Heartburn

Definition

Heartburn is a painful burning sensation in the esophagus, just below or behind the breastbone. The pain often rises in your chest and may radiate to your neck or throat.

Alternative Names

Pyrosis; Non-cardiac chest pain

Common Causes

Almost everyone has occasional heartburn. If you have frequent, ongoing heartburn, you may have gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).
Normally, when food or liquid enters your stomach, a band of muscle at the end of your esophagus (called the lower esophageal sphincter or LES) closes off the esophagus. If this muscle fails to close tightly enough, stomach contents can back up (reflux) into the esophagus. This partially digested material is usually acidic and can irritate the esophagus, causing heartburn and other symptoms.
Heartburn is more likely to occur if you have a hiatal hernia, which is when the top part of the stomach protrudes upward into the chest cavity. This weakens the LES and makes it easier for acid to reflux from the stomach into the esophagus.
Heartburn can be brought on or worsened by pregnancy and by many different medications.

Such drugs include:

Calcium channel blockers for high blood pressure
Progestin for abnormal menstrual bleeding or birth control
Anticholinergics (e.g., for sea sickness)
Certain bronchodilators for asthma
Tricyclic antidepressants
Dopamine for Parkinson's disease
Sedatives for insomnia or anxiety
Beta blockers for high blood pressure or heart disease
If you suspect that one of your medications may be causing heartburn, talk to your doctor. NEVER change or stop medication you take regularly without talking to your doctor.

Home Care

Pay attention to heartburn and treat it, especially if you feel symptoms often. Over time, ongoing reflux can damage the lining of your esophagus and cause serious problems. The good news is that making changes to certain habits can go a long way to preventing heartburn and other symptoms of GERD.

The following tips will help you avoid heartburn and other GERD symptoms. If these measures are not working, talk to your doctor.

First, avoid foods and beverages that can trigger reflux, such as:

• 
  Alcohol
  Caffeine, carbonated beverages
  Chocolate
  Citrus fruits and juices
  Tomatoes and tomato sauces
  Spicy or fatty foods, full-fat dairy products
  Peppermint and spearmint

Next, try changing your eating habits

Eat smaller meals. A full stomach puts extra pressure on the lower esophageal sphincter (LES), increasing the chance that food will reflux.

Avoid eating or lying down within 2-3 hours of bedtime. Lying down with a full stomach results in stomach contents pressing harder against the LES.

Avoid bending over or exercising just after eating.

Make other lifestyle changes as needed:

Lose weight if you are overweight. Obesity increases abdominal pressure, which can push stomach contents up into the esophagus. In some cases, GERD symptoms disappear completely after an overweight person loses 10-15 pounds.

Stop smoking. Chemicals in cigarette smoke weaken the LES.

Sleep with your head raised about 6 inches. Sleeping with the head higher than the stomach reduces the likelihood that partially digested food will reflux into the esophagus. Place books, bricks, or blocks securely under the legs at the head of your bed. Or use a wedge-shaped pillow under your mattress. Sleeping on extra pillows does NOT work well for relieving heartburn.

Avoid tight-fitting belts or garments around the waist. They squeeze the stomach, and may force food to reflux.

Reduce stress. Try yoga, tai chi, or meditation.

If you still do not have full relief, try over-the-counter medications:

Antacids, like Maalox or Mylanta, work by neutralizing stomach acid.
H2 blockers, like Pepcid AC, Tagamet, and Zantac, reduce stomach acid production.
Proton pump inhibitors, like Prilosec OTC, stop nearly all stomach acid production.

Call your health care provider if

Call 911 if:

You vomit material that is bloody or black like coffee grounds.
Your stools are black (like tar) or maroon.
The burning sensation is accompanied by chest squeezing, crushing, or pressure. Sometimes a heart attack is mistaken for heartburn.

Call your doctor if:

The problem becomes frequent or doesn't go away with a few weeks of self-care.
You start losing weight unintentionally.
You have difficulty swallowing (food feels stuck as it goes down).
You have a persistent, unexplained cough or wheezing.
Your symptoms get worse with antacids or H2 blockers.
You think that one of your medications may be causing heartburn. DO NOT change or stop your medication on your own, without discussing with your doctor.

Source:www.healthline.com

It is very useful a bit knowledge about BANANA

Never, put your banana in the refrigerator! !! This is interesting. After reading this, you'll never look at a banana in the same way again. Bananas contain three natural sugars - sucrose, fructose and glucose combined with fiber.
A banana gives an instant, sustained and substantial boost of energy. Research has proven that just two bananas provide enough energy for a strenuous 90-minute workout. No wonder the banana is the number one fruit with the world's leading athletes. But energy isn't the only way a banana can help us keep fit. It can also help overcome or prevent a substantial number of illnesses and conditions, making it a must to add to our daily diet.

Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin, known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.
PMS: Forget the pills - eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.
Anemia: High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of hemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anemia.
Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it perfect to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit's ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.
Brain Power: 200 students at a Twickenham (Middlesex) school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break, and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.
Constipation: High in fiber, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.
Hangovers: One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.
Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body, so if you suffer from heartburn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.
Morning Sickness: Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.
Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.
Nerves: Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.
Overweight and at work? StudIes at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at wor k leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs.
The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods every two hours to keep levels steady.
Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronicler cases.
It also neutralizes over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach. Temperature control: Many other cultures see bananas as a "cooling" fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand , for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature.
Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer tryptophan.
Smoking &Tobacco Use: Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking. The B6, B12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.
Stress: Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalize the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body's water balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be rebalanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack.
Strokes: According to research in The New England Journal of Medicine, eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!
Warts: Those keen on natural alternatives swear that if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tape! So, a banana really is a natural remedy for many ills.
When you compare it to an apple, it has four times the protein, twice the carbohydrate, three times the phosphorus, five times the vitamin A and iron, and twice the other vitamins and minerals. It is also rich in potassium and is one of the best value foods around So maybe its time to change that well-known phrase so that we say,
"A banana a day keeps the doctor away!"
I will add one here; want a quick shine on our shoes?? Take the INSIDE of the banana skin, and rub directly on the shoe...polish with dry cloth. Amazing fruit !

Health+Diet

Trying to gain weight?

You are underweight and you just can't understand the hoopla surrounding weight loss. You have been trying to put on weight for ages to no effect.
But spending hours in the gym without a regulated diet is pointless. Weight training goes hand in hand with a proper diet. Experts guide you along the way…

Calorie Count

Diet plays a very important role in a weight training program. "A high protein diet helps in building healthy weight.There is no absolute formula to determine the exact amount of calories one should take. It all depends on the person concerned. It depends on your height, weight, activity pattern, body composition and metabolic rate.

"Usually about 500 kilo calories per day helps increase your weight by half a kilo, However, if you are grossly underweight, you may be advised an increase of 1000 calories per day. This will increase your weight by one kg in a week.
But a calorie increase of more than 1000 calories per day is neither recommended nor practical. Your calorie intake has to be more than the energy used up by your body.
Keep a track of your calorie intake. Write down the total calories you are consuming in a day. From there, add about 500 calories. You can up your calorie intake if you don't see any difference.

The Right Diet

You need to gain healthy weight, not just fat. So along with a high protein and high calorie diet, go for a normal fat and carbohydrate diet.
"If this diet is planned according to the food pyramid, it will fulfill recommended dietary allowances of all essential vitamins and minerals,Also, instead of having the three regular meals, have smaller, more frequent meals (5-6 times a day). Don't ever skip meals. Eat the right amount of food and at the right time.

Ideally you have to drink 8-10 glasses of water a day. But drink an additional litre if you are working out.

A good diet and weight training should also be followed by adequate rest. But remember to keep a space of at least three hours after you have food before going to sleep.