Acidity or Indigestion
The medical term is Dyspepsia
It is a pain or an uncomfortable feeling in the upper middle part of your stomach area. The pain might come and go, but it's there most of the time. You might feel too full after a meal or too full to finish a meal. You can get it at any age.
Symptoms
Upper abdominal (stomach) pain
Nausea (feeling sick) and vomiting
Bloating or fullness of abdomen
Heartburn
belching or burping
excessive gasses
bringing up food or bitter-tasting fluids into your mouth
What causes this (commonest)
Excessive tea and coffee
Alcohol and smoking
Overeating
Pain killers
H Pylori infection
Often multiple causes or no cause can be found
Is it serious?
It is not a serious condition. But it troubles one in his day to day function
Also if untreated may lead to ulceration in the stomach and intestine, which may get complicated (perforation or bleeding)
How is it treated
Cut down on smoking, alcohol, heavy meals, pain killers, beverages
Diet disciplines - don't have rich, spicy or fatty foods
Weight reduction
Your doctor may prescribe you acid-lowering medication for 3 to 6 weeks (antacids/ proton pump inhibitors)
Acid neutralizing syrups
Side effects of medicines
Very few and generally well tolerated
Serious signs/Symptoms
keep getting indigestion despite of treatment
are in severe pain
Age> 50
have lost a lot of weight without meaning
have difficulty swallowing (dysphagia)
keep being sick
have iron deficiency anaemia
feel like you have a lump in your stomach
have bloody vomit or poo
These symptoms can be a sign of something more serious.
In my experience
Dyspepsia is a very common recurring condition I see in my practice. It's mainly due to being overweight combined with irregular diet timings and incorrect diet choices. I recommend my patients to follow the food pyramid & eat a healthy plate in making diet choices. Below are the links.
I resort to upper GI endoscopy and ultrasonography of the abdomen if the symptoms don't resolve by doing the above-mentioned treatment options.