Acid Reflux Pillow – Top Choices

It’s your best friend’s birthday, and you finally decide to head to the new Italian restaurant that you had been eyeing for a long time. You dine with mindless abandon– from garlic pasta, spicy sausage, homemade tomato sauce to tons of wine. When you return home fully sated, you have only one thing on your mind– long, deep, restful sleep. But the moment you lie down in bed, it hits you like a train. What? Acid reflux.

We have been in such a situation many, many times, when we have gobbled down food and washed down alcohol like there’s no tomorrow, only to stay awake all night with a tummy ache, discomfort, and heartburn. Acid reflux is extremely common, and that’s mostly because of our eating habits. Of course, there are people with weak digestive systems who are more prone to acid reflux, but it almost always happens because of the things we eat or drink.

Among the many reasons that can disrupt sleep at night, there is acid reflux. Anyone who has ever experienced acid reflux will be acutely aware of how difficult it makes sleep. You keep tossing and turning, drinking water, pacing up and down the room, downing digestives in hopes of making it better, but it isn’t easy to get rid of. The result is that the next morning you aren’t just sleepy, but also not feeling your best. All because of the birthday dinner that you so enjoyed.

Acid reflux can be prevented, but there are times it happens suddenly. Don’t be surprised if you get acidity even without eating a heavy Italian meal for dinner. There are various reasons why acid reflux happens, but no matter why it happens, it always makes falling asleep an impossible task.

Because acid reflux is so common, a number of manufacturers have come up with a special pillow that are supposed to help with acid reflux symptoms and make it easier to fall asleep. With normal pillows, you keep stacking then but don’t get the support that you need to ease the heartburn. That’s why these special pillows are intended to help you sleep even when you have acid reflux symptoms.

What Is Acid Reflux?

Before we go into details about the pillows made for acid reflux, let’s first discuss what acid reflux is and why it happens. Although we know it by many names – acidity, indigestion, dyspepsia – it’s the same thing – gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD).

The condition is characterized by a burning sensation and discomfort located in the throat, chest or stomach. Sometimes it also leaves a sour taste in the mouth, besides nausea, bloating, flatulence and belching. With all these symptoms it’s no wonder that acid reflux makes it difficult to fall asleep.

What Exactly Is the Cause of Acid Reflux?

Acid reflux is caused by hiatal hernia, a condition in which a part of the stomach pushes up towards the chest. This is the cause of acid reflux, when the stomach and lower esophageal sphincter push above the diaphragm.  The diaphragm muscle is responsible for helping keep acid in our stomach. When a part of the stomach pushes up, and above the diaphragm, the acid moves up into the esophagus. The muscles of the diaphragm are supposed to be taut, keeping the opening leading from the stomach to the esophagus closed. During eating or drinking, these muscles relax to allow the food to pass to the stomach, and then they tighten again. In people with GERD, the diaphragm muscles are weak, and they don’t relax when they should. This prevents the esophageal muscles from closing completely and allows stomach contents to push back up the throat. This is what causes indigestion, bloating, heartburn and discomfort.

Acid reflux is more common than any other condition. About 60 percent of the American population experiences acid reflux every year, with more than half of them getting weekly symptoms. Acid reflux clearly needs more attention than just popping digestive supplements.

There are several factors that cause acid reflux. Some of the most factors are:

• Eating too close to bedtime
• Consuming acid triggering foods, such as alcohol, spicy or fatty foods, and caffeine
• Smoking
• Obesity
• Wearing tight clothing to bed

As we realize, most of the factors that cause acid reflux are manageable. But since acid reflux mostly happens at night during bedtime, it affects sleep more than anything else. This is why the things we consume close to bedtime have a maximum effect on our digestive system.

Do Wedge Pillows Work for Acid Reflux?

There are quite a few treatments and prevention options for acid reflux. Taking antacids prescription medications and surgery are some of the means for those who experience regular acid reflux symptoms. However, none of these offer any immediate improvement and also have an animal of side effects. Popping an antacid when you have acid reflux during bedtime can offer relief but take a few hours to work. So until then, you have to keep tossing and turning or pacing around your room.

There is however a quick and easy relief option when you experience acid reflux at night, and that is by elevating upper portion of your body while you are lying down in bed. The elevation is proven to be one of the quickest solutions for acid reflux because it prevents stomach contents from coming up to the throat through the esophagus. Several studies have found the usefulness of elevating your head or the upper portion of your body to get immediate relief from acid reflux symptoms.

There are quite a few ways to elevate your head while you lay down, including stacking up the pillows and elevating the head of the bed. However, if you elevate your head simply by stacking a few pillows, you are creating excessive strain on your neck and spine, as well as creating pressure on your abdomen and aggravating acid reflux symptoms. Unfortunately, that is the way most people are used to elevating their head, but it isn’t of much use.

This is when you should use wedge pillows that have been specially designed to keep the head elevated while supporting the rest of the body. While wedge pillows have a number of different uses, they are mostly used for elevating certain parts of the body such as the head the shoulders the back or the legs. As the name suggests, these pillows are shaped like a wedge and are a little firmer than regular pillows, which allows them to provide better support. Wedge pillows are also used for elevating the head for people who snore or have sleep apnea or need support during pregnancy.

Wedge pillows are a simple, affordable, and risk-free solution to treat nighttime GERD quickly. It won’t make your symptoms disappear but will make sleeping at night a lot easier. It is also far safer than popping pills or undergoing surgery. Wedge pillows are available online and at major bedding stores.

5 Best Wedge Pillows for Acid Reflux?

Wedge pillows are primarily manufactured for acid reflux relief. They are rising in popularity, and various manufacturers have started to bring out their own versions of the wedge pillow. But remember that there is a difference between ordinary wedge pillows and those that have been specifically designed for acid reflux relief. There are various cheap alternatives to wedge pillows available, but they are not capable of providing the support that therapeutic pillows do. That is why when purchasing a wedge pillow make sure it is meant for therapeutic use.

Here we look at the top 5 wedge pillows capable of providing elevation and support.