If you suffer the discomfort of heartburn more than occasionally, you may have a more serious problem. After an especially spicy or heavy meal, even very healthy people can experience a bit of regurgitation of stomach contents. If this is rare, it's simple heartburn and nothing to worry about. But if it's a familiar sensation for you, you could be suffering from acid reflux or more officially called gastroesophageal reflux disease. You can use the acronym GERD for short.

You know how strong stomach acid is. Really strong! Terrible to the taste. Imagine what it does to the esophagus over time if stomach contents back up? Not a pretty picture. The stomach also contains pepsin for breaking down proteins and bile that may have backed up from the duodenum (the first part of the small intestine). These are not as damaging as the acid, but they are harmful, and the three substances together make for an unhappy combination in the esophagus. It can become inflamed and develop ulcers. When this happens, the condition is called esophagitis. So, it's one disease causing another, sort of a domino effect. This can even erode the enamel on your teeth. Yuk! Think of the dental bills!

While learning about your symptoms and what they might mean is always a good idea, it's not a good idea to diagnose and treat yourself when it comes to acid reflux. It could delay getting on a proper course of treatment that will lead to recovery. The good news is that this condition is highly treatable. But first, a doctor needs to examine you to determine exactly what is going on in your digestive system and why.

Some of the possible culprits of acid reflux are:

a malfunctioning esophagus either because its sphincter valve (where it connects to the stomach isn't working correctly) or because it does not contract properly and move food along the tract, the way it's supposed to;

a bulging of the stomach into the chest area, correct name is a hiatal hernia;

improper emptying of the stomach, so it sits in the stomach instead of being pushed to the small intestine, similar to a clogged drain. This is sometimes called "weak stomach" because the stomach muscles are not contracting properly. In a normal stomach, tiny electrical impulses contract it about three times a minute. This grinds the food and helps push it along through the entire digestive system.

Sometimes a person can have GERD without any heartburn symptoms though. Another telltale sign is halitosis, however this doesn't mean everybody with halitosis has acid reflux though.

Extremely important, if you suspect you have acid reflux, or even suspect you may have acid reflux, make an appointment with your doctor. He or she has the expertise and diagnostic tools to get to the root of the problem and advise a workable course of treatment. Do not suffer alone, & do not prolong the inevitable, you need to see a doctor.