Top 5 Ways to Heal Heartburn
Have you been given the diagnosis of GERD? Have you been put on Prilosec? Nexium? Prevacid?
From a naturopathic perspective, the body is WISE. Heartburn or reflux is a symptom that your body is trying to tell you something. Something that you are DOING or NOT DOING is bothering your stomach. So what you have is an imbalance, and we just have to figure out what it is.... and fix it.
Stomach acid is VITAL to breaking down protein, to absorb iron, and B12, to trigger all the other digestive enzymes to be released. Acid is needed to prevent disease and to kill harmful micro-organisms that are possibly on our food.
First understand what is happening to your body with heartburn. Acid (that is a normal part of the functioning of the stomach) is touching parts of the body (the esophagus) that do not have a protective layer. The esophagus tells us that this hurts. Why? Because normal acid is touching the esophagus due to the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) in the stomach being open rather than closed tightly.
Here are some of the things your body may be saying to you -
From a naturopathic perspective, the body is WISE. Heartburn or reflux is a symptom that your body is trying to tell you something. Something that you are DOING or NOT DOING is bothering your stomach. So what you have is an imbalance, and we just have to figure out what it is.... and fix it.
Stomach acid is VITAL to breaking down protein, to absorb iron, and B12, to trigger all the other digestive enzymes to be released. Acid is needed to prevent disease and to kill harmful micro-organisms that are possibly on our food.
First understand what is happening to your body with heartburn. Acid (that is a normal part of the functioning of the stomach) is touching parts of the body (the esophagus) that do not have a protective layer. The esophagus tells us that this hurts. Why? Because normal acid is touching the esophagus due to the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) in the stomach being open rather than closed tightly.
Here are some of the things your body may be saying to you -
- Stop eating foods that I can't digest. Test your food intolerances and avoid them!
- Eating while stressed makes it difficult for me to digest food well. I cannot do my job well when the nervous system is on overdrive.
- Please avoid things that relax the stomach/esophageal sphincter and leave it open (chocolate, coffee, tea, colas, peppermint, alcohol, tobacco)
- Please do not overeat. When too full, I cannot digest well.
- Please drink more water and add trace minerals. 1/2 your body weight in ounces per day is a minimum amount of water needed. If you drink filtered water, trace minerals need to be added back in. Dehydration and lack of minerals cause LOW stomach acid which causes the upper sphincter to open and hence causes you to feel heartburn symptoms.
When weaning off any medication should be done under the supervision of a physician.
Here are some tools to help heal your esophageal lining, and protect it. The first 4 can be taken in capsule or powder form.
- Slippery Elm
- Licorice in the form of deglycyrrhized licorice or DGL
- L-glutamine
- Aloe vera leaf
- Apple Cider Vinegar - 1-2tsp in warm water before meals
Posted by DrWells at 11/21/2011 11:06 AM 
Categories: blog
Tags: heartburn acid reflux GERD natural remedy for GERD
Categories: blog
Tags: heartburn acid reflux GERD natural remedy for GERD
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