I always thought that the only way to get non-prescription heartburn drugs like prilosec, zantac or tums is to go to the nearest grocery or drug store. How big was my surprise when I found out that you can easily get them on eBay and for considerably cheaper prices!
Even though shipping might eat some money you still can be in a win situation and save some money.
I was playing with different smoothies recently to figure out what works and what doesn’t work for me. So here is my list:
Milk, banana, protein - no heartburn but taste is so-so…
Milk, banana - no heartburn - but it is just a banana… Boring!
Milk, banana, strawberry - no heartburn and tastes very nice
Milk, banana, strawberry, peach - don’t overdo with peach, it can add nice taste pattern but also can cause minor heartburn. So experiment here.
Milk, peach, strawberry - risky one. But still worth a try if you don’t like banana. Try to start small on peach since it is quite acid.
I want to try to add some kiwi to my smoothies since they taste delicious. But they are the most acidic (not counting lemon probably)…
If you see any of the smoothies causing you constant heartburn stop it and try a trusted “no heartburn” one. Then slowly add very tiny pieces of fruit you like and see what happens.
Experiment and you’ll find it!
Constant heartburn usually requires more attention than occasional heartburn. Constant and frequent heartburn could be a symptom of more severe condition called GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease).
Symptoms of constant heartburn:
- Pain or discomfort that starts in the middle of the chest and can then move up through the throat
- Chronic cough
- Burning in the throat - or hot, sour, acidic or salty-tasting fluid at the back of the throat.
- Difficulty swallowing.
- Feeling of food “sticking” in the middle of the chest or throat.
- Sore throat
- Chronic hoarseness
Here is a list of quick advices to deal with constant heartburn:
- go to your doctor and get some medications (usually PPI - proton pump inhibitor)
- cut back on acidic foods
- avoid caffeine and alcohol
- don’t lie down right after eating (1-2 hours should be enough if you lie down for short period of time). It is better to lie down on a wedge pillow.
- don’t eat just before going to bed (allow at least 3-4 hours)
- avoid clothing that’s too tight around the waist
According to Food and Drug Administration study started in May Prilosec and Nexium don’t cause any heart problems.
Manufacturer AstroZeneca rised this concern when two small studies compared patients who underwent surgery with patients on a drug regimen. These studies found that patients on a drug regimen suffered from heart related issues more frequently than those with surgeries. It turned out that these studies were biased. Patients who underwent surgeries were significantly yonger when compared to ones who were treated with drugs. So higher rate of heart related issues could be easily described by older age of the patients.
Also FDA looked at 14 additional studies about Prilosec and Nexium and found that those people who took heartburn pill versus dummy pill had lower chance of heart related problems.
For a week or so I’m torturing my blender and stomach with different smoothie combinations to see if my heartburn likes them. Today I took some time and wrote one recipe down and took a picture for you. This recipe causes zero heartburn for me and I hope it will be the same for you.
So here is my favourite smoothie recipe:
In my case it looks like this - isn’t it tasty?
