Heartburn help

[speckles70]

really suffering from heartburn since starting levo couple of months ago. Really dnt want to take over counter remedies due to absorption of levo. Any natral alternative please?

[LindaC]

I used to get dreadful heartburn and found that taking a half lemon squeezed in water would take it away within 15 - 20 mins. That is a simple, harmless way to see if it helps.

I then found that I need to take Betaine HLI [with Pepsin] x2 a day to put acid back into my stomach, i.e. I didn't have too much acid, rather not enough. Two per day does me fine and I hardly ever get the dreadful heartburn I used to. Reducing acid for me - docs prescribing PPI's - would have been the very worst thing to do... so careful how you proceed [many people being given pills that can and have made them worse yet some people DO need those].

For me it's a case of trying out what you can... you'll soon know yourself if it gets better or worse. Best of, take care

[Ruthi]

There's an excellent book called No More Heartburn: Stop the Pain in 30 Days--Naturally! by Sherry Rogers. Very comprehensive.

But those of us who are hypo tend to have low stomach acid, and either Betaine or Apple Cider Vinegar often help.

You also need to be optimally medicated - low acid is a function of low thyroid hormone.

[speckles70 in reply to Ruthi]

am far from optimum with thyroid and B12 & D also very low, just starting out on my journey and expecting a levo increase to 75 tomorrow after go reviews my latest blood test. How do u take the apple cider. Lemon juice in hot water works for short periods but not long term relief 😒

[Ruthi in reply to speckles70]

Nothing much will work long term till your thyroid is better replaced. ACV is taken in water much like lemon juice. Betaine HCL is a more powerful version. I would suggest you look at DGL which you can get from Holland and Barret. It worked for me, but is a bit of a faff, since it has to be 20 minutes before food.

[speckles70 in reply to Ruthi]

and these recommendations work by increasing low stomach acids?

[Ruthi in reply to speckles70]

ACV, lemon juice and betaine add to the acid in the stomach. That is why they are all short term. The long term answer is to increase the level of your thyroid hormones until you produce your own.

DGL is thought to improve the mucosal lining of the digestive tract.

OTC antacids like Gaviscon give some temporary relief, and while they interfere with stomach acidity they don't do anything to the production of acid, so are pretty safe away from food. I used to suck gaviscon tablets so they trickled down and gave my poor oesophagus a rest - at bedtime particularly. Avoid Xantac/ranitadine which suppresses acid production.

Its also worth trying to work out which foods aggravate the most. I am gluten free and noticed that the ready made gf bread was a particularly nasty irritant. From that I also worked out that pretty well all grains except rice gave me heartburn.

FWIW since I went to a fully low carb/high fat diet I haven't had any heartburn at all!

[Hidden]

Any sweets that are bicarbonated soda based are good such as extra strong mints or sherbert dips. Sounds crazy but they work. My daughter gets awful motion sickness and we sometimes give her sherbert before a trip. It works just as well as travel sickness pills. I get bad heartburn and indigestion during pregnancy and extra strong mints are great for it.

[speckles70]

definitely need to have a packet of these in my bag at all times. Great ideas thank u all xxx

[foxglove]

Have you tried slippery elm powder? I find this works well, think it also has some vits. minerals etc. It is a while since I have needed it and if you don't like the powder, it can be bought in tablet form

[speckles70 in reply to foxglove]

iev just bought some ACV so will give this a try with the mints suggestion for on the go relief. And if no joy I will try all other suggestions till I get relief 😊 thank you all x