Can You Tell the Difference Between Heartburn and Angina?
By: Arthur Cooper
Submitted: 2010-12-21 18:50:46 | Word Count: 664
Chest pain can be a very worrisome symptom, and rightfully so. It’s a symptom of a whole host of medical conditions, a few of which can be fatal if it’s ignored. However, some conditions associated with chest pain are pretty benign. For example, heartburn and angina both involve chest pain, but leaving one of them untreated can be a fatal mistake. So, what is the difference between heartburn and angina, and how can you tell which one you’re suffering from?
Similarities and differences
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Both heartburn and angina (a heart attack) present with chest pain, but that’s pretty much where the similarities end.
Heartburn pain is generally described as a burning sensation that radiates from the chest up into the neck. It can sometimes be accompanied by reflux, or the feeling of food or liquid in your throat or mouth, a bitter taste in your mouth, burping, hiccupping and just a general feeling of indigestion. These feelings increase after eating, or after lying down.
Angina pain is more of a pressure or feeling of heaviness in your chest, associated with a whole host of other symptoms. The symptoms often come on very suddenly. They include:
· Shortness of breath
· The pain or a numbing sensation may spread to your shoulders or arm
· Fatigue
· Sweating
· Lightheadedness
When dealing with these two very different conditions, it’s important to listen to, and understand your body’s signals so that you can respond accordingly. Heartburn is nothing that you need to rush to the emergency room for, but angina is.
Treatments
If you think you are experiencing angina, walk away from the computer right now! Go to the hospital immediately! Immediate medical attention is the only thing that can help relieve chest pain due to angina.
Heartburn pain is a little easier to deal with. It can be treated naturally and dealt with fairly quickly to minimize discomfort. For example:
· Something as simple as drinking a large glass of water can often help soothe heartburn pain. It works by flushing acids out of the stomach, keeping them from doing further damage and causing irritation. Additionally, mixing the water with a few tablespoons of apple cider vinegar can help speed pain relief to the area.
· Some people have even found relief from just eating an apple during a heartburn attack.
· Various teas like ginger, chamomile and fennel have also been shown to settle acid indigestion and help soothe fiery stomachs.
· To prevent heartburn attacks, avoid foods you’ve noticed that upset your stomach. Common ones include garlic, onions, caffeine, alcohol and citrus fruits that are full of natural acids.
· Try eating smaller meals, but more often, rather than just a few large meals every day. This helps prevent your stomach from overproducing acid to try to digest the massive amount of food you just threw at it.
Hopefully you’re now armed with information and can respond accordingly if you ever experience chest pain due to one of these two medical problems. However, there’s defiantly more to it than what’s provided in this small article, so for more information please visit www.refluxremedy.com and find out more!
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