Heartburn Got You Down? Minerals Can Help
And I’m back to talk about minerals. My favorite!
Today is a bit of a twist with heartburn, minerals and metabolism. Maybe 3 things you never thought would go together and while they may not be directly related, they definitely are still connected. I started making this connection when heartburn kept coming up as a complaint from clients. OR when I hear people talk about how they can’t eat this or that because they get heartburn. That is a huge red flag for me because oftentimes food triggers are not the problem, they are just the trigger. We have to dig a little deeper to actually fix the problem versus avoiding a bunch of foods you enjoy.
First let’s talk about what’s actually happening with heartburn and then we will get into the metabolism piece. Don’t skip this point because it’s important. While many people believe heartburn is from acidic foods or acid in the stomach, it’s actually from the stomach not having enough acid. It still burns because there is still acid coming up into the esophagus, but it is due to not having enough acid in the stomach.
When this happens it’s usually a good indicator that you are low on minerals, and you’re not digesting foods well. This is where we connect heartburn to metabolism. When you have chronic heartburn and can’t digest food well, it will eventually lead to nutrient deficiencies. If we don’t have nutrients to function, we can’t have a healthy metabolism. This will eventually affect the liver and digestive juices. And around and around we go on this merry go round.
Low minerals → Low stomach acid → Poor digestion → Nutrient deficiencies like more low Minerals → Slower Metabolism, low energy, liver stress, digestive issues like heartburn continues
There are few labs we can do to start to figure out where this cycle began and/or how we can break this cycle. I like to test the thyroid because it’s intimately connected to the digestive system and metabolism. I also like to check mineral status since they are also highly involved with the function of the GI and overall metabolism.
Remember metabolism is more than just weight loss or weight gain. Weight gain can be a result of a slow metabolism but metabolism also includes creating and using energy efficiently. We need metabolism to be functioning well for weight loss efforts to be effective.
Side note: some of these underlying issues like low mineral status could be a reason. If you do have weight loss resistance it’s important to find our WHY.
