Written By: Shraddha Rupavate | Published : December 5, 2014 3:49 PM IST
Tired of those burning sensations and grumbling reactions in your stomach? It's time you notice your lifestyle and eating pattern as acidity (gastro-esophageal reflux disease-GERD) is nothing but your body's reaction to these unhealthy lifestyle habits.
When you eat food, your stomach produces gastric acids for the process of digestion. However, certain lifestyle habits that you develop over a period of time interrupt this process of acid production and release, resulting in corrosion of the stomach wall, thereby increasing episodes of acidity. Here are some triggers of acidity you should know.
1. Eating junk food: All kinds of junk food are either deep fried, salty or spicy, and each of them can damage your stomach lining to trigger acidity. The oil from junk foods gets deposited on the wall of the stomach, causing the cells to secrete more amount of acid while the spices directly irritate the stomach lining. Also, junk food lacks fibre, which totally impairs your digestion. Without fibre, the food stays in the stomach for a longer time, triggering acidic burps even after an hour of having a meal. Here are 10 more reasons to say no to junk food.
2. Overeating: When you overeat, your stomach releases excess acid to digest the food. The best way to avoid acidity is to eat smaller meals, allowing your brain to signal the right amount of acid secretion for digestion.
3. Obesity: After discussing the effect of junk food and overeating on the digestive system, it's obvious that those who are obese are more prone to acidity. Studies have suggested that obesity is a trigger for acidity.
4. Eating acidic foods: Different people with different food habits may have different triggers of acidity. Therefore, those suffering from recurring bouts of acidity should identify other foods that might be triggering their acidity. Some foods like tomatoes, citrus fruits, butter and cheese are common triggers in people who are prone to acidity. You can also have a look at some common foods that can trigger acidity.
5. Drinking coffee: Avoiding caffeine-containing beverages is probably the first thing that your doctor would suggest you in order to control acidity. Coffee acts as a diuretic agent that can change the pH of your stomach, making it more acidic. This effect is multiplied with the number of times you drink coffee. Therefore, those who drink coffee more than 4-5 times a day may experience more episodes of acid reflux compared to those who drink 2 cups of coffee per day.
6. Chewing gum: While some studies suggest that chewing gum can reduce bouts of acidity, others suggest that chewing gum can actually be an acidity trigger for a few people. Chewing is an action that normally signals the brain about food being swallowed to reach the stomach for digestion. When you're chewing a gum, although the action of chewing is performed, there's no food available for the stomach to digest. So, the acids that get secreted directly cause corrosion of the stomach lining and increases acidity. Here are 7 other ways chewing gum damages your health.
7. Consuming aerated drinks: Just like coffee, aerated drinks are also caffeinated and cause the same effect on the stomach lining, moreover, they also contain carbon dioxide. When you gulp these drinks, the gas bubbles burst directly into the esophagus, which causes acid to reflux from the stomach, giving you those burpy reactions.
8. Stress: When you're under chronic stress, your body releases stress hormones, which if present in high amounts, can directly affect your digestive system. Also, chronic stress can induce cravings for junk food and even cause you to overeat, leading to acidity.
9. Smoking: You just cannot expect to get rid of acidity, if you're a smoker. Cigarettes contain nicotine that directly cause irritation of the stomach lining. Also, when you smoke cigarettes, the stomach triggers production of acid. Here are tips for you to quit smoking.
10. Drinking alcohol: Alcohol, too can have a similar effect on your GI tract. Alcohol directly damages the mucosal lining of the stomach, causing excess acid production. Further, alcohol being a dehydrating agent, worsens acidity due to its damaging effect.
11. Drinking less amount of water: Hydrating yourself sufficiently is the best way to dilute the excess amount of acid your stomach produces. People who drink less water throughout the day are therefore more prone to heart burn and acidity episodes. It is essential to drink at least 8 glasses of water every day to reduce frequent acidity bouts.
12. Medications: Popping painkillers and supplements has become an everyday thing for a lot of people these days. But these medications can affect the acid production and pH of the stomach. Those who pop an anatacid to get rid of acidity should especially be careful because antacids can instead disrupt the acid production mechanism of your digestive tract to worsen your condition.
13. Digestive problems: Sometimes, acidity could mean more than lifestyle and eating habits. Certain gastric disorders like stomach ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome, stomach tumors can have acidity as a symptom. In case lifestyle changes do not help you, you should visit a gateroenterologist for a checkup.
Here are 8 lifestyle tips to treat acidity
You may also like to read 10 simple changes to prevent acidity and heart burn.
Image source: Getty images
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