Unless you are a heartburn sufferer, you probably have no idea about the pain and discomfort that can be caused by coffee. Coffee lovers who experience this problem can face a real dilemma, do they enjoy the odd cup a risk hours of agony, or give it up altogether.
In world where coffee has become part of our culture, and everybody seems to be constantly drinking the brew, it can be hard to remove it completely from your diet. The tempting aroma from the office coffee machine can be enough to convince us that one cup wont do any harm.
Heartburn itself is caused largely by stomach acid finding its way back up into the esophagus. This causes irritation of the esophagus lining causing the well known burning sensation, often accompanied by an acidic taste in the mouth.
Caffeine is a major cause of heartburn because it causes the stomach to produce large amounts of stomach acid, much more than the body requires to aid digestion. This excess acid leaks into the lower esophageal sphincter causing that irritation and burning sensation.
So do you need to switch to inferior tasting decaf to avoid that painful heartburn? Well there is a new...