Do You Have Severe Heartburn?
You may have thought that you had just a simple case of heartburn, but as of late, it seems to be more serious: a recurrent feeling of pain and pressure beneath your breastbone, the taste of acid on the back of your tongue and in your throat, occasional trouble sleeping, and difficulty swallowing. Your heartburn seems to be made worse when you nap on the couch following dinner, when you have imbibed with your favorite alcoholic beverage, or when you eat too much.
Although some foods bother you more than others, those enchiladas you ate last night kept you tossing and turning and brought on chest pains. You have severe heartburn, likely associated with gastro esophageal reflux disease, also known as GERD or just acid reflux.
Some Heartburn is Normal
It is important to remember that not all cases of heartburn are cause for concern; everyone has a little bit of heartburn from time to time. However, when your heartburn becomes severe, or is considered chronic and occurs two or three times a week (or even more) or when it interferes with your lifestyle to the point that you must avoid certain foods, or severe heartburn is effecting your ability to sleep and swallow normally, then you’ve got a problem.
Around fifteen million people in the U.S. suffer from acid reflux, but not all of them deal with severe heartburn that is associated with it. During acid reflux, digestive juices from the stomach make their way back up through the esophagus – including acids, enzymes and other substances – damaging the lining of the esophagus and causing severer heartburn. Doctors and researchers are unclear as to the exact causes behind acid reflux, but they believe that the condition is caused, at least in part, by failure of a valve that connects the esophagus and the stomach (the lower esophageal sphincter).
Symptoms of Severe Heartburn
The following symptoms indicate that your heartburn is not just “normal” heartburn, but possibly GERD – and seeing a physician is recommended:
- heartburn that occurs more than twice a week
- burning pain under your breastbone
- symptoms become worsen after eating
- patient feels the need to take antacids after each meal
- burning chest pain when exercising
- lying down intensifies the symptoms
- taste of acid in the mouth
- trouble sleeping at night
- asthma that is worsened by heartburn
- heartburn is interfering with normal activities
Risks of Severe Heartburn
Severe heartburn is experienced more commonly in the following groups of people:
- Those who are overweight. The extra weight appears to place extra pressure on the lower esophageal sphincter, causing it to relax and subsequently, allow more acid and digestive enzymes from the stomach to creep back in to the esophagus.
- Those who are pregnant. Hormones that are secreted in pregnant women cause the lower esophageal sphincter to relax – as does pressure on the stomach from the growing baby.
- Those who have a Hiatal hernia. The location of the Hiatal hernia can prevent the muscle wall between the stomach and the chest from supporting the esophageal sphincter properly, causing it to malfunction.
