Acid reflux isn’t pleasant. Symptoms of acid reflux include heartburn (a painful burning sensation in your abdomen, chest, or throat), regurgitation (acid backing up into your throat or mouth), and dyspepsia (burping, nausea, bloating, and abdominal pain/discomfort). If acid reflux occurs frequently and chronically, you may be diagnosed with gastroesophageal reflux disease, or GERD, which is a chronic digestive disease.
Surviving A Liquid Diet: 6 Tips To Keep You From Cheating Post Surgery
Often after reflux or GERD surgery you will be put on a liquid diet. This is often done to heal reflux disease, repair a hiatal hernia, or the esophagus. This diet helps control excessive gas, pain, difficulty swallowing, and problems with surgery after the operation is performed .The clear liquid diet has fruit juices, chicken broth, beef broth, flavored gelatin, coffee or tea, popsicles, and Italian ice. A clear liquid diet should only be for a few days.
How Can I Diagnose GERD?
GERD is not a pretty name in my opinion, and it also can be a pain-in-the-chest—literally. That’s two negatives facing this precocious pest that often occurs to us when our stomach acid or stomach content shoots its way back into our food pipe (AKA the esophagus). The backwash (reflux) can and usually does agitate the lining of our esophagus and cause GERD. Continue Reading Article >
3 Strange Symptoms of Reflux and How To Overcome Them
We all know the symptoms that come along acid reflux. There’s the bloating, heartburn, and stomach cramps that always follow your favorite meal, but there are also symptoms you could be experiencing that are less common among people suffering from reflux. However, people who suffer from acid reflux may come across these unique symptoms and there are most certainly ways to battle the symptoms when they arise. Here's the top three rare symptoms of reflux and how to combat them. Continue Reading Article >
What is Barrett’s Esophagus?
Barrett’s Esophagus may sound like an instrument played in a band, but I assure you it is not musical, fun, or poetic. In fact, doctors are kind of stumped on what the dang thing is anyway. One thing they do know is that Barrett’s Esophagus is a serious complication of GERD. GERD is a chronic digestive disease that occurs when stomach acid trails back into your food pipe (esophagus) and the backwash aggravates the lining of your esophagus and causes GERD.
What are the symptoms?
So now we know that Barrett’s Esophagus is a severe problem of GERD, which actually means gastroesophageal reflux disease (I know, you could have gone the rest of your life without hearing that word.) On the other hand, these over-rated terms might just save your life. The thing is, Barrett’s Esophagus does not have any specific symptoms, so that’s a tricky one, but his cousin, acid reflux disease, does possess some unhealthy attributes like heartburn, indigestion, abdomen pain, nausea after eating and even regurgitation.
Is it dangerous?
In Barrett’s Esophagus, you have the tube (esophagus) in your body that carries food from the mouth to the stomach, and normal tissue lining of the esophagus may begin to alter to appear like the lining of the intestine. Now around ten percent of people can develop chronic symptoms of GERD and develop Barrett’s Esophagus. Patients with Barrett’s Esophagus have a chance of developing esophageal adenocarcinoma (just as unpleasant as it sounds) because it’s a possible fatal cancer of the esophagus. However, on a brighter note, the disease is rare with less than one percent of people with Barrett’s Esophagus possessing this type of cancer.
How will I know if I have Barrett’s Esophagus?
As with GERD, which is related to Barrett’s Esophagus, silent reflux symptoms tend to affect the larynx, as opposed to the esophagus. Often times doctors may overlook silent reflux because it has similar symptoms like post nasal drip, a lump in the throat, hoarseness or a persistent cough that many other diseases may contain. And for that reason, it is highly-recommended that you consult with a specialist to discover if you have silent reflux. It is often misdiagnosed and affects close to fifty million Americans today. The back flow of stomach acid and digestive enzymes (pepsin) will cause a lot of damage to your esophagus, which can cause cancer.
It is important to note that anyone can develop Barrett’s Esophagus, but white males who have had a history of dealing with GERD are more prone to acquire it. GERD does not always cause Barrett’s Esophagus, but a person who has had it for a long time is at a higher risk. If you have symptoms resembling trouble swallowing, blood in your stool, persistent symptoms despite medical therapy, or new chest pain, it would be advised that you should discuss these symptoms with your doctor and have an endoscopic examination.
By Preston Copeland
What Happens If You Don't Treat GERD?
That burn in your throat after a hearty meal may seem like an uncomfortable annoyance easily solved by some Pepto-Bismol, but severe forms of heartburn, or GERD, can actually cause damage to your teeth, mouth, and esophagus when left untreated. GERD symptoms are pretty easy to identify because the discomfort of acidic stomach juices bubbling up your throat will quickly land you straight at your local gastroenterologist seeking GERD medications. However, it is important to closely follow your physician’s treatment plan so that a small problem does not grow into a more serious complication.
“Untreated frequent and refractory GERD can lead to esophageal ulceration, ulcerative esophagitis with risk of significant bleeding, esophageal strictures, Barrett’s esophagus or in rare cases even esophageal cancer,” says Dr. Faisal Bhinder, a leading gastroenterologist at Capital Digestive Care.
As further incentive to treat your GERD with the guidance of a physician, we've decided to list out the various effects of leaving GERD untreated. Here's 5 symptoms you may experience if you choose not to act quickly.
1. Esophageal ulcerations
Esophageal ulcerations are open sores at the bottom of the esophagus that often leads to discomfort behind the breastbone caused by the rapid erosion of the esophagus lining.
2. Ulcerative esophagitis
Ulcerative esophagitis with risk of bleeding is a rare complication that occurs in approximately eight percent of GERD sufferers when ulcers in the esophagus cause bloody vomiting.
3. Esophageal stricture
Esophageal stricture is when inflammation from stomach acid causes the esophagus to narrow. If untreated, this narrowing can block food and liquid from reaching the stomach.
4. Barret's esophagus
Barret’s esophagus is a more serious GERD complication when the esophagus lining is transformed into cells that resemble intestinal lining. This condition slightly increases the risk of developing cancer in the esophagus.
5. Esophageal cancer
Esophageal cancer is an uncommon but possible side effect of untreated GERD. Cancer can develop in two forms, squamous cell carcinoma and adenocarcinoma, which may effect all or part of the esophagus.
The effects of untreated GERD can manifest serious complications. GERD is a condition that is certainly uncomfortable, but when you visit a doctor it can easily be treated. Just remember to avoid any foods and other factors that may trigger your GERD and follow your physician’s treatment plan to avoid developing unnecessary complications.