This Thanksgiving, Enjoy the Turkey But Hold the GERD

Nov. 22, 2021 -- John Farrell has mixed feelings astir Thanksgiving.

“It’s large due to the fact that I emotion eating, but by 6, 7 o’clock, I’m thinking, ‘This is not good,’” says the task manager from Virginia Beach, VA. “I’m feeling bloated, it’s feeding into the reflux. I tin consciousness the acerb coming up my throat, that burning sensation. There’s a batch of regret astir everything I did that day.”

For astir 5 years, Farrell, 46, has had GERD, which stands for gastroesophageal reflux disease. With this digestive disorder, your little esophageal sphincter (LES, a muscular valve betwixt your esophagus and your stomach) doesn’t enactment properly. It lets nutrient and tummy acids reflux -- travel backmost up -- into your esophagus, which tin origin discomfort and a burning sensation.

Most of america person occasional periods of reflux and the heartburn that tin result, but with GERD, it happens 2 oregon much times a week. Roughly 60 cardinal Americans person heartburn astatine slightest erstwhile a month, and arsenic galore arsenic 15 cardinal acquisition it daily. If GERD goes untreated, it tin origin overmuch worse symptoms and adjacent pb to esophageal cancer.

Common GERD Triggers

While you whitethorn person heard that spicy, fatty, oregon affluent foods should beryllium avoided to forestall acid reflux, the world is much analyzable than that.

“Every idiosyncratic has a antithetic trigger for their GERD,” says Rena Yadlapati, MD, manager of the Center for Esophageal Diseases astatine the University of California-San Diego. “I person immoderate patients that tin devour spicy, spicy foods, but they get reflux erstwhile they devour chocolate. I person others that conscionable cannot portion coffee, but immoderate nutrient is conscionable fine.”

Stefanie Robinson, a aesculapian and dental biller from Pleasant Valley, NY, knows her triggers: acidic foods similar tomatoes, and stress. She’s been struggling with GERD connected and disconnected for 20 years.

“I instrumentality [acid-reducing drug] omeprazole each night,” she says. “Lately I’ve been feeling stressed, truthful it doesn’t look to beryllium doing much. I instrumentality Tums successful between. And atom pudding oregon yogurt volition assistance settee my tummy -- they look to overgarment it.”

In summation to spicy foods and herb products, Farrell says helium has 2 different cardinal triggers: overeating and lying down excessively soon.

“The astir important things with GERD are the magnitude of nutrient you eat, and the narration with sleeping,” Yadlapati says. “It takes a fewer hours for the tummy to bare down into the tiny bowels. Once the tummy has emptied, you truly don't person a hazard of having reflux from the stomach. But until then, immoderate is successful the tummy is apt to travel backmost up.”

Thanksgiving and GERD: A Tricky Combination

Thanksgiving poses peculiar challenges for radical with GERD, for 1 elemental reason: “GERD is each astir pressure,” Yadlapati says. “The much unit we person successful our stomach, the much apt reflux is to beryllium triggered. And the happening that causes unit is ample amounts of food.”

Other things related to the holiday, similar the accent of question and household gatherings, whitethorn marque you much prone to an attack, she says.

“Stress increases the excitability of nerves successful your esophagus. If you're having tiny amounts of reflux, connected immoderate different day, that mightiness not origin symptoms. But nether stressful circumstances, it mightiness origin terrible thorax symptom and burning.”

Another communal portion of vacation celebrations tin besides origin trouble.

“Alcohol is known to unbend the little esophageal sphincter, which facilitates reflux,” says Allon Kahn, MD, an adjunct prof of medicine astatine the Mayo Clinic successful Scottsdale, AZ. “So it’s likely, particularly successful the beingness of a large meal, to marque symptoms worse.”

While immoderate radical who person GERD instrumentality medicine to assistance them nutrient little tummy acid, others negociate with manner changes similar identifying and avoiding trigger foods oregon waiting astatine slightest 3 hours aft eating to prevarication down. But connected Thanksgiving, those cautious practices often spell retired the window. Letting escaped tin pb to a nasty bout of GERD.

“Patients who are controlled with medicine mightiness beryllium little apt to person worsening of their symptoms, due to the fact that the acerb has been reduced to the constituent wherever it whitethorn not fuss them arsenic much,” says Kahn.

Enjoy the Holiday -- and What Comes After

Whether you cognize you person GERD oregon you conscionable get heartburn occasionally, a fewer tips tin assistance you propulsion disconnected a pain-free Thanksgiving:

• Practice portion control. As hard arsenic it is to defy a 2nd helping of Aunt Martha’s stuffing, it’s truly important to debar overeating. “By the clip you consciousness full, you’ve already eaten mode excessively much,” says Farrell. “Knowing that, I’ll effort to instrumentality to 1 plate.”
• Be cautious with alcohol. In summation to its power connected your LES, drinking tin little your inhibitions. It makes you much apt to person that 2nd helping of stuffing aft all.
• Choose foods carefully. Fried oregon precise fatty foods are considered refluxogenic, says Yadlapati -- they mightiness induce much reflux. And of course, if you’re alert of your ain triggers, bash your champion to debar them. “I’m going to beryllium precise selective successful what I devour astatine Thanksgiving. I’ll enactment distant from salad, since the dressing volition person vinegar. I’ll conscionable instrumentality to mashed potatoes and turkey,” says Robinson. “And I mightiness bring my ain dessert: atom pudding.”
• Consider pre-medicating. If you’ve been managing your GERD with manner modifications, you mightiness privation to instrumentality an over-the-counter medication, similar Prilosec, 30 to 60 minutes earlier you beryllium down to eat, Kahn says. That tin assistance trim the magnitude of acerb your tummy produces arsenic you digest.

Even with the champion of intentions, you whitethorn inactive find yourself successful symptom Thanksgiving night. Here’s what you tin do:

• Be acceptable with antacids afterward. If you’re not comfy taking medicine successful advance, Kahn recommends bringing on an antacid medicine similar Tums oregon Mylanta. “If you enactment quickly, it tin unopen down reflux,” helium says.
• Avoid the impulse to prevarication down. Because Thanksgiving meals are truthful overmuch larger than regular dinners, Yadlapati and Kahn some urge waiting longer than accustomed earlier lying down. Aim for 4 hours alternatively of 3. Or if you indispensable prevarication down sooner than that, usage a wedge pillow to elevate your precocious body.
• Try belly breathing. “It tin really trim reflux from coming up, and it tin fortify your diaphragm,” says Yadlapati. “It besides helps to unbend the nerves successful your esophagus.”
• Get moving. A small gentle workout whitethorn easiness your symptoms. “Going retired for a household locomotion aft meal truly helps,” says Farrell.
• Manage your expectations. People who person GERD oregon regular heartburn often cognize wherever their limits lie, and erstwhile they transverse them. “If you’re going to person a precocious nighttime and drink, it’s OK,” says Yadlapati. “Just cognize you mightiness aftermath up successful the mediate of the night.”
• Don’t panic -- but wage attention. “If you’re genuinely experiencing thorax symptom oregon a pressure-like sensation, it’s foolish to presume it’s heartburn,” says Kahn. “Heart onslaught and heartburn tin contiguous similarly, and eating a large repast is simply a accent connected the heart. If you’ve ne'er had this grounds earlier and it’s not mild, question exigency care.”