HIMPower Magazine HimPower August 2017 | Page 15

But that’s actually a bad idea. The fact is we need stomach acid. And, for anyone suffering from heartburn or gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), there are natural ingredients that can stop the burn and soothe the digestive system without playing a trick on the way we’re supposed to digest food. Fortunately, there is a great combination of botanical ingredi- ents that stop heartburn and GERD without compromising your health. We’ll take a look at both in this Terry Talks Nutrition®. and regurgitation of food. And unfortu- nately, the billion dollars a year that Amer- icans spend for antacid products to treat their heartburn not only won’t help – they are probably making the problem worse instead of better! Stomach acid is not the enemy. While many manufacturers sell the public on products that reduce stomach acid as a way to treat heartburn, these products are not the solution. Although they may – temporarily – stop the pain of heartburn, interfering with the body’s production of WHAT CAUSES THE FIRE? stomach acid not only won’t help with heart- While it isn’t life-threatening, the pain burn problems in the long term, you may from heartburn can be so severe that some- find they cause a whole new set of problems times people mistake it for a heart attack. as well. The “burn” is caused by stomach acids over- Here’s why: flowing from the stomach into the esoph- Normally, when the contents of the agus. Usually, the one-way valve (called the stomach are properly acidified, it signals the lower esophageal sphincter) that allows food pyloric valve at the lower end of the stomach to enter the stomach but keeps the stomach to open, allowing stomach contents to move contents from coming back up opens when into the duodenum, the first section of the it shouldn’t, or doesn’t close properly. The intestines, where digestion continues and digestive juices in the stomach are very absorption of nutrients begins. acidic, and when they touch the unprotected However, if stomach acid levels are low, lining of the esophagus it causes the charac- it takes a lot longer for the stomach contents teristic “burn” of heartburn. to ferment, and that causes gas that presses Of course, heartburn is one thing, but against the esophageal valve. Over time, the gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) valve weakens and the acidified contents of is another, more serious condition. When the stomach spill back into the esophagus, stomach acid repeatedly washes up into causing the pain of heartburn, and over the delicate structures of the esophagus it time, the potential complications of GERD. causes real damage over time, damaging the Antacids are not the answer. mucosal lining – possibly leading to ulcers. The reason why antacids appear to People with GERD may have other symp- work is because as they neutralize stomach toms as well, including coughing, wheezing acids, the pyloric valve opens too quickly www.himpowermagazine.com  15