Best Sleeping Positions To Prevent Acid Reflux
For many of our readers, heartburn at night is the worst. All you want to do is get a good night’s sleep, but instead you’re afflicted with stomach pains, acid back up, and more. In today’s blog, we’re going to tell you exactly why your heartburn is worse while you sleep, and the simple way you can relieve your nights of it— by changing your sleeping position.
What Causes Heartburn At Night?
Heartburn is caused by stomach acid rising into the esophagus. When you lay down to sleep at night, many of the most common sleeping positions actually make it much easier for the acid to splash back up.
In fact, the simple act of lying down is considered a trigger for acid reflux, especially in patients with GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease). Thankfully, studies have been able to identify the best sleeping positions to stop heartburn.
The Best Sleeping Positions For Night-Time Heartburn
Looking to stop nightly heartburn? Here are the do’s & don’ts:
Do Elevate Your Upper Body. With night-time reflux, gravity is your friend. Many people use piles of pillows or even a special wedge pillow to prop up their head and shoulders up as they sleep, so that any stomach contents that do try to come up are pushed back down by the wonderfully helpful forces of gravity.
Don’t Sleep Flat On Your Back. This is considered the worst position for acid reflux. Stomach acid is able to flow back into your esophagus much more freely, and remain there in your horizontal position, causing you a majorly painful night of sleep.
Do Sleep On Your Left Side. Does it really make a difference which side I sleep on? Turns out it does. Sleeping on your left side actually positions your stomach below the esophagus, making it harder for that acid to back up, once again employing gravity. (Thank you gravity.)
Don’t Sleep On Your Right Side. Not only is this one simply the opposite of sleeping on your left side, but on principle it’s considered to do nearly as much damage as sleeping flat on your back. With your stomach above your esophagus, it acts as a leaky faucet for heartburn-inducing reflux episodes all through the night.
If you’ve got a bad case of night-time heartburn, our top recommendation is to invest in that elevating wedge pillow and to sleep on your left side as much as possible. But if you’re still worried about night-time reflux, we’ve got a few more tricks up our sleeve on how to stop heartburn at night.
A Few More Ways To Stop Heartburn At Night
There are a few things you can do to set yourself up for a great night of sleep before you even set foot into bed. Here are a few of the basics:
Eat your dinner early
Eat small meals
Workout earlier in the day
Avoid your trigger foods
Getting a good night’s sleep should be made easy by simply adjusting your sleeping position and making a few lifestyle changes. For severe cases of GERD and chronic acid reflux, however, you might need a little more help. Consult a reflux specialist at Tampa Bay Reflux Center.