Is Your Lifestyle Making Your GERD Symptoms Worse?

Research indicates that around 20% of people living in the United States live with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). GERD occurs when stomach acid is flowing back into the tube connecting your stomach and mouth repeatedly. There is no concrete cure for GERD, though there are some over-the-counter (OTC) medications that you can take to ease the symptoms – with your primary care physician’s guidance.

But, have you ever wondered if your lifestyle is making your symptoms worse? It might be, and we’re going to be looking at how down below. Keep reading if you would like to find out more.

No More Late Night Snacks

Late night snacks are not a good idea if you are someone who lives with GERD. Ideally, you should wait around two to three hours before you lay down once you have last eaten to give your body the time it needs to digest your last meal. As well as this, you should be looking to eat several small meals throughout the day rather than three large ones as this will be quicker for your body to digest.

Foods such as mint, chocolate and even alcohol should be avoided as much as possible as they relax the tube between your stomach and your mouth. As well as these items, try to avoid spicy foods and those that contain a high amount of acid as they have been linked to increasing GERD symptoms. Try cutting these out of your diet and see if it improves or resolves symptoms.

Quitting Smoking Could Help

We talked a little bit above about the tube between your stomach and your mouth relaxing, and this is exactly what nicotine can do as well. If you are someone who smokes, chews tobacco or even vapes, then you might want start taking steps to kick those habits. It’s not as easy as just deciding to stop for most people, so consult a professional for advice on quitting. You should notice that you are experiencing less frequent heartburn if you stop smoking as the tube won’t be so relaxed.

Avoid Pressure on Your Stomach

Pressure on your stomach might push your stomach juices into your esophagus which will cause heartburn. To avoid this, you should avoid wearing tight clothing around your stomach and instead opt for something that doesn’t restrict you so much. Clothing like tight belts, panty hose or waistbands are not a good idea if you have GERD.

Sitting up after you have eaten will also help to relieve any pressure and help you to digest your food better. You should also take as much care as possible when you are bending over or lifting things. When you bend down, this increases the amount of stomach fluid that is able to enter the esophagus, so you should avoid bending at the waist as much as possible and instead bend from your knees.

You Can Try to Lose Weight

Weight has been closely linked to reflux in a lot of people for a long time, and many people find that when they lose weight, they actually get rid of all of their GERD symptoms. If you’ve tried other steps to decrease GERD symptoms and aren’t seeing results, talk to a medical professional about your healthy weight range. If you are overweight, losing even as little as five pounds may be able to keep your symptoms from worsening or may help remove them completely.

Hiatal hernias are also linked to being overweight, which can make GERD symptoms worse. If you manage to lose some weight, you minimize the risk that you will end up with a hiatal hernia and therefore, decrease your symptoms.

If you are interested in finding out more, or you are experiencing the symptoms of GERD yourself, you can learn more about your options through one of our friendly ENT doctors. To schedule an appointment or speak with a team member at Mountain Ear, Nose & Throat Associates, give us a call at one of our convenient locations: Sylva: 828-586-7474, Franklin: 828-524-5599, Murphy: 828-835-1014, New Asheville: 828-458-8100. We are happy to help in any way that we can, and look forward to hearing from you soon.