Heartburn and pregnancy cough

Hi there,

Does anyone have any good advice out there on good old heartburn? I'm 25 weeks and have had this almost constantly since month 3. All the remedies seem to make me throw up - ordinary mints help - for a time. More annoying is that I seem to have a really bad cough with it - I've been checked by the docs and my lungs are clear, it's like I'm breathing in the acid or something. Anyone else get this? I've found avoiding eating bread or pizza base or cake or anything else 'bread-y' (and yummy) seems to help. I'm sick of living on soup and neutral foods so any advice would be appreciated.

Cheers
Helen x

Hi Helen,

I had quite bad heartburn in pregnancy, although not to the same extent as you and I found that drinking milk helped to ease it although it didn't get rid of it completely. It might be worth a try.

Hope it clears up soon.

Carolyn

Hi there Carolyn,

I forgot to say that I'm allergic to milk - ha ha - helpful eh? I have tried soya milk though (made into hot chocolate) and it seems to help a bit. But the last couple of days the coughing was so bad it made me throw up really badly - rang the midwife just in case it wsa anything to worry about, but she said not and just to keep drinking water.

Helen x

Hi,

I had it really bad for the majority of my pregnancy and it was awful. I had the cough as well and would sometimes throw up through my nose (lovely!!!) I used Gaviscon Cool during the night and avoided eating after 8pm...if i had to eat i would have a cracker to help absorb excess acid. Another trick i used was to keep propped up during the remainder of my pregnancy especially at night.

A few home remedies to try:

Natural Apple Cider Vinegar— Put about a tablespoon of Natural Cider Vinegar in a glass of water and drink it slowly during your meal. It does work, and it;s not expensive.

Yogurt—This is a personal favorite. When I feel that burning in my throat, a spoonful of cold yogurt actually feels like it is quenching the fire. It not only has a cooling effect, but it has good bacteria for your digestive track.

Fresh Pineapple—Some people have found that fresh pineapple helps. (I am not one of them; not only do I hate pineapple, but it actually seems to make my reflux worse.) It does have digestive enzymes though that will help you, if you can tolerate it. If you can’t, just try something else

Dried Figs—These are also filled with good tummy enzymes.

Warm Non Decaffeinated Herbal Tea—Remember to avoid the ]peppermint and the citrus flavors. Sometimes, a cup of hot tea can soothe a sour stomach.

Hope that helps :)
*nj*

Hi there NJ,

Thanks so much for this - you sound like you had exactly the same as me - I too know the joy of a nose full of sick (forry for anyone else reading this) - disgusting. I've found Gaviscon is about the best shop remedy and had also stumbled up the yoghurt - which I'll even sometimes have as a last meal, and not eating late, and maybe just eating dry oat biscuits to absorb the acid. And I bought a big square pillow to sleep slightly propped up too - seems to help.

The best advice was re: the herbal tea as I had been drinking gallons of peppermint tea, not realising that this might be contributing to the problem. The pineapple sounds interesting - I wouldn't have thought of it as it sounds acidit, bt anthing is worth a try. I know orange juice was awful.

Very VERY happy to hear it goes away afterwards :-)

Thanks again
Helen x

Hi
I have had 4 kids and suffered all the way through with all of them with the good old hearburn..
Well in the last 2 pregnancies a friend told me to take RENNIE RAPIDS FRUIT FLAVOUR Tablets..and they were FANTASTIC so much so that i got addicted to them they are delicous and really work well for me anyway.
I would honestly tell anyone to give them a go they are lovely and do seem to work.