heartburn

im going in for antireflux surgery next month and have suffered with severe heartburn for 6 yrs, my question is can it cause arm and hand pressure/pain as well as head pressure?

[Red_Star]

One study reported 20 to 43% incidence of heartburn in patients with head and neck symptoms. Also, acid reflux can mimic a heart attack so yes your symptoms could be due to acid reflux issues.

My mother suffered severely from Gastric Esophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) and Laryngopharyngeal Reflux (LPR) for 5 years. She now suffers neither. Throwing away all acid lowering drugs and taking digestive enzyme supplements (helps break down fats, carbohydrates, and proteins) and betaine HCI with pepsin supplements (helps with the stomach's production of hydrochloric acid), GERD and LPR were gone in a few weeks!  After a year of these supplements, my mother's gastritis improved 95% (suffered for 25 years)!!

"The popular belief is that acid reflux is due to an excessive amount of hydrochloric acid in the stomach. New science has revealed that this is not the case. GERD is most often caused by too little hydrochloric acid being secreted by the stomach.

During digestion the stomach secretes acid to lower its pH to around 1.5-2.5 range. More protein in the meal results in a greater need for stomach acid. Individuals with non-obstructive acid reflux are often not able to get their pH low enough. The LES is known to be a pH sensitive valve that initiates closure when pH drops under 3.0. When the stomach does not have enough acid, the LES remains open and acid can spill into the esophageal region and damage the tissue."

[jodiduhon28]

thank you for the response, this is starting to exhaust me im desperate for relief

[Enny2011]

It is very nice to know your story. Could you please tell us what is digestive enzyme supplements (helps break down fats, carbohydrates, and proteins) and betaine HCI with pepsin supplements (helps with the stomach's production of hydrochloric acid) your mother take?

Thanks!

[Red_Star]

I live in Australia so these brands may not be available.  However you can find plenty of digestive enzymes supplements and betaine HCI with pepsin supplements on the market.  Some brands contain both enzymes and betaine HCI with pepsin.

Brands my mother takes -

Nature's Sunshine Protein Digestive Aid which contains betaine HCI with pepsin.

Dr Sandra Cabot's Digestive Enzymes (previously taking for over a year)

Vegetarian Digestive Enzymes by Metagenics (currently taking).  Prefers this brand but both enzyme supplements work well. This brand can only be given by a naturopath directly; not on the shelf.

She takes the digestive enzymes supplements with every meal and adds betaine HCI with pepsin supplements when the meal contains protein. :)

[Flycaster305]

What type of surgery are you going to have?

I disagree with RedStar partially.  Acid Reflux can mimic Angina, as it can cause chest pain, but it doesn't cause the left arm and hand pain that Angina causes.  I'm a veteran of Angina issues and also have had life-long GERD issues.  My sister in law is a Naturopath so I tried the digestive enzyme supplements with great expectations of success, but I crashed and burned, so to speak.  As she predicted, GERD is such a complicated matter, one must try different routes to find relief.  In my case, the Nissen Fundoplication procedure was a complete success, but recovery isn't a walk in the park.  If you wish, you can send me a private message and I can explain that further.  Keep us informed.