The relief and treatment of heartburn, acid reflux, and GERD is a huge billion-dollar-a-year market, according to Tamas Bartfai, director of the Harold L. Dorris Neurological Research Center. Bartfai has had decades of experience as a consultant and executive in the Pharmaceutical industry, and has consulted with companies that are developing costly treatments for this common ailment.

With so much money being spent on medications to relieve heartburn and its companions, you would think at least one medication would be a cure. Sadly, this does not appear to be so. Heartburn medications seem to do nothing more than relieve symptoms. Some attempt to neutralize stomach acids. Others "turn off the pumps" that manufacture stomach acids.

The pharmaceutical community seems to offer nothing that will cure heartburn.

Glutamine for Heartburn

Glutamine for heartburn may be the answer. More specifically, L-glutamine for heartburn. L-glutamine for heartburn may not only be a cure, but be far less costly than other medications.

For example, In the U.S., L-glutamine can be purchased for about 5 cents per capsule. The prescription medication that "turns off the pumps" costs about $5.44 per capsule - at discount prices.

Why might glutamine be good for heartburn?

Cause of Heartburn

Heartburn appears to be a muscular problem.

Despite the pharmaceutical community's emphasis on acids, the real cause of heartburn is a weakness in the lower esophageal sphincter (LES).

A sphincter is a circular band of muscle like a ring around a body passageway or opening. If you were teaching children about a sphincter, you might place a ring around one finger to illustrate.

The task of every sphincter is to relax or tighten as needed to open or close a natural body opening or passageway. If you made your illustrative ring of elastic, you would tighten and relax the elastic to show sphincter action.

1. A cow's teat has a sphincter at the lower end. It relaxes to allow milk to flow, and tightens to stop the flow.

2. The human bladder has an involuntary sphincter at its neck. It relaxes to allow urine to flow, and tightens to stop the flow. A voluntary sphincter at the end of the urethra does the same.

3. An anal sphincter tightens to hold back waste, and relaxes to pass waste.

4. The lower esophageal sphincter (LES) relaxes to allow food to enter the stomach, and tightens to keep food and acid from flowing backward into the esophagus. It should prevent heartburn.

Weak Sphincter Problems

If the sphincter in any of the above becomes weak, problems can occur.

1. A milking machine can make a cow's sphincter remain relaxed for two hours. This allows bacteria to enter the teat, and can result in mastitis.

2. A weakness in the bladder sphincter can cause urine to leak against your will.

3. When the anal sphincter weakens, fecal incontinence can occur.

4. A weakness in the LES allows stomach acids to reflux, flow backward into the esophagus. This causes heartburn.

When sphincters other than the LES weaken and cause problems, attention is turned to strengthening the weak sphincter. The cow's sphincter is often subjected to cold after milking to tighten the muscle band. Exercise can tighten both weak bladder sphincters and weak anal sphincters. Biofeedback, electrical stimulation, and certain drugs also can be used to tighten these two sphincters.

Interestingly, none of these approaches seems to be used for the LES. Heartburn treatments address the symptoms, but neglect the weakened sphincter, which is the real problem.

Can Glutamine for Heartburn Help?

Glutamine for heartburn may be a solution.

Glutamine is an amino acid. Just as other amino acids are important constituents of proteins, so is glutamine. Glutamine occurs naturally in foods that are high in protein: beans, dairy products, fish, and red meat.

Glutamine as a supplement is used by weight lifters, body builders, and other athletes who want strong muscles. Glutamine as a supplement is also used to alleviate muscle cramps and pain, especially in older people. By replenishing the amino acids in the body, muscles are strengthened and pain relieved.

Glutamine has been shown to increase the body's ability to dispose of damaged cells, and produce new cells. Glutamine is a powerful antioxidant, too. As such, it helps protect body cells from free radicals. Glutamine heals mucous membranes, including the lining of the esophagus that is being damaged by heartburn.

It is thought by some that glutamine for heartburn might strengthen the LES, improving its ability to tighten properly. This might completely prevent heartburn, acid reflux, and even GERD.

Glutamine for heartburn could possibly be a partial, if not a total cure.

Until heartburn, acid reflux, and GERD are understood and treated as the muscular problems they seem to be, physicians will continue to prescribe relief and treatments that address only the symptoms.

Disclaimer: The author does not sell glutamine in any form, nor will she profit from sales of glutamine for heartburn. The author is not a medical professional and offers this information for educational purposes only.

Heartburn in pregnancy is caused by a muscular weakness. The muscle involved is the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), a ring of muscle between your stomach and esophagus. The LES is designed to relax when you swallow food so that the food can enter the stomach. Once the food is in the stomach, the LES is to tighten, keeping food and stomach acids from flowing back into your esophagus. If the LES always worked properly, no one would ever suffer heartburn in pregnancy.

Like many other parts of the body, however, the LES is affected by pregnancy. Heartburn in pregnancy is a frequent complaint.

Common Question about Heartburn in Pregnancy

When does heartburn start in pregnancy? How soon in pregnancy do you get heartburn? When should I expect heartburn in pregnancy? The question varies, but the answer is always the same. Heartburn in pregnancy usually begins around the fifth month. From that point forward, it may come and go until you give birth.

How do you treat heartburn in pregnancy?

Pregnancy Heartburn Treatment

Pregnancy heartburn treatment begins with an understanding of the relationship between heartburn and pregnancy. Why is it that at this time when you are so happy to be expecting, you suddenly have heartburn?

With pregnancy, the placenta produces progesterone, a hormone that relaxes the uterus' smooth muscles. It relaxes some other muscles, too, one of which can be the LES separating the esophagus and stomach. As progesterone relaxes the LES, it fails to close and/or remain tightly closed. This allows acids to flow back into the esophagus, causing heartburn. Progesterone also affects the contractions of the esophagus, slowing the wavelike action. This, too, contributes to heartburn in pregnancy.

As your pregnancy progresses and your baby grows, your abdominal cavity will become crowded. The limited space will be taken up increasingly by the growing, moving infant. This puts pressure on the stomach, which in turn pressures the LES to open. Heartburn can quickly result as stomach acids are pushed into the esophagus.

Steps of Pregnancy Heartburn Treatment

Your healthcare provider will warn you not to take medications that might harm the baby. There are steps you can take, however, to treat heartburn in pregnancy.

1. Watch your weight gain. Ask your physician how much you should reasonably gain, and be careful to keep your weight to that limit. Excess weight will place more pressure on the LES and increase heartburn.

2. Avoid tight clothing, especially around your waist and abdomen. Tight clothing also contributes to pressure on the LES muscle ring.

3. When bending, bend at the knees rather than at the waist. Bending at the waist is a common cause of heartburn in pregnancy.

4. Eat several small meals during the day in place of three larger meals. Eat slowly and chew your food well.

5. Have your last meal or snack at least two to three hours before bedtime. Allowing food to digest before you lie down can reduce heartburn.

6. Although you will want to drink eight to ten glasses of water daily, you should Avoid drinking large amounts of liquid during meals. Try to remember that a distended stomach will pressure the LES and cause heartburn.

7. Ward off potential heartburn by chewing gum after eating. The chewing action can help release air bubbles that contribute to heartburn and the gum stimulates the production of saliva, which can help neutralize acid.

CAUTION: The author is not a professional physician, and offers this information about heartburn in pregnancy for educational purposes only. Please seek advice from your health care provider.

Natural heartburn treatments have been gaining momentum as the choice heartburn treatments in many households. Though there are a number of over-the-counter and prescribed medications and drugs to treat heartburn, most are non-curative unlike natural heartburn treatments. People are also increasingly concerned about the harmful side-effects of such medicines. Folks are now more willing and ready to learn about heartburn, its preventive measures and natural heartburn treatments.

Before we head to the local pharmacy for quick fixes with over-the-counter and prescribed medicines, we need to be aware of the different self care tips we can use to reduce the occurrences of heartburns and prevent them from happening in the first place. A lot has to do with our diet. It is common knowledge that consuming certain foods could trigger heartburns. We also do know that eating right before bedtime is not a good idea at all. Yet, we simply ignore these warnings and stick to our unhealthy eating habits. When the pains of heartburns strike at us, we reach out quickly for our heartburn medication. Unfortunately, in the long run, this quick fix loses its effectiveness and not only so, your heartburn condition can be aggravated.

What are possible harmful side effects of OTC and prescribed medicines and drugs?

You may not be aware but heartburn medicines such as antacids are acid blockers and in the process of offering heartburn relief by blocking stomach acids, they also block nutrients adsorption and hinder digestion. So you may end up in a worst condition. Besides this, since a number of medicines contain trace elements such as aluminum, magnesium, calcium and sodium bicarbonate, patients may suffer from constipation, stomach bloating, excessive gas, stomach upset, abdominal pain, dizziness, nausea and excessive after-effect acid production.

Enough is said about the possible risks. We will take a look at how natural heartburn treatments can help to arrest heartburns without causing repercussions in our health.

1. Diet

There are some foods that trigger heartburns. You need to also keep track of foods that can cause you to develop heartburns. Avoid them at all cost.

a. Citrus Fruits

Citrus fruits like tomatoes, grapefruit and oranges increase the stomach acidity, and irritate the esophagus.

b. Fatty Foods

Fatty foods are difficult to digest and tend to stay in our stomach longer, giving it a greater chance of escaping to the esophagus.

c. Caffeinated and Carbonated Beverages

Avoid coffee, tea and other caffeinated beverages. These drinks increase stomach acidity. Carbonated drinks like soda promote production of gases.

d. Alcohol, Peppermint, Spearmint and Chocolate

These foods relax the lower esophageal sphincter, the valve between the stomach and the esophagus. Stomach acids could then escape to the esophagus, inducing heartburns. Alcohol can also affect muscle contractions which indirectly affect swallowing of food into the stomach, and irritate the esophagus.

e. Foods that Irritate the Esophagus

Other foods include raw onions, garlic, pepper, vinegar and other spices.

2. Home Remedies as Natural Heartburn Treatments

There are a number of home remedies which make excellent natural heartburn treatments. Here is a list you can try:

a. Aloe Vera Juice

Aloe Vera juices have been widely used in European countries as natural heartburn treatments. They are soothing to the esophagus.

b. Ginger

Ginger can be prepared with fresh foods or, sliced or powdered and prepared as ginger tea. In both ways, they are good for digestion and are known to aid in suppressing heartburn.

c. Chamomile

Chamomile tea is excellent for treating heartburns.

d. Licorice

It has been reported that licorice is one of the best natural heartburn treatments. DGL, acronym for deglycyrrhizinated licorice is readily available at any health and lifestyle shops in the form of chewing gums and tablets. Daily consumption would effectively suppress the recurrence of heartburns.

e. Fibrous Foods

Eating more fibrous foods like cereals, fruits and vegetables are useful for our digestive systems. A medical research study found that those who stick to a high-fiber diet are 20 percent less likely to suffer from acid reflux heartburns. Fruits like cantaloupe, bananas and apple and vegetables like peas, celery, carrots, broccoli and cauliflower are packed with fibers.

Find out more at my blog about effective natural heartburn treatments that have set many heartburn victims free from this nagging problem.

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