Acid reflux is one of the most common gastrointestinal symptoms, and it usually appears unexpectedly, in the middle of the night, when there’s nothing much to do about it. While you are thinking twice about going out to the hospital, you may wonder what home remedies you can use to reduce acid reflux.
Acid reflux is often known as heartburn, which is a common symptom that everybody experiences at some stage of their life. However, it becomes a health problem if you experience heartburn more than twice in one week. In this case, your doctor may give you the diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease depending on the rest of the symptoms you’re experiencing.
Treating acid reflux at home
The usual treatment of acid reflux is antacids, medications to protect your gastrointestinal linings, and others to reduce the secretion of gastric acid. However, there are certain lifestyle recommendations and other natural remedies you may have around in your home, even before deciding to pay a visit to your doctor. What’s more, most acid reflux episodes are easily solved at home by following these recommendations:
Keep baking soda around
Baking soda is the usual name given to sodium bicarbonate. It is an alkaline substance that neutralizes the acid that comes from the stomach. However, be careful not to abuse from baking soda because using it excessively may change your body’s natural pH, and remember gastric acid is a necessary step to digest food as well. Dissolving one teaspoon in 7-9 ounces of water would be enough to give you a natural antacid effect. So, if you have these episodes every once in a while, keep baking soda around just in case.