When Chest Pain Really Is Heartburn, Not a Heart Attack

February 5, 2010
Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS

Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS

Award-winning nutritionist and New York Times bestselling author.

heartburnReflux disease is serious, but you’ll be surprised how easy relief can be.

The most expensive digestive disorder, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) inflicts with burning pain just under the breastbone on about 40% of American adults. Consumers spend over $1 billion on antacids and other heartburn medicines, which often make this problem even worse.

Normally, digestion moves food down from the mouth to the rest of the GI tract. But eating too much too fast and consuming certain foods and drink—alcohol, chocolate, coffee, mints, pepper, and too many refined foods (especially fatty and sugary snacks)—can turn digestion upside down.

Stomach acid (needed to break down food and kill pathogens it may contain) splashes up from the stomach into the esophagus, causing heartburn that’s a prime sign of GERD. Other symptoms include bloating, breathlessness, gas, nausea and trouble swallowing.

Overweight and obesity increase the risk for GERD—especially in women. Other factors include chronic cough, extreme flatulence, smoking, and simply growing older.

Dr. Ann Louise’s Take

One of the most neglected underlying causes of GERD is hiatal hernia. This condition is becoming exceedingly common, especially in people over 50.

Talk about pain that can be mistaken for heart attack! And it’s no wonder, since this kind of hernia occurs when part of the stomach pushes through a small opening (called the hiatus) up into your chest.

Remember those long party balloons? Think of twisting one in the middle and separating it into two compartments (like the chest and abdomen)—with only a small opening in between. Squeeze one compartment and air squeaks into the twist, pushing hard against the other compartment. Ouch!

Surprising Solutions
Amazingly, the solution is usually quite simple. Drink a glass or two of lukewarm water. Jump up and breathe out as forcefully as you can when you land.

Your water-weighted stomach and gravity will pull downward on your stomach while your diaphragm and chest bounce back up. You can even use a rebounder (mini-trampoline) for more intensity in releasing a “stuck” stomach.

A well-trained chiropractor or naturopath can perform targeted soft-tissue manipulation to return a hiatal hernia back where it belongs. For instance, “the vertebrae in the upper part of the neck, the middle of the back, or even the ribs may be misaligned or ‘locked,’ which affects the nerves in a way that the chest wall starts to tighten,” explains Marty Gallagher, MD, DC, a chiropractor in the Pittsburgh area, who calls this condition “spinal angina.”

“The pain may be stabbing or radiating,” much like classic heart attack symptoms, “and reproduced by putting pressure on the sides of the ribs, by taking a deep breath, or by turning over in bed,” he adds. Bending forward, coughing hard, pushing or pulling, even riding in car over a bumpy surface can exacerbate this pain.

When to Seek Immediate Help
If your condition doesn’t respond to any of these hiatal hernia techniques, however, it’s critical to seek medical attention right away
. Recent research in Clinical Cardiology suggests a link between GERD and atrial fibrillation (abnormal heart rhythm that may signal heart attack or stroke).

Men are more likely to experience classic chest pains—say after rooting for their favorite team during the “Big Game” on Sunday. But women suffer more diffuse symptoms—exhaustion, jaw or neck pain, nausea, and shortness of breath—that aren’t always recognized as a heart attack.

Recognize Gender Differences
Currently more women—approximately 450,000 Americans annually—die of cardiovascular disease than men. And at least 8 million women in this country have heart disease, which claims more lives than the next 5 leading causes of mortality combined—including cancer.

Raising awareness of women’s risk of heart disease is a reason to wear red today. But GERD is also more likely to strike women. While research on gender differences in reflux remains scanty, women tend to have more severe symptoms, if less erosive esophageal damage.

Sex hormones may also play a role here, helping to explain why heartburn is so prevalent during pregnancy—striking 20% of expectant moms in the first trimester, 40% during the second trimester, and 70% in the last trimester! Fortunately, complications of GERD are extremely rare in pregnancy.

The Bottom Line
A study in Gastroenterology shows that acid-suppressing medicines can have rebound effects, making heartburn and pain even worse. “Acid secretion is normal in most patients with reflux disease,” the study authors write, “and acid-inhibitory therapy makes it abnormally low.”

Surprisingly, stomach acid may be the solution—not the cause—of GERD. Try this simple home test—unless you know you have ulcers or a pre-ulcerative condition:

Take 500-550 mg hydrochloric acid (HCl)—similar to your body’s own stomach acid—with a meal, and then carefully observe how you feel. Extreme warmth means that you already have enough stomach acid and don’t need any more.

If you experience no pain or warmth, double your HCl dose at the next meal. And continue adding an extra dose—though never more than five tablets at a time—until you do experience warmth. Then take one less tablet than your maximum with food.

I’ve found HCl+2, which combines betaine hydrochloride with pepsin, most effective. After three months, try reducing your dosage.

Sufficient stomach acid is critical in preventing GERD, as well as arthritis, gallbladder disease, immune disorders, and osteoporosis. The stomach has a protective coating of mucus that prevents acid from causing pain—as long as you can keep it where it belongs.

Sources:
www.nytimes.com/2010/02/02/health/02real.html
www.suntimes.com/lifestyles/2025208,FIT-News-heart03.article
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20082715
http://womens-health.jwatch.org/cgi/content/full/2006/1116/1
www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001137.htm
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19439954
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19911354
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11253245

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Ann Louise Gittleman, PhD, CNS, is an award-winning New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty books including The Fat Flush Plan series and her latest book, Radical Metabolism. She’s been rewriting the rules of nutrition for more than 40 years and is internationally recognized as a pioneer in the field of diet, detox and women’s health issues. 

For a FREE daily dose of tips and strategies for maintaining healthy weight, conquering insomnia, and much more…check out my Radical Health Tips.

I’d like to meet and greet you on my Facebook groups, so won’t you check us out at the Radical Metabolism RevolutionFat Flush Nation, or my Inner Circle!

7 Comments

  1. alecia

    When you are talking about feeling “warmth” when taking the HCI is it felt in your stomach or just in general warmer? I’ve been taking the supplement for about a month now and developed major bloating & gas along with some minor pain in upper stomach. I was wondering if this could have caused it or if it was just coincidental?

    Reply
  2. Administrator

    Stomach warmth. Reduce the dosage to just onw pwe day when you eat your largest meal. Make sure tio take the HCL when you have food in your mouth – mid-meal.

    Reply
  3. Dorothy

    Annlouise
    I thank Dr.Ohhira’s Probiotics are give me heartburn & bleching,have you had this with many one else. Dorothy

    Reply
  4. Ann L:ouise Gittleman

    Dorothy, Cut down on the amount of Dr. O’s you are taking and monitor your progress!

    Reply
  5. madison burnett

    i get really bad heartburn and im only 15, no matter what i do it doesn’t go away. should i call 911 or a doctor? the pain spreads to my back, throat, and chest.

    Reply
    • Liz

      Hi Madison,

      You want to find out why it is happening. It sounds like a doctor visit for an exam would be helpful to rule out any serious condition.The doctor will probably give you something to cancel out your stomach acid and that’s only a temporary fix, if it’s just excess stomach acid. You might have a hiatial hernea ( so your food can push up and stomach acid can come into your throat). Ann Louise is suggesting taking more HCL ( the acid your stomach produces to digest your food more so it doesn’t push up.) At your age you want to talk to your parent (s) about this before you do anything.

      Reply
  6. Rob

    For two days I’ve had bad chest pains that were brought on by a cough. The pain went away after laying in bed for a while. Also had a bit of heartburn with the pain could this be a hernia?

    Reply

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