Heartburn: why it happens and what you can do

The acid in your stomach is so powerful it can dissolve metal. Luckily, your stomach is fine-tuned to deal with its acidic fluid, but the rest of your body isn’t quite as hardy.

So, if acid escapes from your stomach and reaches your esophagus, it can cause a painful sensation in the chest — this is heartburn. It isn’t rare, with more than 1 billion people suffering from it globally.

In today’s short episode of ZOE Science & Nutrition, Jonathan and Will ask: Why do we get heartburn, and what’s the best way to deal with it?

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Studies referenced in the episode:

• ‘Prevalence and clinical spectrum of gastroesophageal reflux: a population-based study in Olmsted County, Minnesota’ from Gastroenterology here
• ‘Proton-pump inhibitors and risk of fractures: an update meta-analysis’ from Osteoporos Int. here
• ‘Proton pump inhibitors alter the composition of the gut microbiota’ from BMJ here

This podcast was produced by Fascinate Productions.