Heartburn Relief

Alexa Hollander

A Southern California teenager says she’s had heartburn relief from an invasive surgical procedure as recently reported by a CBS affiliated television station in North Carolina.

But, at what cost?

Surgery helps relieve teen’s severe heartburn

“Two years ago, Alexa Hollander was suffering from gastroesophageal reflux disease, also known as GERD.

Hollander, now 16, said her stomach would start hurting, then “all of a sudden stuff would start coming up and sit in my throat.”

Hollander dropped out of sports and her grades suffered. She couldn’t even eat the yogurt she served at her part-time job.

“What changed is the valve at the end of the esophagus probably started off weak and just got weaker over time,” Dr. Miguel Burch of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles said of Hollander’s condition.

Forty percent of Americans suffer heartburn at some point in their lives. While many people get relief through medication, people with GERD might only get temporary relief from medication. To reduce symptoms, GERD patients might need stronger medication or even surgery, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Burch performed a unique surgery to strengthen Hollander’s valve so food could go down but not back up. It is performed without any incisions.

“We put an endoscope down (her throat) and through it a sewing machine. It allows us to shape the stomach,” Burch said.

To reduce heartburn, doctors recommend that people lose weight or cut out caffeine.

Surgery was the only thing that helped Hollander. The procedure’s lack of incisions also meant shorter recovery time.

“After a week, I was back on my feet walking around,” Hollander said.”

Click here for the original story.

This is yet another typical example of medical doctors masking the symptoms of heartburn with dangerous drugs and/or invasive surgery…instead of just getting rid of the cause of the heartburn. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very happy for this young woman that she’s had acid reflux and heartburn relief. But, there is always a cost to this approach!  And although she’s had some heartburn relief after her surgery, I’d say that the likelihood of her having more problems down the road is pretty high.

I suspect that nothing was done to actually get rid of the cause of this young woman’s reflux condition. And, as I’ve mentioned elsewhere in this blog, it is my experience that most, if not all, of heartburn and acid reflux symptoms are caused by poor or incomplete digestion. Or, to put it more simply…indigestion. That’s why this condition is often referred to as ‘acid indigestion’!

One clue to the possible cause of this young woman’s indigestion problem was actually revealed in the story when they said that “she couldn’t even eat the yogurt she served at her part-time job”. Could she have a dairy allergy and/or lactose intolerance that was causing her indigestion? Hmm…probably, but I guess we’ll never know.

Click here for the original video of this heartburn relief surgery story.

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