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Dr. Eliza Klearman
Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) is one of the most prevalent diagnoses and the most treated diseases. People are desperate for relief and taking drugs to try to mitigate their symptoms. AstraZeneca, the company that makes Nexium and Prilosec, estimate that yearly sales of these drugs earn them over $5 billion a year.
Acid blocking Nexium is the second best selling drug in the country (second only to Lipitor). From these numbers alone, we can see that heartburn is extremely prevalent, and extremely costly. Experiencing acid reflux is not normal, nor is it caused by too much acid in the stomach or a deficiency of Nexium. I will show you that acid reflux is a very easily treatable condition — without drugs. At the bottom of the esophagus is a muscular ring called the Lower Esophageal Sphincter (LES). The LES is responsible for keeping the contents of the stomach in the stomach and allowing food to enter the stomach by way of the esophagus. Relaxation of the LES is now universally accepted as the central mechanism leading to GERD in the majority of patients. When the LES is weakened, it cannot open or close properly, leading to increased exposure of the esophagus to stomach acid, which causes the symptoms of reflux.
Several factors can contribute to a weakening of this important ring. Not completely chewing your food, lying down too soon after a meal, eating too much, smoking, micronutrient-depleted food, and pollution exposure (leading to free radical damage throughout the body), all contribute to poor digestive tone. Being overweight and pregnant put more pressure on the sphincter and can impair its function. Food allergies and asthma can also contribute to this condition.
Eating a healthy diet and avoiding foods that don’t agree with your body are the first steps to eliminating heartburn. We know that certain foods decrease the tension of the LES. Fatty, fried foods, spearmint, peppermint, and chocolate relax the LES and can cause heartburn. Acidic beverages like juices, coffee, and tea have also been linked to increased heartburn pain, as have carbonated drinks, alcohol, and milk.
In addition, Hydrochloric Acid (HCl), the acid made by your stomach to digest food, plays a key role in keeping the LES strong. Having adequate amounts of HCl in the stomach ensures that the LES stays closed. However, aging, over-eating, chronic stress, poor dietary habits, pharmaceutical drugs, and autoimmune or chronic degenerative diseases all deplete the body of HCl, making you more susceptible to reflux.
Pharmaceutical drugs such as Nexium and Prilosec work by blocking the acid that your stomach makes. While this may quell the fire of reflux, you can now see how taking your typical acid-blocking drug actually increases your chances of having more reflux by reducing the amount of acid in your stomach. What a great gig for the drug companies that make these drugs. You literally have to take them for life because taking their product will guarantee that you will need it again and again.
Aside from treating only the symptoms and contributing to the cause of reflux, these very common drugs are also quite dangerous. Without adequate HCl, your body cannot absorb certain nutrients, specifically B12 and calcium, leaving you susceptible to serious nutrient deficiencies.
Eliminating HCl also decreases your primary defense mechanism against infection, as the acid can kill many bacteria and viruses, and increases the risk of food borne illness and illness in general. There are many safer and more effective treatments for GERD. Proper diet, stress management and priming the stomach to make more HCl are my first lines of therapy. Next, there are many soothing herbs which help to repair and relieve the damaged tissue of the esophagus. So before you reach for an over-the-counter Prilosec or ask your doctor for a prescription, remember that these drugs are only covering your symptoms and will not help you correct the underlying weaknesses of your body.
Dr. Eliza Klearman is a Naturopathic Doctor and Acupuncturist practicing in Eagle. For more information call 328-5678 or email liza@drklearman.com.
Acid blocking Nexium is the second best selling drug in the country (second only to Lipitor). From these numbers alone, we can see that heartburn is extremely prevalent, and extremely costly. Experiencing acid reflux is not normal, nor is it caused by too much acid in the stomach or a deficiency of Nexium. I will show you that acid reflux is a very easily treatable condition — without drugs. At the bottom of the esophagus is a muscular ring called the Lower Esophageal Sphincter (LES). The LES is responsible for keeping the contents of the stomach in the stomach and allowing food to enter the stomach by way of the esophagus. Relaxation of the LES is now universally accepted as the central mechanism leading to GERD in the majority of patients. When the LES is weakened, it cannot open or close properly, leading to increased exposure of the esophagus to stomach acid, which causes the symptoms of reflux.
Several factors can contribute to a weakening of this important ring. Not completely chewing your food, lying down too soon after a meal, eating too much, smoking, micronutrient-depleted food, and pollution exposure (leading to free radical damage throughout the body), all contribute to poor digestive tone. Being overweight and pregnant put more pressure on the sphincter and can impair its function. Food allergies and asthma can also contribute to this condition.
Eating a healthy diet and avoiding foods that don’t agree with your body are the first steps to eliminating heartburn. We know that certain foods decrease the tension of the LES. Fatty, fried foods, spearmint, peppermint, and chocolate relax the LES and can cause heartburn. Acidic beverages like juices, coffee, and tea have also been linked to increased heartburn pain, as have carbonated drinks, alcohol, and milk.
In addition, Hydrochloric Acid (HCl), the acid made by your stomach to digest food, plays a key role in keeping the LES strong. Having adequate amounts of HCl in the stomach ensures that the LES stays closed. However, aging, over-eating, chronic stress, poor dietary habits, pharmaceutical drugs, and autoimmune or chronic degenerative diseases all deplete the body of HCl, making you more susceptible to reflux.
Pharmaceutical drugs such as Nexium and Prilosec work by blocking the acid that your stomach makes. While this may quell the fire of reflux, you can now see how taking your typical acid-blocking drug actually increases your chances of having more reflux by reducing the amount of acid in your stomach. What a great gig for the drug companies that make these drugs. You literally have to take them for life because taking their product will guarantee that you will need it again and again.
Aside from treating only the symptoms and contributing to the cause of reflux, these very common drugs are also quite dangerous. Without adequate HCl, your body cannot absorb certain nutrients, specifically B12 and calcium, leaving you susceptible to serious nutrient deficiencies.
Eliminating HCl also decreases your primary defense mechanism against infection, as the acid can kill many bacteria and viruses, and increases the risk of food borne illness and illness in general. There are many safer and more effective treatments for GERD. Proper diet, stress management and priming the stomach to make more HCl are my first lines of therapy. Next, there are many soothing herbs which help to repair and relieve the damaged tissue of the esophagus. So before you reach for an over-the-counter Prilosec or ask your doctor for a prescription, remember that these drugs are only covering your symptoms and will not help you correct the underlying weaknesses of your body.
Dr. Eliza Klearman is a Naturopathic Doctor and Acupuncturist practicing in Eagle. For more information call 328-5678 or email liza@drklearman.com.
