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Lifestyle and home remedies
By Mayo Clinic staffYou may find heartburn relief by making small changes. Consider trying to:
- Maintain a healthy weight. Excess pounds put pressure on your abdomen, pushing up your stomach and causing acid to back up into your esophagus. If your weight is healthy, work to maintain it. If you are overweight or obese, work to slowly lose weight — no more than 1 or 2 pounds (0.5 to 1 kilogram) a week. Ask your doctor for help devising a weight-loss strategy that will work for you.
- Avoid tightfitting clothing. Clothes that fit tightly around your waist put pressure on your abdomen and the lower esophageal sphincter.
- Avoid foods and drinks that trigger heartburn. Everyone has specific triggers, such as alcohol or tomato sauce. Avoid foods you know will trigger your heartburn.
- Eat smaller meals. Avoid overeating by eating smaller meals.
- Delay lying down after a meal. Wait at least two to three hours after eating before lying down or going to bed.
- Elevate the head of your bed. An elevation of about six to nine inches puts gravity to work for you. Place wood or cement blocks under the feet of your bed at the head end. If it's not possible to elevate your bed, you can insert a wedge between your mattress and box spring to elevate your body from the waist up. Wedges are available at drugstores and medical supply stores.
- Stop smoking. Smoking decreases the lower esophageal sphincter's ability to function properly.
References
- Heart burn. American Gastroenterological Society. http://www.gastro.org/wmspage.cfm?parm1=848. Accessed April 17, 2009.
- Ferri FF. Ferri's Clinical Advisor 2009: Instant Diagnosis and Treatment. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2009:1232.
- Eat right to avoid heartburn. American Dietetic Association. http://www.eatright.org/cps/rde/xchg/ada/hs.xsl/home_18578_ENU_HTML.htm. Accessed April 23, 2009.
- Feldman M, et al. Sleisenger & Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease: Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, Management. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2006:115.
- Lee RA. Anxiety. In: Rakel D. Integrative Medicine. 2nd ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2007. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/133303323-7/0/1494/0.html. Accessed April 23, 2009.
