Thanks for dropping in!!! Serious, persistent heartburn, and hiatal hernia spoil the quality of life for an estimated 20% of the population, and milder versions of this effect just about everyone from time to time. If you are one of these folks, then please read on, and please forward this information to someone you think it may help!

Flaming Stomach?

The cause of heartburn is almost always improper food combination, and is easily corrected with dietary precautions, which we will get to for you a bit later.

Hiatal hernia has about the same symptoms as heartburn—a burning in the stomach and esophagus, reflux, and difficulty swallowing. Many folks with heartburn may have a hiatal hernia and not even know it. The most common hiatal hernia is called ‘sliding’ which means the upper portion of the stomach has slid up through the opening in the diaphragm (breathing muscle).

The image above is a simplified depiction of normal versus a ‘sliding’ hiatal hernia. The area on the right highlighted in yellow is a portion of the stomach that has slid up above the opening in the diaphragm (diaphragm highlighted in blue). It obviously does not belong in this position

Causes of Sliding Hiatal Hernia

Here’s a list:

• Chronic Constipation

• Obesity

• Improper food combination

• Weakened diaphragm

Any of the above or any combination of the above can be at the root of this problem. The good news is these are all things you can address with self-help. If needed, we do have a way of assisting with this in the office. I will get to this a bit later.

The first two on the list, chronic constipation, and obesity are things that increase our ‘intrabdominal pressure.’ This pressure can exert an upward force to the stomach, eventually pushing a portion of the stomach above the opening in the diaphragm.

The third thing on the list, improper food combination, is an epidemic problem related to our generally faulty eating habits. Putting high protein and high starch/sugar foods into your stomach at the same time causes gas, bloating and distention of the stomach. This is usually felt initially as heartburn and reflux (also called GERD) and can escalate into hiatal hernia over time.

The 4th on the list, a weak diaphragm is likely the result of being generally out of shape, and rarely using the diaphragm to its fullest, which can only truly occur with very vigorous cardiovascular exercise - like sprinting.

So…What Can We do?

We will finish with an outline of self-help methods, but to start, let’s take a look a how chiropractic may also help.

The diagram above depicts a section of the thoracic (mid back) spine and its relationship to the stomach. The yellow spaghetti-looking things are nerves that run from the thoracic spine to your stomach. Stress on the mid back area can produce irritation of the nerves that emanate from the mid back (called subluxation), which hook up to our stomach and help control its function.

Chiropractors and ‘old school’ Osteopaths (D.O.s) have for decades identified the ‘somato-visceral reflex.’ Simply stated this is a situation where spinal nerve stress can spill-over into the organ systems of the body and produce the symptoms of organ dysfunction.

For this reason, folks who experience heartburn along with mid back (between the shoulder blades) pain may experience relief of back pain AND stomach symptoms with chiropractic adjustments. (This can also be the case with stomach ulcer).

Visceral (Organ) Manipulation

So…you thought chiros only adjusted the spine? There are also visceral manipulation techniques, and the one above is showing how the stomach can be gently pulled downward to reduce and relieve sliding hiatal hernia. It’s a painless, easy process that for many, can make some immediate improvements.

Self Help

Adopting the eating lifestyle I’ve been ranting about (Paleo-type diet) will automatically handle the food combination problem described above because there are no starchy or sugary foods included in eating this way! At very least, if you are not ready to go on a Paleo type diet, don’t eat starchy things along with protein. Segregate them. If you feel you must have something starchy or sugary, eat it by itself. Eat proteins (meat, eggs, fish, dairy) with salads and low carb veggies. Eat starchy and sugary things like fruit, potatoes, cereals, grain, bread, sweets, etc. separately,

For a diet refresher:

Intermittent fasting/narrow eating window will give your stomach a regular break from producing acid, which can be very curative. Here again is the link to intermittent fasting methods:

Weak Diaphragm?

We should all be on some sort of regular exercise program that causes us to breathe heavily and in so doing, fully exercise the diaphragm. However, if this is a bit too much for you at the moment, you can do a deep breathing exercise regularly, and the link below will take you through a popular one.

Drugs?

The drugs prescribed for heartburn have become available over the counter. The most common are Famotidine (Zantac and Pepcid), and Omeprazole (Prilosec).

Long term use of these are not without risk. Though stated to be rare in the fine print, here are some of the potential side effects of habitual use.

Zantac/Pepcid 

• anemia/Vitamin B12 deficiency

• Central nervous system problems

• Liver and kidney damage

Prilosec

• Bone fractures

• Infections

• Nutrient deficiencies

• Kidney damage

If you are a habitual user of one or both of these two substances, please consider the natural cures recommended above.

On The Level

I love sandwiches. I rarely eat them anymore because of what you have read here and in my other essays on diet and health. Does being on a Paleo diet mean never ever again eating the things we’ve come to enjoy—the same ones that may be killing us? …..

No!

Having a ‘cheat day’ (infrequently) is okay and may actually be a good idea when it comes to sticking with the right eating plan. I suggest once or twice month, eat whatever you like. Understanding how to ‘cheat’ without blowing the whole process will be covered in detail in the next edition.

Meanwhile - heartburn and hiatal hernia, like all functional disorders of the body, usually have their origin in our lifestyle and behavior. Bad diet, lack of exercise, and postural stress on the spine and nervous system are the usual suspects. I’ve made some very effective suggestions for you here. Let us know if we can help!

Until next time,

Blessings to you!