If you are frequent suffer of heartburn and acid reflux you will be in need of information to help you alleve the pain caused by acid reflux and heartburn. You may not be able to completely get rid of heartburn and acid reflux but there are some tips and guidelines you can follow to make sure that you can live with acid reflux and heartburn. Learning to cope with acid reflux and heartburn can greatly increase your enjoyment of life, here are a few tips to help you out with acid reflux and heartburn.

A Few Useful Tips

One should eat just six small meals rather than eat three big meals as it will prevent the stomach from getting too full as well as limit gastric pressure. One should also eat slowly. Another useful tip is to not eat or drink for a minimum of two hours before going to bed at night. Taking naps should be done by sleeping in a chair because, if one lies down on a full stomach, it may cause the contents of the stomach to press hard against the lower sphincter muscle and, thus increase the possibility of refluxed food.

When a person suffers from heartburn acid reflux, he or she should avoid foods that are known to cause heartburn. Many foods as well as beverages can trigger heartburn and, it could be because of increased acid production as well as gastric pressure or because the lower sphincter muscle gets loosened up. Drinking alcohol is another no-no since alcohol increases the production of acid in the stomach. Alcohol can also relax the lower esophageal sphincter and, thus allow stomach contents to reflux and reverse into the esophagus.

Antacids work fast on heartburn acid reflux and, an H2 blocker can work longer and, last as much as 12 hours. If they do not work, the doctor may recommend using a proton pump inhibitor. One should sleep with the head and shoulders on an incline as a higher head that is above the stomach will help reduce pressure and, keep the contents of the stomach in the stomach itself. Not wearing tight clothes around the stomach and waist is also necessary as it will not squeeze the stomach contents and, thus not reflux the food into the esophagus.

If you are a smoker and you suffer from frequent acid relux and heart you should try to refrain from smoking as much as you possibly can. Smoking will will stimulate the acid that is produced in your stomach and will make the symptoms worse. Also, stress can be a major factor in acid reflux and heartburn. Avoiding stress may be easier said than done but if you learn skills to reduce stress your level of acid reflux and heartburn should drop.