Treating Acid Reflux
Acid reflux is a horrible condition that is thankfully easy to treat with medication, home remedies, and simple lifestyle modifications. Acid reflux is treated via three methods: medication, surgical and lifestyle with lifestyle being the most effective manner in which to combat acid reflux.
Lifestyle & Diet: When it comes down to it, the most persistent cause of acid reflux is the patients’ diet. There are certain things that seem to exacerbate acid reflux, such as alcohol and caffeine. Both beverages stimulate the secretion of gastric acid from the stomach which can become even worse before the patient goes to bed. Ironically, antacids also can cause gastric instability in the stomach due to the calcium carbonate found in antacids. That’s not to say that antacids don’t reduce the amount of gastric acidity in the lower esophagus. Foods that have a high fatty content as well as smoking will actually weaken the esophageal sphincter – it should also be noted that fat will actually postpone the stomach from emptying.
Other dietary considerations include making sure that the patient eats two to three hours before they go to bed and avoid large meals with large portions. The best way to take a meal is to eat several smaller meals throughout the day so that there is a smaller amount of food in the stomach at any given time. Soda or other carbonated beverages also can cause acid reflux, as can peppermint, chocolate, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts, broccoli, tomatoes and tomato-based products as well as citrus fruits and juices such as orange juice and lemonade. Dairy has also proven to be a cause for concern as it can often cause the acid in the stomach to react due to the calcium within it as well as the fat when consumed two hours from bedtime.
Other Treatments
Other factors that help aid acid reflux is positional therapy, which mean that the patient actively try to adjust their posture when they sleep. For the most part this means making sure that the patient is sleeping on their let side but can also mean that the bed is somewhat elevated so that the body is not flat on the bed, but that the bed is somewhat elevated up to six to eight inches which helps keep the gastric acid from creeping up the esophagus. Other lifestyle choices to help reduce acid reflux include smoking cessation, weight reduction for the obese or heavy patient and avoiding tight fitting pants or garments if the patient is obese.
Medications: There are many medications out there on the market to help aid in acid reflux. Proton pump inhibitors have been the most effective means of reducing the secretions of acid reflux by stopping the secretion at the source. Gastric receptor blockers reduce the gastric secretion of acid and have a 50 percent chance of actually helping relieve the patient’s symptoms. Antacids are a popular over the counter drug to help relieve heartburn and can help reduce the amount of gastric acidity in the stomach.
Surgery: For the most part, surgery is common when it comes to gastric acid and its production. The procedure, known as the Nissen fundoplication, is when part of the stomach is wrapped around the esophageal sphincter, thus preventing acid reflux and repairing a hiatal hernia if that is indeed the case. Other procedures include a laparoscopically or in extreme cases a vagotomy may be called for. This is the complete removal of the vagus nerve branches that line the stomach though for the most part this has been replaced by medication. Other treatments include a transoral incisionless fundoplication which allows the physician to be able to rebuild the esophageal sphincter between the stomach and the esophageus.