How To Sleep At Night With Gerd
Sleep with your head elevated.
How to sleep at night with gerd. Sleep apnea is also linked to gerd and causes sleep disturbances. Heartburn and gastroesophageal reflux disease or gerd are frequent causes of sleeplessness. People with gerd often experience heartburn at night which can disrupt their sleep. As many as one in four people who experience sleep disturbances report that they have nighttime heartburn.
According to the national sleep foundation gerd or gastroesophageal reflux disease is a type of chronic illness that can pose a serious threat to your health when left untreated. This ideal sleep position provides a double whammy of decreasing your gerd symptoms and providing protection from prolonged acid exposure to your esophagus throat lungs and sinuses. Not feeling well rested after a night s sleep because you were up several times thanks to heartburn. If left untreated gerd can lead to more serious health problems such as sleep disorders.
How does gerd affect sleep. To prevent acid reflux at night. At the same time sleep deprivation per se can adversely affect gerd by enhancing perception of acid in the. More commonly people with gerd experience multiple short arousals that they are unable to recollect which results in sleep fragmentation.
Nighttime heartburn affects four out of five people who suffer regular heartburn and acid reflux the discomfort and bitter taste can make sleep uncomfortable even elusive. Gerd is the 3rd most common gastrointestinal disorder in the us and one of the leading causes of disturbed sleep among people between the ages of 45 and 64 according to the 2002 nsf sleep in america poll. Try a mattress lifter a wedge shaped pillow or add a pillow to help keep your stomach contents from moving upward. If your insomnia is caused by acid reflux you may suffer from daytime tiredness or sleepiness.
If you ve been waking up at night with heartburn here are tips to help you sleep better. Raise the head of the bed by 4 to 6 inches so you can sleep with your head and chest elevated. Reviewed by william c.