Although anything from pregnancy to stress can cause heartburn, carrying extra weight is a big culprit. Why? Because those added pounds add pressure to your abdomen, which squeezes acid back up into the esophagus. (Wearing too-tight pants can do it as well!) But the good news is that shedding a small amount of weight — from 5% to 10% — can help lessen the burn.
Other ways to stop heartburn include:
Anything acidic, from orange juice, tomatoes, spicy foods, and coffee, can irritate your already delicate esophagus. So try eliminating them for a while, and see if your symptoms improve.
More stomach acid is needed to break down large meals, which increases the chance of it splashing back up into your esophagus. Eating smaller meals more frequently during the day means less stomach acid needed for digestion, and may provide heartburn relief. Consider taking half a bottle of Ensure® as one of your smaller meals.
Chewing sugar-free gum for a half hour after a meal boosts saliva flow, which washes acids downstream into your stomach. Just don’t pick a mint flavour, as it’s a well-known heartburn trigger.
Important — don’t ignore heartburn if it goes on too long. If you’re experiencing constant heartburn twice a week on a regular basis, see your doctor.
Aging may be inevitable, but becoming physically frail doesn’t have to be. This is particularly true when it comes to progressive loss of muscle, which usually begins around the age of 40 and continues as we get older.
There are ways to start a busy day off right, even for those with time constraints. Just think outside the cereal box!
Packed schedule? Barely have time to sit down for a proper meal these days, let alone prepare one from scratch? Then consider this healthy option — small meals which have big benefits.
This delicious smoothie contains two portions of fruit per serving.
* From a survey of 1,038 independent-living adults aged 50+ who added 1 serving of Ensure® Protein Max 30 g per day for at least 5 days over a 2-week period, compared to control group (p<0.0001).
Canadian formulation is similar to the one used in the survey. Applies to Chocolate and Vanilla flavours.
† Compared to one serving (235 mL) of Ensure® Regular.
‡ Per 330-mL serving.
§ Brand of oral nutritional supplements.
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