Proven Home Remedies for Heartburn

Heartburn is commonly experienced among adults. It is caused by acid reflux, which occurs when the esophageal sphincter relaxes at an inopportune time and allows stomach acid to enter the throat. Although it is uncomfortable, it is more considered a side effect of certain lifestyle habits than a disease. However, if you experience heartburn — do not fret!

There is a multitude of natural remedies, lifestyle changes, and quick fixes to help make your heartburn a thing of the past!

Chewing Gum

According to the Journal of Dental Research, individuals who experienced chronic heartburn saw an increase in symptom relief after chewing a stick of sugar-free gum for thirty minutes after eating. This relief is due to the activation of salivary glands caused by the gum.

As the saliva production increases, it dilutes built-up acid in the gut, which in turn relieves the symptoms of chronic heartburn by eliminating (or at least minimizing) its cause. Here’s what you’ll need:

• 1 stick of sugar-free gum

Here’s what you’ll need to do:

• Eat your meal as usual;
• Following your meal, begin to chew a stick of sugar-free gum;
• Chew the gum for a minimum of thirty minutes.

Watch What You Eat

Many foods can be triggers for heartburn. While not everybody reacts in the same way to certain foods, some foods you may want to avoid if trying to reduce heartburn are:

• Spicy foods
• Foods with high acid content

Eat Heartburn-Fighting Foods

While some foods increase heartburn occurrence, other foods reduce it. Two foods that are proven to reduce heartburn are bananas and apples. Bananas and apples are rich in naturally-occurring antacids that help to fight the reflux that causes heartburn. Consuming one or both of these on a regular basis will help the body replenish its antacids so it can keep you feeling refreshed, and heartburn free.

Avoid Drinking Alcohol

Alcohol is a stomach irritant. While disrupting the natural processes of the body as a whole, it also degrades the lower esophageal sphincter — making it easier for reflux to occur.

If you experience chronic heartburn and have tried all other means of alleviating it, you may want to consider either cutting down on alcohol consumption or removing it from your lifestyle altogether.

Avoid Smoking Cigarettes

Similarly to alcohol, the nicotine in cigarettes degrades the lower esophageal sphincter. Thus, if you experience chronic heartburn and smoke regularly, it is likely that the reflux is caused by the nicotine in your cigarettes. If you wish to alleviate the heartburn, consider cutting down on cigarette smoking, or removing it from your lifestyle altogether.

Try Some Baking Soda

Baking soda is made up of sodium bicarbonate — a compound with a pH greater than seven. This means that it is basic. When experiencing heartburn symptoms, a teaspoon of baking soda can be an effective quick fix, because it combines with the stomach acid to create an alkalinizing effect in the body. Thus, the acid is neutralized — getting rid of heartburn. Here’s what you’ll need:

• Between 1/2 teaspoon and 1 teaspoon of baking soda;
• A glass of water (about eight ounces).

Here’s what you’ll need to do:

• Mix the measured baking soda with the water;
• Drink the mixture.

You should experience relief soon after consumption. This can be repeated, but no more than 7 times in 24 hours.

Elevate Your Head When You Sleep

For most people, heartburn worsens at night because of the positioning of the body. When an individual lies down, it becomes easier for stomach acid to seep back up the esophagus — causing acid reflux symptoms and heartburn. This can be avoided by elevating the head while sleeping.

In order to try this symptom-reliever, you will need to place books, cardboard, tiles, etc. under either the legs of your bed frame or the mattress itself. While it may seem tempting simply to add an extra pillow or two, this will not be as effective a treatment as elevating the bed itself, because it will be easy for the pillows to become displaced in the night.

Monitor When You Eat

Another cautionary item to consider when attempting the previous treatment for how to get rid of heartburn is to make sure not to lie down or go to sleep within 3-4 hours of consuming food. After consuming food, the body needs time to digest — if you lie down with a full stomach, it will be easier for the contents of your stomach to push against the esophageal sphincter and cause reflux.

Be Cognizant of How You Are Eating

Eating too quickly or not chewing enough can cause acid reflux and heartburn. When you are eating, make sure that you aren’t eating too rapidly and that you are chewing your food thoroughly. If you avoid swallowing large pieces of food, you will help your stomach stay calm and not produce excess stomach acid. Less stomach acid means less reflux!

Try Aloe Vera Juice

Aloe Vera is commonly used to soothe burns, but it can also work as an inflammation reducer. When the stomach is producing too much acid, it will become inflamed — resulting in reflux and heartburn. However, a glass of aloe vera juice may be able to help reduce this by counteracting the inflammation.

Try Ginger Root Tea

Ginger Root is very calming for the stomach. It can reduce a wide range of stomach-related issues — from nausea to acid reflux. If you want to reduce your heartburn symptoms, you may want to consider drinking a cup of Ginger Root Tea about 20 minutes before a meal. Here’s what you’ll need:

• 3 slices of ginger root (about the size of a quarter)
• 2 cups of water

Here’s what you’ll need to do:

• slice the ginger root into three pieces about the size of a quarter;
• bring two cups of water to a simmer;
• add the ginger root to the simmering water;
• leave it to steep for 30 minutes;
• remove the ginger pieces (optional);
• pour into a glass and drink about 20 minutes before meal time.

Avoid Uncomfortably Tight Clothing

Extremely tight clothing can actually increase heartburn because it puts extra pressure on the esophageal sphincter. This extra pressure can compromise its muscle tone and cause it to relax — allowing acid reflux symptoms to occur. In order to avoid this, it is recommended that you wear clothing that fits comfortably, and doesn’t put too much pressure on your abdominal region.

Keep Yourself at a Healthy Weight

In order to experience heartburn relief, an individual may consider losing weight. This is only a viable option if the individual is overweight, to begin with because an individual of a healthy weight will not experience weight-related heartburn.

However, if an individual is overweight, heartburn can occur because the unnecessary weight (especially when carried in the abdomen) adds extra pressure to the esophageal sphincter. Like wearing clothing that fits too tightly, having some extra weight could be just enough to push the esophageal sphincter over the line into heartburn.

Try Some Almonds

Almonds act as natural neutralizers for excess stomach acid. It is recommended to eat a few almonds after every meal and snack. You don’t need to eat too many (just about 3 or 4) but even these few almonds can work wonders to prevent the onset of heartburn.

Try Some Mustard

Similarly to baking soda, mustard is an alkalinizing food. Consuming it raw can help to counteract excess stomach acid, and set the body at a more neutral pH. This method is most effective during the onset of heartburn, rather than as a preventative measure.

Make a Journal of Triggers

Everybody reacts differently to different foods. While some people experience heartburn due to the consumption of acidic foods, others may not. Thus, it is important to track which foods make YOU experience heartburn — so that you can avoid eating them in the future.

Drink Some Ginger Ale

Ginger Ale provides the best of both worlds when it comes to heartburn relief. Not only does it contain stomach-soothing ginger, but it also contains carbonation — a factor that many claim is soothing to the stomach as well. Consuming about a cup of Ginger Ale is optimal, but be careful not to consume too much — the sugar content in the beverage could have negative effects if consumed in excess.

Try a Relaxing Shower

Some have found that taking a warm shower can calm the nerves as well as the stomach. If nothing else is working, it may be worth a shot to jump in a warm shower and see if the heartburn subsides due to its relaxing effects.

Get Your Blood Tested

Getting your blood tested can be very helpful in diagnosing a possible underlying condition that is causing your heartburn. Many mineral and vitamin imbalances in the blood could lead to heartburn, but one to watch out for is an excess of calcium. Having extremely high levels of calcium in the body has been linked to heartburn, and can be reversed by cutting back on calcium-rich foods such as meat and dairy.

Avoid Processed Foods

Foods that are highly processed often contain chemicals and pesticides that are not good for the body. When these foods are consumed regularly, they can elevate levels of stomach acid and throw off the body’s pH balance. In order to avoid chronic heartburn, you should analyze your diet. If it is high in processed foods, you should consider cutting back on them, or replacing them with healthier and more natural options.

Drink Chamomile Tea

Like Ginger Root Tea, Chamomile Tea has a calming effect on the stomach. When consumed before a meal, it can calm the stomach and prepare it for the entry of food. This, in turn, allows the esophageal sphincter to stay tight and not let excess acid spill into the throat.

Try Digestive Enzymes

Buying some natural digestive enzymes at your local pharmacy, supermarket, or vitamin-shoppe is one step toward relieving chronic heartburn. By consuming digestive enzymes before eating a trigger food, or even just on a regular basis with meals, you can ensure that your body will be able to maintain its proper internal balance.

Try Exercising

A regular exercise routine goes hand-in-hand with staying physically fit, and in an ideal weight range. If you exercise regularly, you will be more likely to be of a healthy weight — and if you are of a healthy weight, there will be less opportunity for there to be extra pressure on your esophageal sphincter due to abdominal fat.

Drink Some Pickle Juice

Some have found that drinking pickle juice calms heartburn because of its acidity. In certain cases, when the body is alerted to an acid-rich food, it is able to better prepare for more acid-rich foods in the near future. Thus, by drinking some pickle juice (about 1 tablespoon) before a meal, the stomach is warned of more acidity to come — preparing itself by tightening the esophageal sphincter in order to avoid spillage.

Try Ginger Vitamins

Some people may not like the taste of ginger enough to want to drink a whole cup of Ginger Root Tea on a regular basis. For those in this group, it may be beneficial to purchase some ginger vitamins. By consuming a ginger vitamin before a meal, you will receive all the same benefits as drinking the ginger tea, but will not have to go through the process of preparing and drinking it.

Try Cinnamon Vitamins

Cinnamon kills harmful bacteria that live in the intestines and cause stomach issues. By consuming cinnamon vitamins on a regular basis, you will prevent the growth of this bad bacteria — thus minimizing the risk of contracting a stomach bug, which could, in turn, cause heartburn to occur.

Drink Apple Cider Vinegar

Similarly to pickle juice, apple cider vinegar works to prepare the stomach for acidic foods to come. Because apple cider vinegar is very strong, it is optimal to drink only small amounts of it. This will help the esophageal sphincter stay tight when confronted with more acidic food in the near future. Here’s what you’ll need:

• 8 to 16 ounces of water;
• 1.5 fluid ounces of apple cider vinegar.

Here’s what you’ll need to do:

• Pour the water into a tall glass;
• Measure out the apple cider vinegar in a shot glass or similar measurement tool;
• Pour the apple cider vinegar into the water;
• Mix the water and apple cider vinegar until they are combined;
• Drink the mixture before a meal.

Drink Lemon Juice

Similarly to apple cider vinegar, lemon juice is a very acidic substance that can help prime the stomach for more acid to come. However, it is also high in vitamin C and many other vital nutrients — making it highly useful when fighting heartburn. Here’s what you’ll need:

• One lemon;
• 8 ounces of water.

Here’s what you’ll need to do:

• Juice the lemon into a tall glass;
• Add 8 ounces of water to the lemon juice;
• Mix the lemon juice and water together;
• Drink the mixture before a meal to prevent heartburn.

Try Betaine Hydrochloric Acid

Hydrochloric acid makes up the majority of stomach acid. However, due to many reasons (aging, stress, etc.), it can become reduced in the stomach. As with the above treatments to add more acid to the stomach, taking a Betaine Hydrochloric Acid supplement may help to replenish the stomach’s acid levels.

Take or Eat Probiotics

Probiotics help to maintain the healthy bacteria in the gut. By maintaining this healthy bacteria, the entire human body system benefits. Eating probiotic rich foods such as yogurt and kombucha, or taking probiotic supplements, can help to maintain healthy levels of good bacteria — which in turn will help the stomach maintain optimal acid levels.

Eat Smaller Portions

Eating smaller portions and breaking meals up throughout the day may help reduce the effects of heartburn because eating smaller quantities of food allows for the stomach to be able to process what it is given. When the stomach is overwhelmed by excessively large quantities of food, it becomes stretched, and the esophageal sphincter becomes compromised.

Furthermore, when unnaturally large amounts of food are consumed, the stomach is not able to react appropriately, because it is not designed to accommodate such quantities. In order to avoid excess strain on the stomach, it is recommended to eat 5-6 smaller meals throughout the day.

This can be achieved by eating 3 smaller meals at regular meal times, and 2 to 3 snacks in between. This will aid in digestion and the overall well-being of the stomach.