6 Tips For How To Get Rid Of Pregnancy Heartburn

For most women, heartburn and pregnancy go hand in hand. Pregnancy hormones are notorious for causing your lower esophageal sphincter - the valve that separates your stomach and your esophagus— to weaken. As your precious little one starts to grow your abdominal cavity begins to get crowded, causing stomach acid to be pushed up through the newly weakened LES and into your esophagus. 

The good news about pregnancy heartburn is that, for most women, your symptoms will go away as soon as your baby is born! With that being said, we recognize that pregnancy heartburn can be incredibly uncomfortable, and 9 months is a long time to deal with that agonizing burn. Thankfully there are a few things you can do to decrease your chances of pregnancy heartburn and better manage your symptoms! 

Here are six of our top tips for reducing heartburn while pregnant. 

Tip #1: Stay Away From Smoking 

If you want to keep the burn at bay, make a serious effort to not smoke, drink alcohol, or consume caffeine while pregnant. While you probably shouldn’t be doing these things while pregnant anyway, they also make your heartburn worse. 

Tip #2: Dress Comfortably

You may still want to slip into some of your favorite outfits from before you got pregnant, but it might be causing you more harm than good. When you wear tight clothing that puts pressure on your stomach, which can exacerbate your heartburn. 

Tip #3: Remember To Eat Small Portions 

Chances are that your doctor has already advised you to try to eat 5-6 small meals a day while pregnant in order to cut back on the infamous morning sickness, but this is a great way to reduce your chances of heartburn too! Eating small meals helps keep your stomach from getting too full and producing too much stomach acid. Try to eat small meals throughout the day and abstain from eating for 2-3 hours before bedtime! Not eating before bed gives your stomach enough time to empty before you go to sleep.

Tip #4: Adjust Your Sleeping position 

Sleeping on your left side positions your stomach below your esophagus, which makes it more difficult for stomach acid to travel up into your esophagus and decreases your chances of experiencing reflux. You can also add extra pillows or a pillow wedge to keep your upper body propped up.

Tip #5: Always Have Gum On Hand

Gum is a great tool for fighting heartburn, and as an added bonus it will make your breath smell better too! Try to chew gum after eating. This promotes saliva production, which helps neutralize stomach acid.

Tip #6: Stay Away From Trigger Foods

This one may be a little tricky because different foods cause different problems for different people, but for many patients spicy and fried foods are notorious heartburn triggers. Other items to look out for? Tomatoes, citrus fruits, mint, and chocolate are also notorious for causing acid reflux.

Talk To A Heartburn Specialist

Heartburn is an incredibly uncomfortable part of pregnancy, but for most women the symptoms will go away once they give birth. If you continue to experience acid reflux and heartburn after having your baby, you should schedule an appointment to see a heartburn specialist at Tampa Bay Reflux Center since it’s possible that your symptoms may be the result of a chronic condition like GERD.