Pregnancy for a woman is a difficult test, because sometimes she feels bad and she has conditions that she has not previously experienced. One of them is heartburn before childbirth. The article will consider the factors of the occurrence of pathology, the features of the course and ways to overcome it.
Causes of Heartburn
In a normal state, chewed food enters the stomach from the mouth. It is characterized by an alkaline environment, providing the physiological state of the mucosa. A sphincter is located between the stomach and esophagus. Due to relaxation and tension, it opens and closes the gap between the organs.
In a healthy person, the sphincter is constantly closed, except for the moment the food moves from the esophagus to the stomach. When pathological conditions occur, the muscle can relax at another time, leading to communication between these organs. During this period, the acidic contents of the stomach enter the esophagus.
When pH changes, mucosal receptors send signals to the brain. Therefore, there are unpleasant signs - burning and pain in the chest.
Early heartburn can result from severe toxicosis. Repeated vomiting of acidic gastric contents can cause irritation of the esophagus.
The occurrence of unpleasant sensations during pregnancy can be associated with an increase in the acidity of gastric juice. This process contributes to the development of substances that stimulate the digestive process. An increase in the amount of hydrochloric acid in the stomach is associated with an increase in the level of placental hormones in the blood of a woman. A pathological condition can become a symptom of diseases of the digestive tract.
Experts associate heartburn during pregnancy in the third trimester with hormonal restructuring. This helps to reduce the peristalsis of the stomach and intestines.
Burning behind the sternum is associated with the food that women take during pregnancy. It can be chocolate, citrus fruits, fatty or smoked foods.
Such a symptom often occurs with a passive lifestyle and a frequent horizontal position.
Pregnancy Impact
Heartburn as an independent symptom does not directly affect the process of bearing a baby. When throwing the contents of the stomach into the esophagus no more than 3 times a week, there is no threat to the health of the mother and the unborn child.
Constant heartburn worsens a woman's quality of life. She provokes melancholy and depression. Negative emotions can lead to stress. Severe heartburn before childbirth intensifies, therefore, it can cause premature birth of a baby.
It is a symptom of diseases of the digestive tract. Pathology worsens the absorption of nutrients. In chronic diseases of the small intestine, iron deficiency anemia may develop. It can lead to oxygen starvation of the fetus. With a prolonged course of the disease, intrauterine growth retardation of the hearth is possible, and sometimes death.
In rare cases, acute fatty degeneration of the liver occurs. Pathology is quite rare, which occurs in one of 10,000 expectant mothers. This is one of the most dangerous diseases.
Diagnostics
Can there be heartburn before childbirth? If such a condition occurs, a woman needs to see a gastroenterologist. He will be able to exclude the pathology of the digestive tract. Urgent medical attention is needed for severe heartburn, which is accompanied by vomiting of "coffee grounds".
During the consultation, the specialist collects the patient's history. The duration of the first attack of heartburn, concomitant diseases of the digestive tract and the number of pregnancies are being determined.
The doctor prescribes the necessary studies. If the burning behind the sternum is caused not by an acidic but an alkaline environment, then in this case a special therapy will be prescribed to the woman.
Medical nutrition
What helps pregnant women with heartburn? In order to prevent, a specialist prescribes a woman a special diet. The entire daily diet should be divided into 5 meals. Food should be taken at regular intervals. The diet should include products that have an alkaline reaction, neutralizing hydrochloric acid of gastric juice.
In the diet should be present cottage cheese, milk and sour cream. From protein foods you need to stay on beef, rabbit and chicken. It is not forbidden to eat eggs and fish. Carrots, eggplant and other vegetables are best consumed boiled or stewed.
With severe heartburn before childbirth, foods with an acidic environment are excluded from the diet. A woman needs to give up juices, fresh fruits and vegetables. Fatty and spicy dishes should be excluded from the menu.
Medicines
The safest remedy for heartburn is baking soda. It helps neutralize the acidic contents of the esophagus and stomach. Soda eases the condition, but after 15-20 minutes, heartburn resumes again. Therefore, it can be used only in case of emergency.
Inexpensive pills for heartburn include antacids. They do not have a harmful effect on the fetus. They have an effect similar to the effect of soda. These include Rennie, Maalox, Fosfalugel and Almagel suspensions.
This group of drugs is used an hour after a meal. They also need to be taken at night. Antacids cannot be combined with other medicines.
With heartburn, which is accompanied by belching and vomiting, it is recommended to take prokinetics. They accelerate the motility of the digestive tract and relieve the woman of negative symptoms. The group of drugs includes "Sub Simplex" and "Espumisan."
In addition to inexpensive pills for heartburn, adsorbents are used to stop attacks. They are able to regenerate the gastrointestinal mucosa and remove harmful metabolic products from the body. Smecta is the safest adsorbent that can be used during pregnancy without adversely affecting the fetus.
In the absence of a therapeutic effect, doctors prescribe proton pump inhibitors. Drugs reduce the acidity of gastric juice, preventing attacks of heartburn. The most famous include Omeprazole and Rabeprazole.
Folk remedies
What helps pregnant women with heartburn? Before using any folk remedy, a woman needs to consult a doctor. Olive or sunflower oil is sometimes used to relieve heartburn attacks. The product is able to envelop the gastric mucosa, reducing the negative effect of hydrochloric acid.
Potato is a natural treatment for heartburn. To do this, prepare the root crop in water and insist the resulting solution for several hours. This tool is drunk half an hour before meals.
Celery root is also used to prevent heartburn. It is used three times a day 30 minutes before a meal. A similar effect has an infusion of dried plant roots.
To reduce the attack of heartburn, medicinal herbs are also used. Decoctions and infusions are prepared from them. Most often, wormwood and chamomile are used. The drug is taken several times a day half an hour before a meal.
Possible complications
Constant reflux of gastric contents into the esophagus provokes irritation of its mucosa. Aggressive acidic environment contributes to cell death, as well as the formation of ulcers and erosion. Heartburn during pregnancy in the third trimester contributes to the occurrence of esophagitis - inflammation of the mucous membrane of the esophagus.
It leads to difficult swallowing and stagnation of food masses in the upper gastrointestinal tract.
Frequent attacks of heartburn are one of the attacks of benign and malignant neoplasms of the esophagus. Hydrochloric acid can cause abnormal cell division of the organ mucosa. Constant reflux of acidic contents may result in bleeding.
Prevention
What to do with heartburn before childbirth is understandable. But how to avoid this occurrence of this condition? To do this, itโs enough to just change some habits. The following tips will help reduce heartburn attacks:
- It is necessary to divide the womanโs nutrition into 5-6 meals per day. It is better to eat often, but in small portions.
- A woman should not overeat, because a crowded stomach secretes hydrochloric acid in large quantities, which enhances this condition.
- It is necessary to take food in a relaxed atmosphere and carefully chew every bite. When eating on the go, swallowing air causes heartburn.
- After a meal, a woman needs to sit or stand. Pregnant is not recommended to lie or bend in the first hour after eating. A woman should not eat at night.
- So that heartburn does not torment a pregnant woman at night, you need to put several pillows under his head. Slightly elevated position prevents the flow of acidic gastric juice into the esophagus.
- When located on the left side, a woman is less likely to be bothered by heartburn. Among other things, the child will receive the maximum amount of blood, as well as oxygen and nutrients.
- A pregnant woman should remember the foods that cause her heartburn. It can be coffee, chocolate, citrus fruits and spicy dishes. They should be completely excluded from the diet.
- A woman should wear loose clothing that does not tighten her stomach or chest. This contributes to the growth of intra-abdominal pressure, and so increased during pregnancy.
Compliance with these rules will help reduce the occurrence of heartburn attacks.
Conclusion
Heartburn before childbirth is a normal condition that occurs due to pregnancy and very rarely causes any negative consequences. As a rule, it disappears after the birth of a child without a trace.