Heartburn: What Is It and How To Avoid It
On any occasion and family gatherings, food is served, and you can indulge in it. Holidays and Thanksgiving are just around the corner, and eating will be one of your favorite activities during this period. Despite the joyous greetings and white elephant that's going to take place probably by your fireplace, your gut might feel something because of too much food. Aside from getting bloated, you might experience heartburn.
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According to Medline Plus, heartburn is a painful burning feeling in the chest or throat that happens when stomach acid backs up into our esophagus, the tube or passageway of the food from the mouth to the stomach. They added that having heartburn more than twice a week might be GERD or Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease. This digestive disorder happens when acidic stomach juices, food, or fluids comes back up to the esophagus as defined by the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology.
American College of Gastroenterology said that more than 60 million Americans are having heartburn at least once a month. They added that some studies propose that more than 15 million Americans experience heartburn symptoms every day. It might be troublesome to have that painful sensation in your chest when the party starts, right? Here are some of the food that triggers heartburn you can avoid or lessen to avoid heartburn this holiday season.
Alcohol
According to Active Beat, alcohol can be a massive trigger for heartburn attacks, and red wine and beer are likely to cause acid reflux. They emphasized alcohol can relax the esophageal sphincter, allowing the stomach acid to crawl back up in the esophagus. They further said that a large meal with alcohol is a bad idea because it heightens your acid reflux risk. So if you want to enjoy alcohol this holiday season, eat in smaller portions.
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High-fat foods
Healthline mentioned that high-fat foods, sadly including avocados, cheese, and nuts, could cause heartburn. Healthline added that these foods could heighten the risk of heartburn in two ways. First is fats also relaxes the esophageal sphincter that acts as a barrier between the esophagus and stomach. Second, they trigger the release of cholecystokinin (CCK), a hormone that can also relax the barrier between the stomach and the esophagus.
Spicy foods
Although chili peppers have health benefits, spicy foods can still cause heartburn. According to Healthline, spicy foods and chili peppers have capsaicin that can slow the digestion rate, which means food will sit longer inside the gut longer that can cause the risk of heartburn. They added that capsaicin can irritate the esophagus and can worsen heartburn symptoms.
Tomatoes
This lycopene-rich fruit can also cause heartburn. According to Active Beat, fresh or canned tomatoes are high in acid that can upset the stomach causing acid reflux while digesting the food.
Citrus Juices
Healthline mentioned a study where 382 people with heartburn as respondents. They added that 67% of them had heartburn after drinking or consuming orange juice. Active beat added that orange juice and other citrus juices are rich in acid.
If you can't avoid these foods this holiday, then try to consume a little bit less so that you will not experience acid reflux or heartburn in the chest once the fun happens in your home.
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Nov 13, 2020 06:00 PM EST
