Bad Breath And GERD
Are you suffering from severe bad breath? Perhaps it's high time that you stop pointing at those spicy foods that you've been eating. You can also stop blaming your parents for it, even if there are assumptions that bad breath is hereditary. For only know, it's caused by GERD, which means gastroesophageal reflux disease.
What Is GERD?
GERD is characterized when the muscle ring that is located between the esophagus and the stomach is not closing properly, causing a leak on the content of the stomach. When this happens, a reflux occurs where these contents go to the esophagus. One of the common effects is known to be bad breath. Another common effect of GERD is heartburn, but it seldom happens. It also doesn't mean that if you have heartburn, you're suffering from GERD. Normally, what happens in a reflux stomach is that the acid will touch your esophagus and can thus be tasted by your mouth. GERD can affect basically anyone-from children to adults. This also explains the connection between bad breath and GERD.
What Are the Common Signs of GERD? There are two common symptoms of GERD. One is called acid regurgitation while the other is heartburn. As mentioned a while ago, though, not all people will experience heartburn. They may, however, feel something in their chests. They may even have some problem in swallowing. Of course bad breath is a common sign of GERD. How Do You Fight GERD? Fortunately, there are many ways to practice GERD prevention. To help you out, here are some tips for you: 1. Avoid eating food at least three hours before you go to sleep. As much as possible, you should keep those burgers, fries, and popcorns away from you when you're ready to go to sleep. This is to prevent any food from being kept inside your stomach. Kids, on the other hand, should have their heads raised while sleeping. He can do that by piling pillows under their heads. If this strategy doesn't work, the next step is to bring your kid to the doctor said that he or she can give you a good prescription. There are some cases when the child may require surgery, but this is very rare. 2. Stop drinking alcohol. You don't need to be told how smelly alcohol can be. Just so you don't end up having bad breath early in the morning, you might as well avoid drinking it at night time. 3. Avoid anything that can cause or trigger reflux. There are certain kinds of food that are said to be one of the leading causes of GERD. These include citrus fruits, tomatoes, chocolate, garlic, onion, spices, and even pizza. 4. Prevent yourself from lying down three hours after a meal. This way, you can give yourself especially your stomach enough time to digest the food that you've just eaten. In the end, though, it is still best to consult your doctor especially if you have been suffering heartburn for weeks. It may be a sign of a more complicated problem-more than bad breath-and you need to fix it immediately. He can also suggest you the best products to use just in case you really do have bad breath because of GERD.
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