What Is The Difference Between Indigestion And Acid Reflux

Very often, the terms “acid reflux” and “indigestion” are used interchangeably to mean the same thing. Despite having very similar symptoms, there are a number of differences between the two conditions. Acid reflux symptoms are more often than not a lot more severe. While the symptoms for indigestion is usually short lived, acid reflux symptoms can persist for more than a few hours.

Acid reflux can be mild or serious. If it becomes serious, the condition is also known as Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD). It is characterised by pain in the oesophagus and throat where the acid from the stomach causes damage to the lining. These acid reflux symptoms can often only be relieved with prescription medications.

If left untreated the acid reflux symptoms can become unbearable as the lining of the oesophagus is slowly eroded away by the stomach acid. The worst case scenario is that oesophageal cancer or any of the other serious and potentially life-threatening throat conditions develop which are a lot harder to treat than the initial acid reflux complaint.

Acid reflux is not curable however a change of diet and lifestyle can help to control the symptoms and thus the discomfort and pain. If this doesn’t help and the acid reflux symptoms persist then medication should be taken as an extra measure.

Indigestion is often thought to be a milder form of acid reflux however this isn’t technically true. Some of the symptoms are similar however indigestion has a number of symptoms not experienced in acid reflux and vice versa. For example, one of the most common symptoms of indigestion is gassy episodes and often these episodes are felt by sufferers of true acid reflux. Indigestion sufferers may also have an uncomfortable feeling around the chest and shoulder area that isn’t relieved by burping.

Indigestion is commonly caused by over-eating or eating too quickly. The stomach becomes overladen with food, resulting in a huge production of acid. Acid reflux however is caused when the sphincter at the top of the stomach is weakened and the stomach acid is allowed to travel up the oesophagus and often into the throat. Because of this dissimilarity the major symptoms of the two conditions are felt in different parts of the body i.e. the chest in indigestion and the throat/oesophagus in acid reflux.

Whether it is indigestion or acid reflux, both have symptoms that can be painful to the sufferer. They can cause much upset to your life. A few changes can help to ease the symptoms and preventative measures can be taken to reduce the severity of the pain.

For more information, please refer to this site on Acid Reflux.