15 Home Remedies for Heartburn during Pregnancy

Pregnancy has its own ups and down and acidity or heartburn during pregnancy is one of them. The reason for heartburn might change with the advancing pregnancy stage. These reasons can range from hormonal changes to increase in the baby size. 

The good news here is that you dont have go towards antacids or other medications all the time. There are many home remedies for heartburn which can help you. Stay with us as we are going to look into all.

Overview

Heartburn is common and can strike at any stage of pregnancy. As per studies almost 40-50% woman have experienced some symptoms of heartburn during pregnancy. This number tends to be higher when it comes to experiencing heartburn during pregnancy in third trimester. The good news though is that the symptoms of heartburn tend to go back to normal post-delivery.

Causes of Heartburn during pregnancy

Though the clear reason for heartburn is not known but there are many factors which might contribute to the symptoms

1. Hormones

In the early stages of pregnancy, your body produces a large amount of progesterone and relaxin hormones. These hormone causes the relaxation of the smooth muscle in food pipe as well the muscles in stomach. Hence, the ring between oesophagus and stomach tends to close slowly and there are chances of gastric acid to being sent back to food pipe and causing irritation.

2. Delay in gastric emptying

In the stomach, the food takes longer time for digestion and also bowel movement decreases to give body some extra time to absorb nutrients from the food. Both these are believed to cause heartburn.

3. The Growing Uterus

During the third trimester, the increased or growing size of the baby makes your stomach to push aside other than the normal position which leads to heartburn during the third trimester.

4. Pre-existing GERD

Woman with pre-existing GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) have more chances of developing heartburn during pregnancy.

There are other not so common causes like use of drugs for nausea/ vomiting, maternal age, etc.

Most of the pregnant women want to get rid of heartburn problem that can be possible by following some of the home remedies. 

Home remedies to relieve heartburn

• Avoid the food which initiates heartburn: When you eat some food you may experience heartburn and some digestive problems. Then it is better to avoid the food by making a list like spicy food, processed foods, fried foods, beverages, fatty foods, chocolates, coffee, mint and citrus juices must be avoided.
• Relax: Try to relax your body as it decreases stress because stress also helps in aggravating heartburn. By following some techniques like meditation, prenatal yoga, acupuncture and hypnosis etc.
• Quit smoking: It is not safe to smoke for a pregnant woman. This not only causes heartburn but also affects the nervous system of the baby.
• Stop drinking alcohol: Alcohol is also not safe during pregnancy it will cause heartburn and also have adverse effects on the baby during pregnancy.
• Try to keep your head upright:  Try to keep your head up than usual after eating because it may push the gastric juices upwards into the oesophagus and cause heartburn. Better to avoid bending after eating that may also lead to heartburn. It is better to place your head a little high than normal by placing some pillows to avoid the problem.
• Wear loose clothes: The clothes which are tight should be avoided. Because the tight clothing around the waist may constrict the tummy and causes heartburn.
•  Try not to mix fluids with food: Having more fluids along with the food while eating may aggravate the heartburn. It is better to drink fluids in between the meals not along with the meals.
• Don’t overload: Try to eat small portions of food more times than to eat heavy food once at a time. Divide your meals into six times rather than three times a day. This may help to minimize the heartburn.
• Chew the food properly: By chewing the food more number of times and properly will reduce pressure on the stomach and avoids heartburn. Have the food in smaller bites and chew it properly.
• Chew gum: Make a habit of chewing gum to avoid heartburn. Chewing the gum produces more saliva in the mouth which helps to avoid heartburn during pregnancy. Chewing the gum produces saliva that helps to neutralize the acids in the stomach.
• Don’t sleep immediately after eating:  Try to maintain longer gaps between the meals and the sleep because sleeping as soon as after eating can worsen the symptoms of heartburn during the night.
• Don’t sleep on right side: Sleeping on the right side may alleviate the problem. So it is better to sleep on the left side during night times.
• Yoghurt and milk: They helps to overcome heartburn so it is better to have warm milk during nights before sleeping. Try to include yoghurt in your meals to overcome the problem.
• Chamomile tea: Have chamomile tea by adding honey in it which helps to relieve from heartburn.
• Try to maintain a healthy weight: Maintaining the weight is also a factor that causes heartburn. If you doesn’t maintain weight appropriately than the required fat that got accumulated around the belly slows down the process of digestion and the gastric juices produced are pushed into the esophagus causing heartburn.

Conclusion

Pregnancy is a stage where most of the women undergo heartburn. It varies from person to person, it may depend on the other factors like diet, daily habits and your physiology. 

Try home remedies, as they will help in most of the cases. If you dont feel any relief, you can consult the doctor.

References