- australia
Heartburn, also known as gastric reflux, is the burning sensation you can feel in the back of your throat and chest area, caused when acid from your stomach refluxes, or comes up, into your food pipe (also known as the oesophagus).
Heartburn can feel like:
Heartburn is the symptom you feel when reflux happens. The word reflux technically means to flow back, so in the case of heartburn it’s referring to the stomach acid flowing back up into the oesophagus.
Indigestion, or dyspepsia (sometimes called functional dyspepsia) is a pain or uncomfortable feeling in the upper middle part of your abdomen.3,4 The exact cause of indigestion is not known, but it could develop in response to an infection, stress or changed function of the cells in your digestive system.
Indigestion can feel like:
Triggers for both heartburn and indigestion tend to cross over. They may differ from person to person and can include:
Both heartburn and indigestion treatment options neutralise stomach acid, reduce the production of stomach acid, or form a physical barrier to help prevent stomach acid from moving into the oesophagus.
Medications for heartburn and indigestion include
Other ways you can help relieve or prevent heartburn and indigestion include:
Gaviscon Dual Action works in two ways to effectively relieve the symptoms of heartburn and indigestion:
Gaviscon Dual Action Liquid starts to soothe from 4 minutes!*
However, if you are ever concerned about your symptoms, always seek medical advice.
Likewise see a healthcare professional if your symptoms become frequent or get worse.
*Strugala V, et al. J Int Med Res 2010.
Always read the label. Follow the directions for use. If symptoms persist, talk to your health professional.
References:
1. Better Health Channel. Indigestion. Available at:
https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/conditionsandtreatments/indigestion (accessed
July 2020).
2. Department of Health (2019) Clinical Practice Guidelines: Pregnancy Care. Canberra:
Australian Government Department of Health. Part I:56 Reflux (heartburn).
3. Talley NJ, et al. Aust Prescr 2017;40:209–13.
4. American Family Physician. Information from your family doctor, Dyspepsia: What it is and
what to do about it. Am Fam Physician 2010;82(12):1459–1460.
5. Therapeutic Guidelines March 2020 edition. Functional gastrointestinal disorders.
Available at: https://tgldcdp.tg.org.au (accessed July 2020).
6. World Gastroenterology Organisation. WGO Handbook on HEARTBURN: A Global
Perspective. 2015.
7. Australian Medicines Handbook. Dyspepsia. Available at: https://amhonline.amh.net.au/
(accessed July 2020).
8. Therapeutic Guidelines March 2020 edition. Disorders of the oesophagus: Gastrooesophageal reflux. Available at: https://tgldcdp.tg.org.au (accessed July 2020).
9. Sandhu D and Fass R, Stress and gastroesophageal reflux disease. Proc Shevchenko
Sci Soc Med Sci. 2018;52:10–15.