinds of vinegar, including balsamic, wine, white and malt vinegar. The reason is that all these vinegars are acid-forming when consumed, thus pushing up the degree of acidity of the intestines and the blood. This then provokes acid reflux and worsens its level of severity.

The exception to this however comes from organic apple cider vinegar. This vinegar can significantly lessen esophageal inflammation and act on Candida to bring the level back down. It can also restore the alkali balance in your digestive tract, which the other vinegars cannot do either.

The only reliable possibility to stop heartburn from recurring is to directly treat the inner, underlying factors directly causing the acid reflux. This helps to explain why there is no instant remedy for heartburn itself as this is a symptom which itself is caused by a number of other internal factors.

The one solution that will bring the required results is an all-natural, holistic one.