Heartburn

[Buddy'sParents]

I suffer from it horribly.

It's a common side effect from a medication that I take and years ago I was given a pepcid prescription. I stopped taking the pepcid prescription when I found that zantax works 100% better, but now even zantax isn't working anymore. I'm taking at least one/day but more often two. It's gotten really bad. I have an appointment Thursday AM with my doctor because I am so fed up with it. I don't even have to eat anything acidic and I get heartburn, it's really frustrating. I try to avoid acidic foods as much as possible, but that doesn't even make a difference anymore. I've tried eating much smaller meals throughout the day thinking perhaps I was waiting too long between meals to eat, but I've had no luck with that either.

Anyone have any home remedies that help heartburn? I know about the baking soda one, but I can't stomach it at all. Anything is helpful at this point and I'm willing to try just about anything.

 

[bubbatd]

Have you had your gall bladder checked ????

 

[Adrienne]

Almonds. Chewing 6 or 8 blanched almonds during an episode of heartburn may relieve the symptoms. Chew them well, though, to avoid swallowing air and causing yourself more discomfort.

Cream of tartar. For an acid neutralizer, mix 1/2 teaspoon with 1/2 teaspoon baking soda in a glass of water. Take 1 teaspoon of the solution as needed.

Brown rice. Plain or with a little sweetening, rice can help relieve discomfort. Rice is a complex carbohydrate and is a bland food, which is less likely to increase acidity or relax the sphincter muscle

Soda crackers. This is an old folk cure that actually works. Soda crackers (preferably unsalted) are bland, they digest easily, and they absorb stomach acid. They also contain bicarbonate of soda and cream of tartar, which neutralize the acid. Tip: You know that package of soda crackers they always give you at the restaurant, that you leave on the table? From now on, take them with you. These come in handy when you're plagued by heartburn and can't seek immediate relief.

Apples. They cool the burn of stomach acid. Eat them fresh, with the skin still on, or cook them for desserts.

Apple honey. This is a simple remedy that will neutralize stomach acids. Peel, core, and slice several sweet apples. Simmer with a little water over low heat for three hours until the mixture is thick, brown, and sweet to the taste. Refrigerate in an airtight container and take a few spoonfuls whenever you have the need.

Buttermilk. This is an acid-reliever, but don't confuse it with regular milk, which can be an acid-maker, especially if you are bothered by lactose intolerance.

Cabbage. Like apples, this is a natural fire extinguisher for stomach burn. For the best relief, put the cabbage through a juicer, then drink it.

Fruit juices. Skip juices from citrus fruits, but try these stomach-cooling juices for heartburn relief: papaya, mango, guava, pear.

Papaya. Eat it straight to reap the benefit of its natural, indigestion-fighting enzyme papain. Or drink 1 cup papaya juice combined with 1 teaspoon sugar and 2 pinches cardamom to relieve acid.

Potato. Mix 1/2 cup raw potato juice with 1/2 cup water, and drink after meals. To make raw potato juice, simply put a peeled raw potato through a juicer or blender.

Pumpkin. Eat it baked as a squash to get rid of heartburn. Fresh is best. Spice it up with cinnamon, which is another heartburn cure. Or, make a compote of baked pumpkin and apples, spiced with cinnamon and honey, for a dessert that's both curative and tasty.

Yogurt. Make sure it has live cultures in it. Because of the helpful and digestive-friendly microorganisms in yogurt, it may sooth the acid-forming imbalances that can lead to heartburn.


Cardamom. This old-time digestive aid may help relieve the burn of acid indigestion. Add it to baked goodies such as sweet rolls or fruit cake, or sprinkle, with a pinch of cinnamon, on toast. It works well in cooked cereals, too.

Cinnamon. This is a traditional remedy for acid relief. Brew a cup of cinnamon tea from a cinnamon stick. Or try a commercial brand, but check the label. Cinnamon tea often has black tea in it, which is a cause of heartburn, so make sure your commercial brand doesn't contain black tea. For another acid-busting treat, make cinnamon toast.

Ginger. A tea from this root can soothe that burning belly. Add 1 1/2 teaspoons ginger root to 1 cup water; simmer for ten minutes. Drink as needed.

Sage. A sage tea can relieve stomach weakness that allows acid to be released back into the esophagus.

That's all I gots, lol. I hope one of them will help you!

 

[Barb04]

I read about this and it works for me. Chew a piece of gum. It gets your saliva going and helps to relieve the heartburn.

 

[Buddy'sParents]

Wow, Adrienne thanks for all of the suggestions!

I don't typically chew gum but I suppose there is some out there that should be okay enough to chew in times of need, lol.

Of course it happened this morning, so I had some saltines and that helped a little. We'll see how the rest of the day goes.

 

[wcladymacbeth]

Maybe you should get started on Prevacid or Nexium. Also, see if your doctor will check you for H. pylori, a bacteria that causes peptic ulcer disease. If it's that, then you can take some antibiotics and nexium for a while and experience significant relief long-term.

 

[Renee750il]

A couple of teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in some water. Nothing works for everyone, but this has a pretty high success rate.

 

[Buddy'sParents]

Thank you, wclady, I'll mention it tomorrow.

Renee- I can't gag that stuff down. yuck.

 

[PretzelDog]

How much water do you drink in a day? I have acid reflux/heartburn and find that keeping water in my stomack helps. I usually drink 3-5 500ml bottles a day.

 

[Buddy'sParents]

Oh I drink a ton of water. I always have a glass of water here at home or take my stainless steel water bottle when I leave the house. I'd say at least a gallon every day, but typically much more.

 

[filarotten]

ARD is not fun. I've had it for a few years now. I'm allergic to all the lovely prescription drugs that help and the ones that are over the counter. I tried the apple vinegar and found it started making me very nauseous plus it was just plain disgusting. Gum will help take the edge off for some people.

My best advice... Do not eat anything after 8 pm or at least 3 hours before bedtime. This really can make a difference in how much burn you have in your throat the next morning. Try enzymes and probiotics. Yogurt seems to help me, if I eat it regularly. Sometimes a beer or glass of wine will also help.

 

[Buddy'sParents]

*sigh*

She gave me a prescription for pepcid that i am supposed to take 2x/day and took a heck of a lot of blood for a long list of tests. I mentioned the meds you told me about wclady, but she said that would be the next step and she wanted to run the tests first.

Amazingly, I had no heartburn this morning.

Maybe I should just pay $15/day for an appointment because nothing ever seems to be wrong when I go to the doc. Hmph.

 

[J's crew]

Prilosec OTC. You can buy it at any pharmacy store. Works great for my husband.

My mom swears by drinking 3 oz. of Pure Aloe Veru Juice everyday tho. You can get that at GNC or a health food store.

 

[iwantmypup]

Agh, heartburn is hell. It's really one of the things that totallyyy ruins my day.

I second the Prilosec OTC, that's what I take and works like a charm. It's been great!

 

[wcladymacbeth]

Yeah, H2 blockers (pepcid and zantac) are the 1st step and most insurance companies refuse to cover nexium or prevacid until it's been documented that the patient failed on H2 blockers. So while pepcid may not work any better than zantac for you, when you go back to your doctor to check on your blood work, then if pepcid doesn't work, she'll be able to document that and send it to the insurance company so they cover the other meds. Also I bet one of the blood tests she's doing is to check for the H. pylori antibody.

So, don't be disheartened. Take the pepcid, or go out and get prilosec if you want to try that - it's a proton pump inhibitor like nexium and prevacid... BUT if you do that, don't tell your doctor that the pepcid worked

 

[Buddy'sParents]

Thank you wclady.

The OTC stuff I was taking was working, I was just taking 2/day. And it happened to be the same with the pepcid and is now the same with my prescription pepcid. I received most of my blood tests back, but I don't know what any of it means, lol. The only thing that caught my eye was my WBC was a little high.

I've also read about the aloe vera juice, I might give that a try.