Heartburn and Acid Reflux: Uncover the 5 Root Causes
Acid Reflux & Heartburn: guide to true causes
End reflux, gerd and heartburn fast by TARGETING the root cause.
Currently, other than managing the symptoms with Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) / antiacids, there is little treatment available. Patients are often put on medication long term, with associated potential increased risk of further gut problems such as SIBO, Clostridium difficile infection, thinning bones and even colitis! ), sometimes without help ‘coming off them’.
For long-term users, weaning off the PPI’s tend to give a ‘rebound reflux’ which for many people can be worse than the original symptoms be quite severe, and not everyone is managed through or even told about this, which can lead to failure of stopping taking them. There are recommended steps to take to gradually reducing dosage, however do seek help from your GP
It is preferable, of course, to try and avoid the need for medication, and most of our clients want this. Ideally we want to see people before they start to take PPI’s, as this is far more straight forward, however we will help anyone with the condition. Our Practitioners focus on an holistic approaches to addressing acid reflux naturally.
acid reflux & Heartburn: the true cause
No doubt that you have read up on the use of natural remedies for acid reflux and foods to avoid with GERD already (also see some of the more obscure symptoms here).
Whilst the usual recommendations to eat smaller meals, raise your bed at night and eat less acidic foods can be helpful in reducing acid reflux triggers for some, you may be surprised to learn that food actually is often NOT the root cause of your reflux!!
Heartburn: What to eat and drink
There can actually be many different causes for reflux, varying from person to person. This is why some people will be triggered by chilli or eating late at night, and for some diet makes no difference. Of course, many people experience symptoms only where they overindulge, perhaps in a very fatty meal or processed foods or white flour which may overwhelm the digestive capacity for sure, but generally speaking, acidic food does not cause chronic reflux, but will aggravate it. The right diet for heartburn therefore will depend on the cause! Get a clearer understanding of what’s causing it for you to better tailor your diet to your needs.
Tell us about your Heartburn symptoms below for a free mini Assessment.
Heartburn: the true causes
1. Stress: The Mind-body connection in acid reflux management
Stress has long been thought to have a relationship with ulcers and gastritis (inflammation of stomach lining). Beyond that however, it’s also been suggested that chronic stress may suppress stomach acid, causing indigestion and food that ‘repeats’, similarly to acid reflux.
A study in mice, suggested an inhibition of gastric acid secretion, during stress, is mediated by the vagus nerve.
Solutions: Many lack the tools to counteract stress, however, and we recommend specific (but very simple) breathing exercises, mindful eating and chewing. This has to be approached before even attempting to wean off PPIs and to achieve any real results in addressing the symptoms for most.
2. Menopause: Managing acid reflux in menopausal women
We find an increased incidence of reflux in our clients after periods stop, and there has been an associated link with HRT in research. This is best managed with hormone balancing strategies. The Complete Dutch Hormone test, can be an immensely useful testing tool, helping to get a really clear idea of imbalances,. It can also be used to measure if your HRT is working like you’re expecting it too, and to review how your body is handling and clearing these hormones.
Solutions: Natural methods for hormonal balance are: glucose measuring to get an idea of your insulin levels, and good levels of VItamin B6 and Zinc.
3. Motility
This is an interesting one, and very relevant to reflux. Traditional thinking is that there is simply too much acid in reflux, but this is not always our clinical experience. We could speculate that there could be other factors involved, such as a regulation problem, where the stomach’s management of the release of stomach acid becomes imbalanced or chaotic.
But this can be complex and this remains under-studied. The microbiome appears to play a significant part, but generally, we go by observation and experience when we approach this, as we simply know too little via research.
4. Incompetence of the stomach valve
This is common in reflux, leading to leaking of the stomach content into the throat/oesophagus (sore throat/clearing of throat/sinus problems). Other than the structural problems, we do not have a great understanding of why this occurs.
Being overweight (in particular around the middle which is often an insulin problem does increase the risk for sure, but generally, we find that a variety of seemingly associated factors such as microbiome or constipation play a part, but how they do exactly, that we don’t yet understand fully. We tend to see this quite often together with SIBO or even gallbladder issues - potentially due to upward pressure from the intestine.
5. Eating too many carbohydrates!
This might be a surprising one - but actually, something that we see quite a bit! Carbs are simply too cheap, too easy and too available in our diets.
This isn’t a factor for everyone and does appear to be more relevant in simple heartburn - but certainly, it’s worth thinking about. If you consume a lot of grains or a lot of bread or pasta, try switching half of it to vegetables for a couple of weeks.
Solutions: Vegetables have the added effect of being alkaline and bitter, both of which tend to help soothe reflux, in particular bitter leaves such as kale, spinach, and chicory.
If you experience IBS symptoms alongside your reflux, may actually flare symptoms, and this is when you likely need a nutritionist to help you navigate through the complexity of which order to do what.
6. A thinning gut/stomach mucosa?
This is currently just a theory - but it makes a lot of sense. Poor-fibre diets (rife in the UK) have been shown to thin the gut mucosal lining (not necessarily the stomach, but further down in the GI tract) - and this, together with say insufficient protein intake or a problem digesting proteins (looking at you PPIs), can contribute.
If you think of the mucosa being what stops the stomach acid from digesting the stomach itself, this irritation and gastritis could send SOS or confused signals to the brain and digestive processes perhaps creating dysfunction in stomach acid release. Certainly no harm in considering this for certain people, and we tend to have good results with mucosa-boosting type interventions.
What you can do yourself
So, understanding a little bit more about the disease process, helps us understand more about what might be going on for that specific individual - as not everyone will have the same causes.
home remedies for managing GERD and Silent Reflux
Drinking very strong chamomile tea, sipping slippery elm (powder, mixed into a drink with hot water) before meals/before bed can be helpful - it tends to work better in this form than capsules. Liquorice can also be very helpful (not if you have high blood pressure, or use Deglycyrrhizinated liquorice).
To drink with meals? Or not?
Avoid excess water with meals, but equally don’t not drink any water. Just sip a little, then continue to drink post-meal, again sipping away. Ideally, drink the majority of your water between meals or half-hour before.
Ginger and celery juice helps some and can be drunk in little shots daily for 10 days to two weeks (on waking). Digestive bitters/Swedish bitters can also be really helpful, but must be taken in the right way, i.e swirled around the mouth for few seconds (warning does not taste good) and not diluted with water afterwards if possible.
Osteopathic manipulation can be helpful in structural problems. You can email us if you want a referral to an expert.
What To Do Next
Wondering what’s triggering your heartburn? Head to our FREE Mini Reflux Assessment form, and we’ll feedback with our thoughts on what we think is going on for you.
Please note, you should always consult your doctor concerning any prescribed medication, and the content of this article does not replace proper medical advice. When considering changing your diet, particularly an elimination diet, it's also best to do so under the guise of a nutrition professional.
