If you suffer from heartburn or acid reflux, here's important news:
New research shows that your problems may be caused by two hidden triggers that the "solutions" most doctors recommend fail to address.
You see, most heartburn remedies only treat your symptoms. They do nothing to address the underlying cause of acid reflux.
It's like getting a shot of Novocain for a tooth cavity. It
can blunt the pain for a while, but if the cavity isn't treated, the
pain comes right back as soon as the Novocain wears off.
It's the same with acid reflux. If you don't fix what's causing the problems, your symptoms will keep coming back.
And while you would never consider getting a daily shot of
Novocain to ease your dental discomfort, Americans will fill over 170
million prescriptions for acid blockers this year[1]—taking them day after day.
But what you may not know is that the most popular of these
acid-blocking medications, proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), carry an FDA
warning that they should not be used for more than 14 consecutive days
or more than 42 total days over the course of a year.[2]
Yet doctors and patients frequently ignore this warning, risking severe consequences to ease the discomfort.
I'm Joshua Corn, Editor-in-Chief of Live in the Now, one of
the fastest-growing natural health publications in the nation. My
passion for natural health has always driven me to educate people on
alternative solutions that are both safe and effective.
Please keep reading because today I'm going to show
you how to quickly and safely relieve your heartburn and reflux issues
by combatting the true causes that, unfortunately, too many doctors
overlook.
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Hidden Heartburn Trigger #1:
Your Acid Level Isn't Too High, It's Too LOW!
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For years we've been told that high levels of stomach acid
are what causes heartburn. It makes sense, since acid refluxing from
the upper stomach into the esophagus is what causes our symptoms, right?
Well, there's just one problem with this commonly held theory: It's not true!
And, as I just mentioned, blocking stomach acid can trigger all sorts of damaging health issues.
FACT: Stomach acid is absolutely VITAL for our digestion and our health.
Stomach acid helps us break down and absorb the foods we eat. Without
adequate acid levels, foods aren't digested properly, which creates the
gas and bloating that can cause acid to reflux up into the esophagus.
FACT: As we get older, acid levels fall, BUT heartburn increases.
When we're younger, we produce almost 200 milligrams of stomach acid
every hour. But as we get older, we produce less and less. In his book, Why Stomach Acid Is Good for You, Jonathan V. Wright, M.D., reveals what he's found in 24 years of treating patients with acid reflux and other symptoms...
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| "When we carefully test people over age 40 who're having
heartburn, indigestion and gas, over 90 percent of the time we find
inadequate acid production by the stomach."
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| –Dr. Jonathan V. Wright
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FACT: Low stomach acid creates the perfect environment for bugs and bacteria.
Your digestive system and your esophagus are home to many forms of
bacteria. But your stomach is sterile. Reason: Bugs and bacteria
ingested from foods are quickly seized upon and destroyed by stomach
acid. But when acid levels fall, bugs and bacteria can invade the
stomach, causing digestive problems and other health issues.
FACT: If high acid levels were the cause, then acid reflux would be a young person's affliction.
We produce more acid in our 20s than in our 40s. If high acid were the
cause, it would be confined to people in their teens and 20s. But it's
not. Today, more than 20 million Americans over the age of 40 spend more
than $14 billion every year on acid-blocking medications.[11]
I'll never understand why traditional medicine's popular
"solutions" ignore every single one of these facts. And in a minute,
I'll show you how to safely and effectively get healthy, balanced acid
levels. But right now, let me tell you about the second hidden cause behind reflux and heartburn...
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Hidden Heartburn Trigger #2:
Inflammatory Fires in Your Digestive Tract
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As a health conscious person, you are probably familiar
with inflammation. At its best, inflammation is simply your body's
healthy and natural response to injury or infection. But the problem
with inflammation arises when it stays elevated for prolonged periods of
time. When that happens, it can wreak havoc on your health—especially
in your digestive system.
Throughout your stomach and esophagus—and indeed your
entire digestive tract—lives a protective layer of mucus. This mucus
acts like a shield between your stomach lining and stomach acid. But in
many people with acid reflux, this protective mucus has been drastically
compromised.
As this protective mucus lining becomes eroded through
prolonged inflammation, gas, tiny food particles and acid are pushed
farther up in the stomach into the diaphragm and ultimately reflux up
into the esophagus. Once there, you get burning acid in your throat,
heartburn, indigestion and misery.
The fact is, PPIs simply don't address the low stomach
acid levels and inflammation that are so often at the root of acid
reflux. But here's the good news you've been waiting for...
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Combatting Heartburn and Acid Reflux
with 3 Proven Natural Solutions
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You don't have to rely on the frequently recommended
"solutions" to get relief from the discomfort that makes you miserable
and keeps you up at night.
Research has shown that three natural ingredients have
remarkable effectiveness in relieving heartburn and acid reflux, while
helping soothe inflammation in the mucosal lining of the stomach and
gastrointestinal tract. The results are fast, the benefits long lasting,
and most important, you'll experience no side effects whatsoever!
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Acid Relief Solution #1
DGL: The Licorice Soother
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You might be familiar with licorice as a sweet flavoring
agent, but licorice also has a long history of use as a soother of
digestive discomfort associated with heartburn and acid reflux. And
there's a special preparation of licorice called deglycyrrhizinated
licorice, or DGL for short, that is extremely effective at this.
Multiple scientific studies have shown that DGL has the
ability to restore the integrity of the esophageal, stomach and
intestinal lining by increasing the secretion of protective mucus that
lines the gastrointestinal tract. This lining is a key component of the
stomach's defense against the erosive properties of acid.
One double-blind study compared the benefits of DGL to the conventional approach and found that it was equally effective at reducing the uncomfortable symptoms when evaluated at both 6 and 12 weeks of use.[12]
More importantly, other clinical trials have demonstrated
the benefits of DGL for supporting the integrity of the stomach lining.[13]
In addition, research on a specific form of DGL, called GutGuard®,
has shown it can also help with functional dyspepsia, or discomfort in
the upper belly or abdomen occurring during or right after eating.[14]
The bottom line: DGL can help boost the mucosal lining of
the stomach, thereby reducing damage, preventing inflammation and
curbing symptoms. That's why I recommend DGL to anyone with reflux,
heartburn or other symptoms of indigestion.
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Acid Relief Solution #2:
Soothing Aloe Vera
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| Aloe vera was dubbed the "plant of immortality" by the
ancient Egyptians. This soothing gel contains powerful anti-inflammatory
compounds that have been used for decades to relieve the stinging from
sunburn and other burns. And when it comes to reflux and heartburn, aloe
vera offers many terrific benefits.
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It helps combat the inflammatory fires in your stomach that can lead to pain, bloating, burning and reflux.
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It helps stimulate better digestion, and the better you're able to digest the foods you eat, the less gas, bloating, reflux and heartburn you get.
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In one study, researchers found that aloe improved
intestinal motility, thereby speeding up bowel emptying. At the end of
the study, participants reported less bloating after meals and reduced
flatulence.[15]
In another double-blind, placebo-controlled study,
researchers tested aloe for its inflammatory response in the intestines.
The result: Clinical researchers found that patients who took aloe for 4
weeks had measurable improvements in inflammatory factors with no side effects.[16]
Please note: The aloe plant can have some unwanted
laxative effects, so it is extremely important to find an aloe product
that has the latex portion removed to avoid this issue. ACTIValoe® is one such brand that I recommend.
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Acid Relief Solution #3
The Healing Power of Slippery Elm
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Slippery elm is an herb famous for its soothing
properties. As the name implies, extracts of the bark of the slippery
elm tree are often "slippery" producing copious amounts of compounds
called polysaccharides.
These compounds are very similar in nature to the makeup
of the mucus in your stomach and can augment your body's own mucus
production, helping to protect the lining of the esophagus, stomach and
intestines.[17]
The polysaccharides found in slippery elm can help promote
a healthy inflammatory response in the stomach and intestines, making
it a valuable ally for promoting healthy overall digestion in addition
to helping with acid problems.[18] |
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