Tue
12
May
Acid reflux usually occurs when a donut shaped muscle at the bottom of the esophagus called the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) doesn’t operate properly. Normally, the LES prevents the backflow of acid by tightening up after swallowing. However, when people have acid reflux, the LES becomes relaxed and weak, which allows acid and the stomach contents to seep back up the esophagus.
Although there is still no consensus on exactly what causes the LES to weaken, there are several factors have been shown to worsen on contribute to acid reflux. These factors include:
- Obesity (extra weight can put pressure on the LES)
- Pregnancy
- Hiatal hernia, a condition where the top of the stomach protrudes above the diaphragm muscle of the chest
- Smoking
- Alcohol consumption
- Caffeine consumption
- Eating large meals
- Eating before bedtime
- Medications such as antihistamines, calcium channel blockers, theophylline, and nitrates
- Fatty, fried, and spicy foods; citrus fruits; chocolate; tomato-based foods; mint; garlic; and raw onions
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Tuesday, May 12th, 2009 at 11:00 am
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February 9th, 2008 at 6:26 pm
MINT TOOTHPASTE IS OVERLOOKED AS MAIN CULPRIT
Everyone, listen up: no one realizes that mint toothpaste — the hyper minty gel kind like in Colgage Total — is what’s behind the acid reflux epidemic of today. Whatever doesn’t get rinsed during nighttime brushing, seeps down the esophagus after we go to bed and loosens up that sphincter muscle night after night, until it stays open permanently. As soon as I switched to non-mint toothpaste, my chronic reflux went away. I’ve helped others cure their reflux and heartburn as well, and have submitted articles to both Health and Prevention magazines this week because I want to spread the word. Think about this: toothpaste and mints weren’t that strong in the past and either was society’s heartburn issues. They happened around the same time. Anyway, please help get the word out. Colgate Total and Altoids: good for your breath; bad for your health. When I switched from Colgate Totl to Cinnamon Closeup; Tom’s Fennel and Crest citrus flavored toothpaste my acid reflux went away. It’s been 6 years and I’m heartburn free.
February 10th, 2009 at 5:07 am
I wish I had read this a couple of weeks ago! I just arrived at the same conclusion tonight after having another acid reflux episode. I got up to brush so it would not eat at my teeth and wham, it hit me. The cause might be this toothpaste I got on sale at Costco. I will immediately stop using this Crest w/Scope. If the acid reflux goes away, I will also help spread the word. Thanks!
March 18th, 2009 at 10:35 am
I just recently figured out that Mentadent Advanced Cleaning was causing nightime reflux for me — wish I had determined it before I suffered for months. I switched to Tom’s of Maine, which still has some peppermint in it and lots fewer strange flavorings and colorings. So far, so good. Maybe it is the degree of mintiness that mattered for me, or maybe some other ingredient from a chemical vat somewhere : )
August 4th, 2009 at 11:51 am
I think you might be right, but I think it’s the whitening formula, it softens up the skin inside the cheeks, imagine, that softened tissue develops down in the esophagus where the toothpaste that stays in the mouth, and pills get stuck and the sphincter is probably also affected. I don’t think it’s the mint as much as it’s the whitening formula and chemicals! I bet the same companies who make whitening formul also make GERD medicine! I switched from whitening formula to normal formula sensodyne.
September 6th, 2009 at 7:43 am
i had a problem related with toothpaste i had severe dysphagy and acid reflux. sometimes my problems were increasing though using proton pump medicines i could not get a full positive effect. when i change my toothpaste i have seen that my problems diminished. the most important thing is Sodium laureth sulfate is a detergant being in toothpastes. This chemical makes hyperplasia in esophagus epitel. in future that corrupts motility of esophagus . and then hyperplasia makes a bacground to develop carciogenic cell type .pls use unfoaming toothpaste. and make sure that does not contain sodium fluoride. it must contain sodium-monofluorophosphate .
December 9th, 2009 at 7:38 pm
I have just brushed my teeth and it started really bad, used Colgate Total Mint, so ate a red apple and a table spoon of honey and that was the only thing that really soothed it completely. Avoid that toothpaste and eat a red apple with tablespoon of honey before bed and all meals. Helps digestion and soothes with pectins.
March 23rd, 2010 at 9:09 pm
this is amazing- I just typed this in as a longshot since everynite when I went to bed I got acid reflux- no matter what I ate. And it was always after brushing my teeth with Colgate Total. Boy, do I feel relieved now. I am switching tonight to something else!!!! Thanks !
May 7th, 2010 at 1:12 pm
WOW!! I am so glad I decided to check this out today. I have been a wreck. Murat the person that wrote last September is so right on. I have bad acid reflux and the inside of my mouth and throat would turn white at times. I went to Dr. and had a biopsy done and it came back with HYPERPLASIA. The doctor said it can happen with acid reflux.The dr. didn’t seem like it was harmful it’s just something that can come with acid reflux.I have looked up hyperplasia and found that it could cause cancer. I think the dr.just didn’t want to worry me about getting cancer. I use whitening toothpaste and my mouth peels every day. I never made the connection. Now I know its from the toothpaste.