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Sleep and Acid Reflux

Acid reflux

When you swallow food or drink, it travels down the oesophagus to your stomach. A muscle named the ‘lower oesophageal sphincter’ opens to let the food or drink into your stomach. This muscle should ‘close’ immediately after the food or drink passes through, however if it doesn’t work perfectly, your stomach acid can reflux back into the oesophagus. Acid reflux can occur without you knowing but often produces a burning sensation (heartburn) – the main symptom of acid reflux.

Gastro-Oesophageal Reflux Disease (GORD)

GORD is a digestive condition and is a chronic form of acid reflux, which is usually diagnosed when acid reflux happens more than twice a week or causes inflammation in the oesophagus. This condition is common in older people and slightly more common in women compared to men.

GORD symptoms

According to the NHS, in addition to acid reflux symptoms may include:

Heartburn (burning sensation in the middle of your chest)

An unpleasant sour taste in your mouth

A cough or hiccups that keep coming up

A hoarse voice

Bad breath

Feeling sick with nausea

The common causes

There’s not always an obvious cause for acid reflux, symptoms may develop for a variety of reasons.

Here’s the top 8 recognised causes:

Certain food and drink

Such as coffee, tomatoes, alcohol, chocolate and fatty or spicy foods.

Obesity

Extra abdominal fat adds pressure to the stomach forcing acid up into the oesophagus.

Alcohol

Alcohol can relax the LES, which allows stomach contents to leak into the esophagus. And, when you drink something that stimulates gastric acid secretion (like alcohol), this increased acidity can irritate the esophagus, triggering reflux.

Pregnancy

Many pregnant women experience acid reflux, it can start at any point, however is most common after 27 weeks.

The uterus gets bigger and increases pressure on the belly. Hormones also tend to be higher, which tends to relax the sphincter.

Hormonal changes

The hormonal impact on acid reflux can be seen in puberty, pregnancy and in menopause.

Increased estrogen levels may relax the LES, causing stomach acids to back flow into the esophagus. Similarly, an increase in another hormone, progesterone, can slow the digestive process and excessively relax the LES, leading to reflux.

Certain medications

The lining of the stomach and the esophagus are delicate. It doesn’t take much for certain medications, even in small amounts, to cause irritation. Some medications cause problems because they inhibit the production of mucus and other substances that protect the stomach lining.

Anxiety and stress

Stress doesn’t just increase a person’s blood pressure, it can also cause the gastric muscles to contract. This pushes the contents of the stomach along with the stomach acids toward the LES. All that churning sometimes leads to reflux.

Many people’s stomachs produce more acid when they’re anxious and this can cause them to experience heartburn.

Hiatus Hernia

Larger hiatal hernias are big enough to allow undigested food and stomach acids to reflux into your oesophagus. This means that you’re likely to display the standard symptoms of GERD.

Certain food and drink

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Certain food and drink

Such as coffee, tomatoes, alcohol, chocolate and fatty or spicy foods.

Obesity

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Obesity

Extra abdominal fat adds pressure to the stomach forcing acid up into the oesophagus.

Alcohol

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Alcohol

Pregnancy

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Pregnancy

Many pregnant women experience acid reflux, it can start at any point, however is most common after 27 weeks.

The uterus gets bigger and increases pressure on the belly. Hormones also tend to be higher, which tends to relax the sphincter.

Hormonal changes

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Hormonal changes

Certain medications

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Certain medications

Anxiety and stress

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Anxiety and stress

Stress doesn’t just increase a person’s blood pressure, it can also cause the gastric muscles to contract. This pushes the contents of the stomach along with the stomach acids toward the LES. All that churning sometimes leads to reflux.
Many people’s stomachs produce more acid when they’re anxious and this can cause them to experience heartburn.

Hiatus Hernia

Click for more

Hiatus Hernia

Larger hiatal hernias are big enough to allow undigested food and stomach acids to reflux into your oesophagus. This means that you’re likely to display the standard symptoms of GERD.

Symptom relief

If you eat any of the foods that can trigger acid reflux, you could try eliminating them to see if doing so controls your reflux, and then try adding them back one by one

Eat smaller, more frequent meals

Get yourself a Acid Reflux Wedge Pillow to elevate the upper half of your body to prevent acid leaking out of your stomach

Change your lifestyle – eat healthier, excercise more, reduce alcohol intake and stop smoking

Check your medications – speak with your doctor to discuss your current medications and reflux symptoms. You may also need medication to control reflux even as you pursue lifestyle changes

Find a way to relax that works for you, putting yourself first to reduce stress and anxiety

Symptom relief during pregnancy

Acid reflux is more common in pregnancy because progesterone, the main hormone of pregnancy, slows your digestive system. That, combined with the pressure of a growing baby, increases the possibility that stomach acid will make its way upward.

To prevent acid reflux during pregnancy, you can: