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Acid Reflux – Do You Feel Pain Around Your Chest Area?

Posted on 06. Sep, 2008 by admin in Health Basics

Acid reflux, also known as gastro esophageal reflux disease or GERD, is a disorder that affects the digestive tract. It usually feels like a burning sensation around our breastbone. This burning sensation is also known as heartburn and this disease can affect adults and children, but it actually affects pregnant women, smokers and people who doze off right after eating.

The signs and symptoms of acid reflux are usually caused by chest pain, inflammation in the mucosa, feeling hard to swallow, cough and even hoarseness. It usually occurs to victims who ate a fatty meal and drinking liquor, especially when bending, and constantly smoking.

The primary cause of acid reflux is the malfunction of the esophageal sphincter. Other reasons include the abnormal production of gastric acids. For example, if there is insufficient acid in our stomach, the valve in the stomach would not open up. This would irritate the esophagus and leads to inflammation.

Other factors that can trigger acid reflux include hiatus hernia, zollinger-elison syndrome, hypercalcemia, scleroderma and systemic sclerosis.

In the past, people believe that drinking alcohol, tea and coffee can also lead to gastro esophageal reflux. However, recent studies show that alcohol, tea and coffee have the least impact of amplifying the disease. Still, people who are infected with GERD should avoid taking these beverages. Doctors still advocate patients to avoid drinking of alcohol at all cost to reduce aggravation.

Having said that, patients should really avoid smoking as smoking is the chief culprit of acid reflux disease. According to statistics, regular smokers that have been smoking for 20 years are 70% more susceptible to acid reflux disease compared to non-smokers. And to the people who are contracted with GERD, their health conditions worsen due to smoking.

The epitome of the research states that people taking great amounts of salts have higher possibilities to be affected with GERD. It’ is known that they are 70% at risk to be likely to be affected by acid reflux disease. This is found out to be the same as people who have been smoking. Gastroenterologists of New York University Medical Center attested this fact.

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One can easily diagnose whether if he or she is infected with Gastro esophageal reflux disease just by observing the appearance of the symptoms. If you find that you are infected with the symptoms, it is advised that one should undergo treatment to be cleared of any doubts of contracting the disease. Doctors usually prescribed drugs such as antacids, or by natural way such as changing the diet, elevation of head when lying down, or even surgery in the worst case scenario. And definitely, it is for one’s interest to stop smoking and reduce the amount of salt intake especially to those people who are more vulnerable to acid reflux disease.

Gastro esophageal reflux disease can cause a lot of discomfort and even ruin your lifestyle. To avoid the bad effects and consequences, one should take precautionary measures against the disease. The cliché quote that prevention is better than cure applies always.

Tags: Acid Reflux, heartburn