Let’s Be Real About Reflux: Getting to the Heart of Heartburn
By Steven Sandberg-Lewis, ND, DHANP
Did you know:
Only 20% of the population that struggle with reflux actually have too much stomach acid, 60% have too little stomach acid, and 20% have normal acid levels?
Less than 2% of infants suffer from GERD?
By adolescence, the incidence of GERD is 20%, the same as for adults?
Women, both before and after menopause, experience more heartburn than men?
But men are more likely to suffer from progression to more severe stages (Barrett’s esophagus and cancer)?
This author, affectionately known as SSL, is a professor at National University of Natural Medicine where I attended medical school. He was much beloved for having a great sense of humor and regaling us with his guitar and vocal skills with ditties about whatever subject matter we were learning that day; on top of that, he ALWAYS wore a bow tie. Instead of ditties in this book, each chapter starts with a 5-line limerick, a much-appreciated tactic I have never encountered in a non-fiction book. In his chapter on SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth) he includes a 4-page cartoon graphic on the most common questions patients have about the condition which I plan to use as a handout. There are numerous artistically drawn figures, both light-hearted and informative, and 8 helpful tables dispersed throughout the book.
The book is written for both the lay person and medical professional; after each limerick, the author includes a brief glossary of medical terms and key focus questions. It is the most expansive book on reflux to date; dissecting all known parameters causing reflux in a concise 20-chapters, while spanning only 213 pages. SSL emphasizes the importance of finding the root cause for everyone who is suffering from heartburn. He reiterates the importance of evaluating the person’s medical, dietary, behavioral, and pharmacologic history; by doing so, the treatment will be more effective and potentially curative rather than palliative.
One of the most prominently helpful tools in this book is the mnemonic “reduce CARBS, relieve reflux. This device lists the most important lifestyle factors that can trigger or increase heartburn and other reflux symptoms. It is unlikely that they are all significant triggers for any one person, but one or more may be important. CARBS stands for:
C: cola (soda), coffee, chocolate, cigarettes (tobacco)
A: alcohol, acidic foods, aspirin (and other OTC and inflammation meds)
R: refined carbohydrates, rapid eating, RX (certain prescriptions discussed in chapter one)
B: breathing shallowly, big meals, big waist circumference, bedtime eating
S: saturated fat, spicy food, sensitivity to specific foods, snacking, sleep position
SSL elaborates each point in chapter eight. People with reflux may choose to avoid these foods, drinks, drugs, or activities which can be done one factor at a time based on your diet and lifestyle. This process can help narrow down what impact each one has on an individual’s symptoms.
SSL’s overall objective in writing this book is so that patients can advocate for their health and stop the knee-jerk medical approach (a pill for every ill).
Rachel Oppitz, ND
