Have you been having burning sensations felt at the back of your throat or your chest? Is it accompanied with a taste of acid or food in your mouth? Or does the acid taste simply occur alone? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then you probably have acid reflux.

What is Acid Reflux?

Also called as Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease or GERD or heartburn, acid reflux is a disease wherein the contents in your stomach back up into your esophagus. If you just ate or still have undigested food in your stomach and this occurs, you will end up having a taste of food in your mouth. If you have an empty stomach when the reflux occurs, there’s a big possibility of you tasting acid in your mouth instead.

What are the Acid Reflux Causes?

The causes of acid reflux are plenty. Here are some of them:

* LES or lower esophageal sphincter

You might be scratching your head and wondering what LES is. LES is actually your lower esophageal sphincter. It is the very sphincter that allows your food to enter the stomach. At the same time, it also prevents that very food, or any of the stomach contents, from backing up into your esophagus and mouth.

There are two problems connected with your LES. One is when it makes transient relaxations. In simple terms, instead of making the regular relaxations, as it does when you swallow food and saliva, your LES now does it even at times when it is not supposed to. The other problem is when your LEX muscle becomes weak. With this, it is unable to contract, or close, properly. Whichever of these two occurs, you will end up with backed up stomach contents slipping through the LES and into your esophagus.

* Food

There are some foods that are believed to be one of the acid reflux causes as well as worsen the symptoms of GERD. Foods such as spicy, citrus, chocolate, garlic and onions, those with mint flavorings, and those that are tomato based such as spaghetti and other similar pasta preparations are the most common ones to cause acid reflux.

* Hiatal Hernia

Don’t be confused by the words. Hiatal hernia is a condition wherein you have a part of your stomach protruding into a hole in your diaphragm where your esophagus and stomach meets. It might sound scary, but it really is harmless. In fact, it is very common especially among those aging 60 years old and up.

Although still unclear, hiatal hernia is believed to be the reason for constant heartburn. This is because it has the potential to impair the function of your LES. Although studies have yet to come up with strong evidence for this, it has been discovered that many of those who have acid refluxes also have hiatal hernia. In short, to have the acid reflux, those people experiencing it must have hiatal hernia first.

The acid reflux causes are plentiful. What you should do is find out which of them is causing your heartburn as well as go to a doctor for proper treatment. Bear in mind that acid reflux may seem simple, but it can cause a lot of problems later on when untreated.

Additional web info…

Acid Reflux Questions » Blog Archive » Acid Reflux Recipes – Waldorf salad, made with ripe, healthy apples, nuts, and raisins, is a good acid reflux cure recipe. Use any traditional Waldorf salad recipe, but substitute low-fat mayonnaise and sour cream. You will have a great-tasting salad that … Spaghetti may cause acid reflux in some. You can reduce the possibilities by beginning with acid-free tomato sauce. Omit garlic and onion from your sauce, and try using more basil and less oregano. There are a number of Italian spices … On a green streak » My Experience With Acid Reflux Disease – I’ve dealt with heartburn or ‘acid reflux disease’ for most of my adult life. I had made it to the end of the line, as far as my peace of mind and pain tolerance were concerned. Something had to change. And I needed some guidance about how … I encourage you to look into the underlying causes of your acid reflux as well. Of course everyone’s situation is different, but there are simple things we can do to increase our comfort and wellbeing even if it does not completely … What Is Acid Reflux Or Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease? at Yozing … – Acid reflux is made up of chronic symptoms and / or mucosal damage that are caused by the abnormal reflux of stomach contents, namely the powerful stomach acid. When the gastric contents are expelled into the esophagus, this creates discomfort, pain and possibly lasting tissue damage. … Though there are a number of heartburn medications on the market, I strongly advise you to find simple solutions, such as avoiding certain foods, before you start medicating the problem. …