Heartburn Triggers: What’s Burning You?

Heartburn symptoms can start because of a problem with a muscular valve called the lower esophageal sphincter (LES). It’s located where the esophagus meets the stomach — below the rib cage and slightly left of center.  Normally, with the help of gravity, the LES keeps stomach acid right where it should be — in your stomach. When it’s working right, the LES opens to allow food into your stomach or to let you belch, then closes again. But if the LES opens too often or doesn’t close tightly enough, stomach acid can seep into the esophagus and cause a burning sensation.

If your LES doesn’t tighten as it should, there are often two things that contribute to the problem. One is overeating, which puts too much food in your stomach. Another is too much pressure on your stomach, often due to obesity, pregnancy, or constipation.

What can lead to heartburn may surprise you. Stay away from foods you know will give you heartburn. It’s not just about the food you eat. How and when you exercise and what you take to relieve your aches and pains may also cause that burning feeling. The key to taming the flame is to understand what triggers your symptoms.

Heartburn Triggers: Heartburn and Diet

Fatty foods are big no-no’s if you suffer from heartburn. High-fat foods sit around in your belly longer. This makes your stomach produce more acid, irritating your digestive system. And fatty and greasy foods lead to a lazy, relaxed LES. So not only do you have more irritating stomach acids, but you’re more likely to have the contents splash back up your throat resulting in heartburn pain.

Several foods and drinks can cause the LES to relax. Food and drinks that commonly trigger heartburn include:

• Alcohol, particularly red wine
• Black pepper, garlic, raw onions, and other spicy foods
• Chocolate
• Citrus fruits and products, such as lemons, oranges, and orange juice
• Coffee and caffeinated drinks, including tea and soda
• Peppermint
• Tomatoes

However, unless these foods are causing you heartburn you don’t have to avoid them. To prevent heartburn after meals:

• Don’t overeat. Eat five or six small meals each day, instead of several large meals.
• Don’t eat before bedtime. Allow 2 hours to digest your food before lying down. This allows time for the food to pass out of the stomach and into the small intestine, rather than having it back up into the esophagus. Lying down makes digestion difficult and makes heartburn more likely.

Exercising and Heartburn

Crunches and ab work can trigger heartburn. Body positions that involve bending over increase pressure on the abdomen, thrusting stomach acids back up into the esophagus. So, you feel the burn — but not the type you’d expect from going to the gym. Keep in mind that leg lifts also work the abdominal muscles and may aggravate heartburn symptoms too.

Activities such as headstands and yoga moves like downward dog can reverse the natural flow of stomach contents and may trigger heartburn. Jarring exercises, such as jogging or aerobics, can slosh stomach contents around and upward if you have a weak LES.

Heartburn is no reason not to exercise. In fact, weight loss from exercise can help heartburn. But never exercise on a full stomach. Doing so increases abdominal pressure, which makes heartburn more likely. Food takes several hours to digest so it really is a matter of what works for you. Most experts recommend waiting about two hours after eating before working out.

Heartburn triggers: Heartburn and Medications