# Acid reflux: is it a forever kind of thing?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/acid-reflux-is-it-a-forever-kind-of-thing/803544>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [December 4, 2017, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/acid-reflux-is-it-a-forever-kind-of-thing/803544 "2017-12-04T15:20:47Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2017, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/acid-reflux-is-it-a-forever-kind-of-thing/803544/41 "2017-12-08T18:13:43Z")

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I’ve had it once, waking up with stomach acid in my breathing tube, and the breathing tube choking up. Awful and scary. And I’m not overweight. I think it was stress.

I now sleep with my headrest slightly elevated ( bought an Ikea electric slatted bed base) and I always have a bottle of [Gaviscon](https://www.gaviscon.com/) beside my bed for instant relief, should it ever happen again.

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**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\
**Post date:** [December 8, 2017, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/acid-reflux-is-it-a-forever-kind-of-thing/803544/42 "2017-12-08T20:17:36Z")

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> [@Tangent](#):
>
> My story is similar to many already posted in that I believe being overweight was a significant factor in my acid reflux problems.  
> …  
> Then a few years ago I changed my diet (which was largely fast food and LOTS of soda, so I eliminated both of those) and exercised more and lost a lot of weight (60+ lbs). That made a huge difference. I have had very few acid reflux incidents since then, and in those cases it usually involves eating a large meal or certain ‘triggering’ foods relatively late in the evening.  
> …  
> TLDR: Losing weight (or, at least, a healthier diet) seemed to greatly reduce my acid reflux incidents.

Yeah, I’m reading a number of responses here that seem to indicate that weight appears to be a factor, and I suspect that may be a factor in my case too. I never used to have any digestive or acid reflux problems when I was younger, but for a number of years my weight has gone up and I’m to the point where I’d really like to lose the spare tire for a variety of reasons. If it eliminates acid reflux issues along the way I guess that’s just one more reason to do it.

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