The digestive system is a group of organs joined by a tube from the mouth to the anus. It makes food digestible by using hundreds of millions of body cells, and turns the food that you eat into the energy you need to live. However, if food is eaten too fast, or you have constipation, gas, cramping, heartburn or bloating, you can take digestive medicine.
What to Look for
The University of Maryland Medical Center (www.umm.edu) says that the most common symptom of GERD (Gastroesophageal reflux disease) is heartburn. An acid indigestion, heartburn is a burning pain in the chest that starts behind the breastbone and reaches the neck and throat. Heartburn occurs when acid from the stomach enters the esophagus. When the LES (lower esophageal sphincter), a muscle at the bottom of the esophagus, relaxes too much, the acid refluxes back into the esophagus and causes heartburn. Often it is a person's lifestyle that causes this; being overweight, overeating or eating too many sweet foods like chocolate can produce attacks. Medical history and age are also important factors. Heartburn can be mistaken for a heart attack. A person should get immediate medical help if the heartburn persists or if an acid reducer doesn't relieve the burning feeling within five minutes.
Other digestive disorders include irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), an intestinal disorder that causes changes in bowel habits, lactose intolerance, which is caused by a lack of the lactase enzyme and stomach ulcers, which occur due to hydrochloric acid and pepsin. Some factors that may bring on these digestive disorders are smoking, stress or drinking lots of coffee or alcohol. Most ulcers occur due to infection with a bacterium called Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori). The bacterium weakens the stomach's mucus, making it more vulnerable to acid and pepsin and causing damaging effects.
Common Pitfalls
Previously doctors have suggested that people should avoid spicy or fatty foods, but nowadays there is no particular treatment that is perfect for ulcer patients. Patients should not smoke while taking medication for ulcers, as it delays healing. Taking an H2-blocker can reduce the amount of acid the stomach produces by blocking histamine, a form of acid secretion. Antibiotics and surgery also can combat ulcers. Although there are various ways to prevent digestive pain, people can live longer by eating healthily and exercising regularly.
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