Heartburn is such a common affliction that, at one time, a medicine made for heartburn treatment was one of the most popular medicines sold in the world. There are a lot of treatments for heartburn, but most tend to range somewhere in the middle of the road, usually involving combinations of antacids and drugs.
Of course, there are treatments for heartburn at the extreme ends of the spectrum as well, for those who do not suffer from severe heartburn or for those who suffer from severe chronic heartburn. To get an idea of the wide range of heartburn treatments, here are examples at both ends of the spectrum.
For Mild Cases
For light cases of heartburn, all you really need are a few lifestyle changes and maybe a bottle of antacid around for when things are extra bad. Heartburn can result from eating many different kinds of food, particularly spicy foods or fatty foods. So the best treatments for heartburn, when the cases are mild, are to avoid those foods or to eat them only in moderation. Since extra weight can create conditions favorable for heartburn, moderating your diet is a good idea in the first place.
There are other lifestyle changes that help as treatments for mild heartburn, such as eating no later than three hours before bed, since the closer to your bedtime you eat, the more likely you will be to have episodes of heartburn at night. Even in cases where people suffer heavily from heartburn, simple things like these make great additions to standard treatments.
For Heavy Cases
If the heartburn is severe or recurs often, or if the heartburn is the result of something called a hiatal hernia, doctors may prescribe the most severe of heartburn treatments, that of surgery. In cases like this, doctors will fix the hernia and then, if needed, tighten the opening in the diaphragm, the sheet of muscle in your torso that lets you breathe, so that the sphincter at the end of the esophagus is tighter.
In addition, the stomach may be wrapped around the lower esophagus, making a twist that allows food to go down, but makes it much harder for acid to go back up the esophagus, which is the cause of heartburn. Of course, if you suffer from heartburn, from mild to severe, be sure to discuss with your physician the possible heartburn treatments and test them out, so you can get to feeling better.
