A Painful Condition: Constant Heartburn

Constant heartburn can be related to a variety of reasons, some of which are health habits, and others are related to a physical condition, such as with pregnancy heartburn. Women who are pregnant often experience heartburn symptoms especially as they progress in the pregnancy. The reason for this is that the baby will get larger and begin to press on the various internal organs of the woman, thus enhancing the need to go to the bathroom as well as pushing into the stomach area, forcing acid up into the esophagus, causing heartburn. For a pregnant woman, the only things she can do to help reduce this constant heartburn issue is to watch the foods that she eats, such as high fat or spicy foods, and to take antacids occasionally when she experiences the symptoms.

Other Relief

Like a pregnant woman, obese individuals can also experience constant heartburn, since the excess fat will push into the stomach and force the acid up into the esophagus. It is imperative for many reasons that the individuals who are obese begin to change their eating and exercise habits so that they can lose the extra weight. These individuals should work closely with their doctors to come up with a plan to fit their particular needs, as well as to make sure that the weight gain is not caused by a physical condition that needs medical treatment. For these individuals, when the weight begins to diminish, most of the time the constant heartburn begins to lessen so that they are able to eat some of their favorite meals in smaller portions, even if they tend to be more on the spicy side, without effect.

For other individuals with constant heartburn, the issue might be a physical one, such as a defective valve in the esophagus which allows the acid to come up into the esophagus from the stomach no matter how much the individual eats at a mealtime. For these individuals there are sometimes surgical measures that can help as well as medications that can reduce the symptoms along with dietary changes. For most people, however, changing the diet so that it does not have high fat foods in it on a regular basis, does not have spicy foods in it regularly, and does not have high amounts of alcohol, caffeine or tobacco will often make a drastic difference in the symptoms of constant heartburn. In addition, starting a regular exercise plan will also help to reduce stress and monitor weight so that constant heartburn is no longer an issue.