Pregnancy heartburn is very normal
Women are more susceptible to heartburn during pregnancy due to hormones relaxing the muscle that keeps your oesophagus closed.
According to the HSE, around eight in 10 women have heartburn during pregnancy and it’s more likely to occur in the final trimester.
It can feel like a burning pain in your chest, just behind your breastbone, and, while it’s uncomfortable, heartburn is not harmful to you or your baby and there are ways to remedy it.
OBGYN and BabyCenter Medical Advisory Member, Dr Layan Alrahmani, has outlined a number of preventative measures that can be taken for heartburn during pregnancy.
Things that can help prevent heartburn during pregnancy
In a TikTok video, Dr Alrahmani first recommends eating smaller meals and ‘completely chewing’ your food.
Healthline suggests chewing your food around 32 times before swallowing it, depending on the food as it may take less for soft or water-filled foods, or more for tougher, harder foods.
Essentially, the goal of chewing is to break down your food so it loses texture.
Next, the OBGYN suggests cutting out acidic foods, for example, tomatoes and caffeine.
Dr Alrahmani also adds that even decaf coffee is acidic.
Things that can alleviate heartburn symptoms
For symptoms of heartburn already present, the medical advisor gave a number of suggestions.
For one, eating milk or yoghurt, she says, can help soothe the pain of heartburn.
Dr Alrahmani also says adding some honey to warm milk before bed is a great remedy for combatting symptoms.
However, she is all too aware that sometimes ‘nothing works’.
“If you’re anything like me, where nothing worked, definitely ask a provider about antacids,” she urged.
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