This Is The Worst Position To Sleep In If Heartburn Wakes You Up At 3AM

As someone with insomnia, I struggle to get to sleep in the first place. I’m not alone – 21% of us find it hard to nod off at least once a week. 

So when we do finally reach dreamland, it’s pretty unpleasant to be yanked out of it by heartburn or indigestion. 

One paper called nighttime heartburn an “under-appreciated clinical problem that impacts sleep and daytime function” among adults with gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD). 

Meanwhile, some researchers think indigestion and acid reflux create a vicious cycle; they affect your sleep, which may in turn increase your risk of indigestion, and so on. 

Though you should see a GP if you have indigestion often, if it comes alongside other symptoms (like iron deficiency anaemia, pain, trouble swallowing, and weight loss), doctors like GI surgeon Dr Karan Rajan say that sleeping on one side over another may help for one-off cases.

Don’t sleep on your right side

Your stomach is not a perfectly balanced or symmetrical organ.

Instead, it’s curved, with much of its bulk (which contains the acid that causes indigestion and heartburn) lying on the left-hand side.

That bend means that it’s harder for stomach acid to make its way into your oesophagus because it’s got a steeper curve to climb than your more gently sloping right-hand side.

Per the Gastrointestinal Society: “Due to gravity, the shape of the stomach, and the angle of the connection between it and the oesophagus, sleeping on your left side can greatly reduce reflux.” 

“By the same principle, if you lie on your right-hand side, at this point the stomach and its contents are slightly higher than the lowest of your sphincter,” Dr Karan Rajan agreed.

That means “more chance of reflux back into the oesophagus,” which creates that horrid indigestion burn.

What else can I do to reduce the risk of nighttime indigestion?

The NHS says that indigestion is common and is usually “not a sign of anything more serious... you can treat it yourself.” 

Solutions can include cutting down on coffee, tea, and booze, raising your stomach above your head when you sleep and avoiding eating closer than thre to four hours before bedtime. 

Skip spicy, fatty foods if you’re struggling with indigestion, don’t smoke, and speak to your pharmacist about getting over-the-counter treatments if needed. 

The health service adds you should see a GP if you: 

• keep getting indigestion
• are in severe pain
• have lost a lot of weight without meaning to
• 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.