Prone to Heartburn at Night? Here Are 4 Ways to Avoid It
Here’s why nighttime heartburn is common—and what you can do about it.
You’re tossing. You’re turning. Your chest is achy and burning. The haunt of nighttime heartburn strikes again, robbing you of the solid night of sleep you need.
If you’ve ever experienced nighttime heartburn, you know that it can be quite a nightmare. Not only are you suffering through those uncomfortable acid reflux symptoms, but you’re also losing precious shut-eye. This can leave you groggy and tired the next day.
Why is heartburn more common at night?
Acid reflux occurs when the digestive acid that’s naturally in your stomach backs up into the esophagus. The lining of the stomach can handle this strong acid, but the esophagus cannot. This can lead to a number of uncomfortable symptoms, including heartburn.
Heartburn can happen at any time of day, but it may be more common at night because of gravity. When you lie down in bed, it's easier for stomach acid to move up into the esophagus. When you're standing, gravity helps keep that stomach acid down.
What are tips to avoid heartburn when you're sleeping?
Experiencing heartburn at night can affect how well you sleep. Not only is acid reflex uncomfortable and even painful, but the sleep loss could also affect your health. Sleep deprivation is linked to several other health issues, so it's important to take this seriously.
Tips to avoid nighttime heartburn include:
1. Avoid eating a large meal before bed
Larger meals increase pressure on the valve that separates the stomach and esophagus. Try to have your largest meal toward the middle of the day instead of at night. Alternatively, opt for small, frequent meals throughout the day.
2. Nix the nightcap
Limit alcohol consumption before bedtime. For starters, drinking before bed may trigger acid reflux. To make it worse, late-night drinking can affect the quality of your sleep, too.
3. Rest upright to digest
After eating, aim to stay upright at least three hours before bed to help keep the acid down. For this reason, it may help to eat dinner a little earlier — not right before bed.
4. Sleep on an incline
You can take advantage of gravity to reduce the risk of heartburn at night. It may help to raise the head of your bed so you're sleeping at an incline. Another option is to buy a wedge pillow. These are special pillows that help you sleep at an incline.
When should you see a doctor?
If lifestyle and diet changes don’t help your heartburn symptoms, you can treat heartburn with medication. There are over-the-counter and prescription options to help manage daytime and nighttime heartburn.
Contrary to popular belief, feeling heartburn regularly isn’t just a normal part of life. People who experience heartburn or other acid reflux symptoms at least two to three times a week may have a chronic condition known as GERD: gastroesophageal reflux disease.
You should take GERD seriously because it can cause complications to your health. You may experience nausea, bad breath, trouble swallowing, injury to the esophagus, or even esophageal cancer. Learn more about GERD here.
Dr. Raj is a gastroenterologist and associate professor of medicine at NYU School of Medicine, and an attending physician at NYU Langone Medical Center.
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Heartburn is more common at night
because when you're laying down,
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you don't have gravity helping to pull
the acid down and keep it in your stomach,
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which is why many people
experience nighttime symptoms.
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We all have acid in our stomach, and
this is what helps us digest our food, but
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the acid is supposed to
stay in the stomach.
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And our stomach is well equipped to
tolerate that acidic environment.
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Our esophagus on the other hand is
not meant to be exposed to acid.
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When someone feels heartburn, what's
usually happening is acid is coming up
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from the stomach flowing backwards, up
into the esophagus where it should not be.
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And it's causing irritation or
burning to the lining of esophagus.
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So they will feel a burning in there chest
area, right being their breast bone.
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Acid reflux at night
can affect your sleep.
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And we know that sleep deprivation
is associated with a whole host of
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health issues.
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So you really wanna make sure you're
doing everything you can to ensure
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good night sleep.
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For nighttime heartburn,
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the most important things you can do is
avoid a very large meal right before bed.
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Try to have your largest meal more
towards the middle of the day, or
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having just smaller meals
frequently throughout the day.
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Avoiding alcohol at night, staying
upright at least three hours before you
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actually lay down and go to sleep.
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And also raising the head of your bed so
you're sleeping at a bit of an incline
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as opposed to just flat where it's
much easier for acid to come up.
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If lifestyle and
diet changes don't make a difference,
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we often give medications
either over the counter or
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prescription medicines to really help with
both daytime and nighttime heartburn.
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Even though nighttime heartburn
is a fairly common symptom,
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it's not something you should ignore
because it's often a sign that there's
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acid really bathing yourself, I guess and
potentially causing damage or
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inflammation that could have
long term consequences.
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If you're experiencing night
time heartburn frequently,
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you should speak to your doctor.
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You may need medication, you may need
endoscopy as well to see what's happening.
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