Funnily enough, heartburn doesn’t have much to do with your heart. Heartburn occurs due to the release of stomach acid (also referred to as regurgitated gastric acid) into the esophagus and can be painful, annoying, and inconvenient. It got its name from the fact that this burning sensation often occurs right behind your breastbone, where your heart is located. This awful sensation often expands to the throat and even the mouth. If you have ever experienced heartburn you might be having flashbacks to that awful taste in your mouth and we apologize if that is the case.
There are a variety of ways to help prevent heartburn before it happens
Although the most common treatment for heartburn is a trusty (and easy) antacid, there are a variety of ways to help prevent heartburn before it happens. The fact is, it antacids might help you out short term but it is much more beneficial to stop heartburn before it takes place since there are negative long-term effects, including the deterioration of your esophagus from having your stomach acid essentially eat away at it.
Continue reading to learn ten different ways to help prevent heartburn.
1. Avoid Late Meals
In order to properly digest properly, your body relies on gravity in order to help allow for food to move down your digestive track. Therefore, it is important to sit up straight while eating and why it is not ideal to take a snooze right after eating (even though it is commonplace to take a nap after lunch in some countries like Italy). Although it might be hard at first, try not to eat a minimum of four hours before hitting the hay.
If this isn’t feasible and you feel the need to eat something closer to going to bed, do yourself a favor and eat a small snack. This way you do not overwork your digestive system and increase the likelihood of experiencing heartburn. Also, avoid caffeinated drinks closer to bedtime, not only can they keep you up but they can also increase your chances of heartburn.
