Has anyone gotten heartburn relief from losing weight?

Yep!

Absolutely. I get acid reflux. Losing weight made it go away.

Acid reflux is caused by a lot of things, diet is an absolute major one. Here is some information that might be helpful (Im in pharmacy school, this is literally something we are talking about right now)

Gerd is caused by problems associated with the esophogeal sphincter. This is what separates your stomach from your esophagus (the tube that connects your mouth where food goes in to get to your stomach). Your stomach is filled with a very powerful acid called Hydrochloric acid (HCl), which can be very harmful and painful when it coats the linning of your GI tract. You body produces and maintains a Mucosa membrane, made of Bicarbonate and other elements to protect your cells. In other words, in your stomach, (in normal conditions) you cells lining your stomach never actually touch your stomach acid, because the mucosa acts as a buffer. Your esophagus on the other hand, does not have a mucosa lining, therefore, if the acid goes past the sphincter, up from the stomach to the esophagus, this will cause the burning and pain.

A major cause of this can be due to increased pressure underneath the sphincter. Typically there is more pressure above this sphincter, which is what causes food to get pushed down into the stomach. BUT if there is increased pressure below, this can cause the sphincter (which is typically closed) to open and possibly remain open, allowing that HCl to come up and spill onto the esophagus. So in essence, you want to decrease that pressure.

What causes increased pressure from underneath and how to prevent it?
-Large quantities of food and excess eating. I know every year on 4th of july, im gonna get heartburn, because I know I over eat. With all the bread, the hot dogs, burgers, chips, etc; its bound to happen. Because the stomach is filled with so much food, it causes increased pressure, opening that sphincter
-Specific foods will also increase that pressure too, especially those higher in acid. Theres millions of lists out there, Im not going to list them all here
-Problems with the sphincter itself can also occur. If the GERD is chronic, and not just within an hour of eating, you may have some more serious pathology, such as nerve damage or failure. This can be treated and be pretty serious.

GERD is something that is very important to get under control if it is frequent. The chronic damage to the esophagus can lead to cancer very easily, which esophageal cancer is something that is currently on the rise

GERD can be also taken care of with protein pump inhibitors and sodium bicarb buffers like Tums and Pepcid and Zantac. While these are great drugs, they need to be used with caution if being used over long periods of time. These drugs decrease the acidity of your stomach, which can affect the normal flora (the bacteria in your body) and can cause some bacteria to grow to unnatural numbers, leading to very serious problems

Diet is the most important and easiest way to change and affect GERD problems, and with your husband losing weight, not only is he probably eating better, but eating less.

Hope this info was helpful

One other thing I forgot to say, kinda to contradict/correct an earlier poster. Things like milk ARE good, as they provide a good buffer against HCl in the stomach

I can say absolutely yes to your question. I have GERD and an ulcer as a result of the GERD. I had significant heartburn/pain all the time before I started losing weight. Everything hurts, though, when you have all the extra weight adding pressure to all your body parts. I rarely have any heartburn anymore and if I do, it's because I know I've eaten too much of what I shouldn't be eating anyway. It's a great way to stay in check. If/When I get it now, it's nowhere near as painful as it was before and much more manageable with just a couple of Tums rather than waiting on anything stronger.

I would say, too, your doctor is accurate. Even 15 pounds down, I found I wasn't experiencing heartburn symptoms. I didn't realize it until I stopped to think about it once along the journey.

Much luck to you!
Ashley

I used to take Zantac at least once a day. It's probably a combination of healthier diet, exercise and portion control but I only have heartburn when I fall back into old habits now. If you still have problems, cut out all alcohol, caffeine and tobacco.

Had really bad acid reflux, had to take prescription med every day, then every other day, than once a week, now only as needed, which is usually when I know I'll be drinking. Don't know if it was the weight loss or clean eating, but either way no more acid reflux.

Absolutely. It was really bad, I was waking up frequently with horrible stuff in my mouth from it, had to take zantac and other things for it and they didn't really help... but it's more IMO because of the change of diet (and cutting out a lot of fat) than because I've lost weight, as I've only lost 20 lbs and still have a lot to lose. So if you lose weight but still eat fatty foods, it's probably not going to help. If you eat healthier, it should.

yes definitely

One other thing I forgot to say, kinda to contradict/correct an earlier poster. Things like milk ARE good, as they provide a good buffer against HCl in the stomach

WHAAAAA?? Not for me! Milk absolutely is a BAD thing for people with acid reflux. It does NOT "coat your stomach."

Exactly, milk does not "coat the stomach", unless you are talking about skim milk and I don't drink skim milk, ew.

"You can include protein sources, which contain saturated fat, in an acid reflux diet by reducing the associated fat. For example, while whole milk and whole-milk products may contribute to acid reflux, skim milk or low-fat yogurt may not be as problematic. Other low-fat or fat-free dairy products, as well as lean meats with all visible fat trimmed off and poultry without skin, are other proteins you may include in an acid reflux diet. Because people have different trigger foods, though, you may have to test out low-fat milk or low-fat yogurt to see if they cause heartburn symptoms."

"Skim milk may work as a remedy for quick relief from heartburn if you don't have antacids or acid-reducing medication available. The remedy includes sipping a small amount of skim milk and remaining upright for 30 minutes for relief from heartburn. Make certain you use skim milk, though, and not milk with fat content, which can encourage acid reflux."