31 NUTRITION HEALTH
WHAT ELSE CAN BE DONE TO DECREASE THE LIKELIHOOD OF GERD? •
• ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sarah harding laidlaw, MS, RDN, CDE, practices integrative and functional nutrition in Western Colorado. She is editor of The Integrative RDN, the newsletter of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics practice group Dietitians in Integrative and functional Medicine. She is author of numerous articles on nutrition and sports nutrition, as well as consumer and college level publications.
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Quit smoking – smoking decreases saliva production and may relax the sphincter muscle that allows reflux into the esophagus. Review your medications–regular aspirin or ibuprofen use, opioid narcotics, hypertension medications, potassium supplements, antidepressants and more may affect GERD. Do not discontinue medications without discussing with your physician. Elevating the head of your bed may help reduce symptoms that happen at night, Use blocks to raise the head of your bed four to eight inches. Sleeping on your left side may provide relief as it will allow a portion of your stomach to remain lower than your esophagus. Try antacids such as those with calcium carbonate. Take these before bed as they treat the acid in the stomach, not the acid once it comes up. Discuss medications for GERD with your physician, but do so with caution. Recent studies have shown that both overthe-counter and prescription medications can have long term consequences if taken over time or longer than recommended. These medications include proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) such as Nexium and Prilosec that block acid production further and longer than H2 blockers like Tagamet and Zantac. Make sure you need to take them for the length of time prescribed and if you choose to take over-the-counter medications, make sure you read the directions and tell your physician you are using them. You may choose to explore natural or alternative treatments, but other steps, including smaller meals and weight loss if needed, should accompany them. Consider keeping a food and beverage
journal for a week or two to see if there are foods that are triggers. If so, an elimination diet may be beneficial. Holidays are the time to enjoy those special foods with families and friends, but if heartburn and/or GERD gets in the way, you may want to consider making some changes before the celebrations rather than trying to figure out what to do once symptoms arise. One cautionary note: Large, high fat meals have been thought to increase the incidence of heart attacks. If you feel you have pain that cannot be associated with eating, such as chest, jaw, left arm or upper abdomen pain, atypical indigestion or nausea, shortness of breath or an abnormal heartbeat, these may be the signs of a heart attack, not heartburn, and you should seek immediate medical attention.