The Causes, Symptoms And Treatment Of Acid Reflux
Acid reflux is the popular name given to GERD, or Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease. This is a condition that affects the mucus due to abnormal reflux. This disease affects infants, children and adults but is particularly severe on pregnant women, smokers and those who go to sleep immediately after meals.
You know that you have got an acid reflux problem when you experience some or all of these conditions - inflammation in the mucosa, chest pain, cough and hoarseness or difficulty in swallowing. These conditions manifest immediately after a fatty or spicy meal, drinking alcohol, when bending and the worst of all, when you are a heavy smoker.
While acid reflux is mostly caused by the malfunction of the esophageal sphincter, it can also be due to an excess production of gastric acids. An insufficient supply of stomach acid causes the valve responsible for agitating the food inside to aid digestion to malfunction. This causes the esophagus to get irritated and it gets inflamed.
Conditions of zollinger-elison syndrome, hypercalcemia, hiatus hernia, scleroderma and systemic sclerosis can also trigger off acid reflux.
It is generally believed that consuming tea, coffee or alcohol causes gastro esophageal reflux. Recent studies however show that these only aggravate the disease - these habits do not cause the disease. The worst offender appears to be smoking which seriously aggravates the condition, but doctors advise GERD affected people to avoid all three to prevent further aggravation.
The disease getting aggravated due to smoking seems to be the biggest problem. Compared to non-smokers, smokers of long standing are 70% more prone to aggravate GERD, if the disease manifests.
Another cause less known is the intake of table salts. This is almost as dangerous as smoking is, when you already suffer from GERD. Research shows that regular users of large quantities of table salt are 70% more likely to acquire GERD than those that don't. Gastroenterologists of the New York University Medical Center have confirmed this finding.
One can easily diagnose Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease when the symptoms appear. It is however advisable that medical advice is immediately sought and proper treatment taken. Treatment is likely to be the administration of antacids, or through natural means such as a change in diet and eating habits, sleeping with the head in a raised position, or as the last resort, surgery. It is also obvious, that you avoid smoking and drinking alcohol, if you have acquired GERD.
Prevention is better than cure. The considerable discomfort arising out of GERD that can affect your lifestyle can be avoided by adopting a proper diet and eating habits.
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