• Heartburn Awareness Month
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Welcome to the Question Corner, a place where you can find answers to your most burning questions. Click here to submit a question to a NHBA Board member. Board members will address the most frequently asked question monthly. In the meantime, please visit the FAQ portion of the Web site to see if there is an answer to your inquiry.


QUESTION:

What causes heartburn?



ANSWER:

Fluids that are produced by the stomach to help the body break down food contain an acid called hydrochloric acid. While the stomach is naturally protected from this potent acid, the esophagus does not share the same protective qualities as the stomach.

Heartburn is caused when this stomach acid refluxes—or flows backward—into the esophagus. This generally occurs when the lower esophageal sphincter (or the LES)—the natural valve that keeps stomach acid in the stomach and out of the esophagus —does not do its job properly.

When functioning normally, the LES opens like a one way door that allows food into the stomach but not out. However, at times the LES relaxes and this allows the stomach acid to flow upward into the esophagus. This relaxation exposes the esophagus to the acid from the stomach and often results in the sensation known as heartburn.

Various lifestyle and dietary factors as well as certain medications can contribute to heartburn by increasing the relaxation of the LES, increasing the amount of acid produced in the stomach, increasing stomach pressure, or making the esophagus more sensitive to acid. These triggers vary from person to person.

For an in-depth look at common triggers of heartburn, please see the General Questions portion of the NHBA Web site by clicking here.



This month's question is answered by Dr. Tim Covington, Pharm.D., president and CEO of Covington Healthcare Associates, LLC, as well as chairman of the National Heartburn Alliance. Dr. Covington is a nationally-recognized scholar and lecturer and has given more than 300 talks on a variety of pharmacological topics. He has written more than 160 professional and scientific articles in nationally-circulated journals and newsletters. In addition, he has authored six books and contributed to nine others. Dr. Covington is recognized as a preeminent scholar and practitioner in the realm of consumer self-care with nonprescription (OTC) drug therapy and nutraceuticals. Dr. Covington has served as a consultant on nonprescription drug therapy to various U.S. consumer products and pharmaceutical companies. Previously, Dr. Covington has chaired pharmacy practice departments at the University of Oklahoma, the West Virginia University Medical Center and Samford University, as well as served as executive director of the McWhorter School of Pharmacy's Managed Care Institute.