Heartburn is one of the earliest symptoms of pregnancy that nearly 45% of women [1] experience while expecting a baby. Despite its name, however, heartburn in pregnancy isn’t related to the heart at all. It is a burning sensation that you’ll experience in your lower chest, esophagus, and throat after a meal or before bedtime.
While heartburn doesn’t cause any complications, the burning sensation can become more severe and intolerable in the later months of pregnancy due to fetal growth. So, our team of gynecologists at ‘Hera’ has come up with various home remedies that’ll help you alleviate the symptoms of heartburn in pregnancy and get relief from the burning sensation.
While many people believe eating spicy food causes heartburn, that’s not true. During pregnancy, your body experiences hormonal changes and produces a large amount of relaxin and progesterone.
These hormones cause the esophageal sphincter [2], the muscle tissue that separates the stomach from the esophagus, to relax. As a result, the partially digested food and other gastric contents in your stomach move back into the esophagus, resulting in a burning sensation.
Point to Remember - Despite being extremely uncomfortable, heartburn is crucial during pregnancy as it slows down the digestion, making it easier for your body to precisely absorb all the nutrients from the food..- HERA
Being an early sign of pregnancy, women usually start experiencing heartburn during the first trimester[3] itself. As the pregnancy will progress, your uterus will increase in size and put more pressure on the stomach. This will make your stomach release acids and food back into the esophagus more frequently.
This is the reason why heartburn is more severe in the final months of pregnancy. Moreover, women who are expecting a child second or third time are most likely to experience heartburn throughout their pregnancy.
Here are a few food items that can make heartburn more severe during pregnancy.
Heavy Meals
Fatty Meals With Too Many Spices
Soft Drinks
Coffee and Tea
Chocolates
Alcohol
Because of heartburn in pregnancy, you can also experience several other symptoms such as:
Bloating
A continuous sour mouth
Frequent Coughing
Sore Throat
How to cure heartburn in pregnancy? Here are a few home remedies that’ll help you reduce the burning sensation and feel more relaxed.
One of the most effective ways to treat heartburn is to replace your three-heavy-meals schedule with smaller meals [4]. Why? Because it’s comparatively easier for the body to digest smaller meals in pregnancy. Due to proper digestion, your stomach won’t spill out food back into the esophagus and you won’t experience heartburn.
Drinking low-fat milk [5] is yet another remedy to alleviate the symptoms of heartburn. Like any other fluid, milk passes through the stomach more quickly and that’s why it’s easier to digest. Our experts recommend you should drink at least one glass of milk each day or immediately after you experience heartburn.
If you don’t like milk, you can also make smoothies and milkshakes using different fruits. However, do not drink milk or other liquids immediately after your meal as this can slow down the overall digestion. Wait for at least 2-3 hours before drinking milk or smoothies after each meal.
Our Pro Tip: In case you are vegan, almond milk will be a great substitute to replace other dairy products and treat heartburn. Almond milk has enough calcium to provide required strength to the bones and it’ll also help you fight heartburn..- HERA
If your stomach can’t digest spicy food easily, you should remove it from your daily diet to reduce heartburn in pregnancy. These types of food items take longer to digest and release more acid in the stomach. It means that eating spicy food is more likely to intensify heartburn.
If you want to enjoy a good-night sleep, make sure to eat your last meal at least 3-4 hours before lying down on the bed. This will give your stomach plenty of time to digest food and you won’t experience heartburn while sleeping. Moreover, to avoid midnight heartburn, you should also elevate your head 6-7 inches as this will restrict the upward movement of acids to the esophagus.
Drinking alcohol is not a smart choice while expecting a baby. Apart from causing heartburn, alcohol consumption can also cause fetal alcohol spectrum syndrome [6], resulting in several pregnancy complications such as miscarriages, premature birth, low birth-weight, etc.
Our Pro Tip: If you find it challenging to quit drinking, choose non-alcoholic versions of your favorite drinks. Keep in mind that alcohol consumption is bad for pregnancy and the best way to ensure a healthy pregnancy is to not drink alcohol at all.- HERA
Since heartburn is a regular part of pregnancy and disappears after birth, you’ll be able to treat it using the above home remedies. However, there are a few situations where heartburn may remain severe and cause extreme discomfort.
If that’s the case, you should consult your physician as he/she’ll prescribe the right medication that’s safe for pregnant women. In general, health professionals recommend various antacids for heartburn as they have a tendency to provide immediate relief [7].
However, don’t take any medication unless it’s prescribed by your doctor. Because several antacids also contain chemicals such as magnesium trisilicate and sodium bicarbonate, which are not safe for pregnant women.
Despite being extremely uncomfortable, heartburn is a normal stage of pregnancy that no one can escape easily. However, a few lifestyle changes will help you reduce the severity of the burning sensations that you feel due to heartburn. If you want, you can also take antacids after consulting with your doctor as they’ll make heartburns less painful.