Sunny's Story

"I used to have really bad heartburn for about a year, maybe 2. Over the counter medicines weren't really helping (Prilosec worked but I didn't like the side-effects) and I lost a lot of sleep; very horrible to deal with. I changed my diet and was in good health otherwise. I was told many things......it's this or that or that... you will have it the rest of your life etc. etc. I happen to think doctors don't know everything. Well to make a long story short I moved to Japan a year ago. Since being in Japan my heartburn has almost COMPLETELY disappeared. I rarely ever take any medicine because of heartburn, because I simply don't get it anymore. The food is much fresher here, much healthier and in smaller portions. Plus you must walk a lot more. I also cook a lot. So, maybe try the Japanese lifestyle and see what happens. It worked for me."

Points to Remember:
One of the first steps doctors usually recommend for patients who suffer from chronic heartburn is lifestyle modifications. This includes what foods we eat and don't eat. While foods aren't always a trigger for heartburn, the majority of patients do state eating certain foods is sure to cause heartburn. If you are not sure which foods trigger your heartburn, you can try keeping a record of what you eat, and any symptoms that may occur afterwards, for a week or two. If you've eaten several foods during a meal and don't know which one triggered your heartburn, you can re-introduce each food one at a time into your diet to determine which one is causing the heartburn. To help with meal planning, you can check out the list of most often safe foods for heartburn sufferers, and foods to avoid. You may also want to check out some heartburn-free menu suggestions.

——

You can read other stories here.

Would you like to share your story? You can do so by using this submission form.

You can also leave comments about this post by clicking on the "comments" link below this post.

——

Related Resources:

Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)
Good Foods, Bad Foods for Heartburn Sufferers
Proton Pump Inhibitors