Are you struggling with your weight? Well, a big belly doesn’t pose problems for you just in subway turnstiles; it can also mess with your throat. About half of obese people (that’s someone with a body mass index of 30 or more) have the chest-burning condition called GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease).
Working the Angle
The thinking is that the extra fat in a protruding belly pushes against your stomach, thereby opening the angle of the gastroesophageal junction and pushing it toward the chest. (Your stomach and esophagus normally join at an acute angle to keep food from going back up your throat every time you eat.) The pried-open angle makes it easier for acid and food to be pushed back up into your esophagus. Plus, the extra fat in your belly puts pressure on the contents of your bowel. Bottom line: more pressure, more GERD.
Damage Done
But what’s the big deal? It’s just a little burning, right? Well, besides the unpleasant sensation of tasting your food on the way
up, GERD also burns your esophagus -- in the same way the sun burns your skin. After your esophagus is burned, it takes a couple of days to heal, but if the burning happens over and over, it means you’re burning the tissue and are more likely to develop cancer there, just like repeated sunburns increase your risk of skin cancer. Taking half a full aspirin or two baby aspirin (you want 162 mg) with a glass of water decreases this risk by about 35%. (Keep in mind, however, that anti-inflammatory medications like aspirin are a heartburn trigger for some people.)
Getting Better
Your best bet for protecting your throat is to lose weight to help manage your symptoms, and to avoid the foods that trigger your acid reflux. Alcohol, coffee, pepper, acidic foods like tomatoes and OJ, and, to a lesser degree, chocolate increase GERD symptoms. So until you lose weight, avoid these items. And don’t eat meals within 3 hours of bedtime.
When you do hit the sack, put blocks under the head posts of your bed so that you sleep at a slight tilt. This puts gravity to work for you by keeping your stomach contents where they belong -- in your stomach. (Pillows probably won’t cut it -- heads typically roll right off ’em during the night.)
For more advice on getting acid reflux under control and protecting your neck, try these tips and tools:
Dr. Michael Roizen
Dr. Michael Roizen, MD, cofounder of RealAge and chairman of the RealAge Scientific Advisory Board, is a best-selling author and frequent guest on
The Oprah Winfrey Show.
