Acid Reflux?

[sickiemcgee]

Just a few questions for anyone who has acid reflux, what were/are your symptoms? how did you find out you had it? what treatment works for you? did you have any tooth decay/breakage before diagnosis? I think and my doc thinks I have acid reflux but I am really really hesitant to go for the scope (scared) is there any way I can start treatment and see how it goes before having to resort to invasive tests? Thanks for any and all help!

[Marie55]

Have you tried elevating head of bed about 6". This will help keep acid from coming back up the throat.

Have you tried "Pepcid Complete" overcounter ant-acid med?

Have you eleminated spicy foods?

Have you tried eating a bland diet for a while and see if that helps?

Have you reduced amount of fat in meals?

Have you eliminated soft drinks? These have too much phosphate and can be corrosive.

Have you had blood test to see if you have "Helicobacter-Pylori"? Most ulcers are caused by helicobacter-pylori.

[ajas]

HI
I found out when I had heartburn all the time,and my throat was kinda burning, then got an ulcer type thing on my tongue, I have had the scope! its really a thin hose up my nose and down, saw all my insides on the Telly!Didnt feel a thing ! So thats easy. go to the alternative meds, or home cures for help.theres a great read in there on acid v's acidity,as for the teeth,Ive taken Valium for years, so the damage was already setting in.But do get onto something soon as reflux can cause quite alot of damage to your stomach lining etc.Not to mention the burning pain !!
Does this help any ?
Sue

[jinglebts]

Originally Posted by sickiemcgee

Just a few questions for anyone who has acid reflux, what were/are your symptoms? how did you find out you had it? what treatment works for you? did you have any tooth decay/breakage before diagnosis? I think and my doc thinks I have acid reflux but I am really really hesitant to go for the scope (scared) is there any way I can start treatment and see how it goes before having to resort to invasive tests? Thanks for any and all help!

ah -- i see you may have read this in "you guys know everything!!" ... never mind -- you can read it again, or not!!

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i usually post on the thyroid board, but was just poking around and saw your post ...

i have had acid reflux "disease" in the past (burning in the esophagus) and have had stomach burn for at least a year, to the point where i ended up taking acid reducers, four time a day, finally ...

now here's the thing: in order to digest your food properly, you need more acid, not less, so taking an acid reducer only, in the end, exacerbates the problem ... when you eat, you set up an immediate reaction in which your stomach senses "food!!" and the response is "must - make - more - acid", so you have an increased flow of acid, which causes acid reflux ...

a solution to the problem is either licorice root or DGL (deglycyrrhizinated licorice) tablets ... most importantly, it promotes secretion of the protective mucosal layer and the growth of new mucosal cells ...it also helps inhibit acid secretion, and increases blood flow to gastric mucosa .. which is a technical way of saying that it improves the amount of fluid in the lining of the stomach, which in your and my cases has been damaged ..

i had an ulcer years ago (i was scoped) and was treated with tagamet, which cured my ulcer but left my stomach really sensitive .. i've been taking acid reducers on a permanent basis for about a year now, b/c i of the anti-convulsants that i have to take, until i went to a naturopath (ND) ... she introduced me to DGL tablets (or powder) and i've been able to stop my acid reducers almost completely, from the first day, and also stop my motilium for nausea (reglan would be the closest eqiv. in the states) ...

twenty years ago, when i had the ulcer, i just had stomach pain, on waking and beginning shortly after i ate (half an hour, mebbee?)...

i'v had tooth decay lately b/c of thyroid disease (changes the acidity of one's saliva?? dunno!!) .. but just about everything seems to become more acidic with thyroid dissease (do i recognize your name from that board??)

if you just have heartburn, you might try licorice (sure works for me) ... if your stomach hurts, you should get scoped on the off-chance that you have cancer, or your ulcer, if you have one, may be caused by a bacteria and you can take antibiotics for it ...

in any case, i heartily recommend licorice (which can increase adrenal function, thus increasing your cortisol level and increasing your blood pressure), or deglycyrrhizinated licorice (no increased adrenal function) ...

gastric reflux disease (GERD), which used to be known as gastric reflux, and in "the olden days" was referred to as simply "heartburn" (like, ten years ago, maybe??) has now been completely medicalized so that the manufacturers of acid reducers can market them ... makes me so mad when just a simple remedy will do ...

jb


~~ meep and i discussed this on the thyroid board on response to a post, perhaps last week ... http://www.healthboards.com/boards/showthread.php?t=234720&highlight=dgl

[pattyann02]

I had acid reflux for 12 years. Had it so bad that they stuck the scope down and found out that I had a very bad Hiatal Hernia. I had surgery done a year ago and hadn't have heartburn since. Does your food come up alot like when you're lying in bed at night? I would stop eating at 7 at night and about 3 in the morning food would come up. I felt like I was gonna choke to death and it was so nasty. And my throat would burn so bad like someone had poured a whole bottle of hot sauce down my throat. Do the scope and see what comes out of it. It could just be bad heartburn. I wish you the best of luck.


Patty