Getting To Know GERD, A Disease Commonly Affected By Indonesians People

I. Introduction
According to data from the Indonesian Ministry of Health, GERD is ranked in the top 10as the most common disease suffered by  Indonesians (SINDO, 2018). GERD or acid reflux disease is a medical condition, where there is a disturbance in the digestive system that affects the ring of muscle or valve that connects the esophagus and stomach. This part of the muscle is called the Lower Esophagus Sphincter (Fadli, 2021). The prevalence of GERD, according to the results of Prof Ari's study of doctors in Indonesia, was found to reach 27.4%. If left unchecked, GERD can cause various complications. Although not life-threatening most people with GERD experience anxiety. Patients with GERD experience heartburn and an uncomfortable stomach condition. It can make you wake up at night so that your quality of life decreases. Outside the digestive tract, high stomach acid can spread to the teeth, throat, vocal cords, lower respiratory tract, and even the lungs (SINDO, 2018). This happens because stomach acid that rises can cause injury to
the inner wall of the esophagus so that at first it is just an injury, over time the wound gets wider and can cause narrowing of the lower esophagus. GERD is a disease that must be taken seriously, because many people consider this disease to be a trivial matter, even though if left untreated this disease can lead to various serious and dangerous complications.
II. Discussion
a. Recognize the dangers of GERD and its causes
We must recognize and deal with it quickly if exposed to GERD disease. The author wants to convey how important it is to maintain a healthy lifestyle as a way to avoid the emergence of dangerous diseases such as GERD because the author has experienced how painful it is to undergo treatment for this disease. The most severe symptoms the author experienced were difficulty in breathing, feeling tightness in the chest, and even a severe cough that bleeds blood clots from the wound in the organ that goes up into the esophagus. This happens because of eating unhealthy foods, especially spicy foods that contain high chili peppers that injure the stomach. Then, often late to eat and overthinking/stressed can also trigger GERD. According to Fadli (2021), in normal people, the Lower Esophagus Sphincter (LES) muscle will work well to open when we swallow something into the stomach. After food enters, the muscle will automatically close again to prevent food and contents from the stomach from rising back up into the esophagus. In contrast to people who suffer from GERD, the LES muscle has been disturbed so that the closing movement becomes weak and does not relax. This causes the contents of the stomach or stomach to easily return to the esophagus. So, the lining of the esophagus will experience irritation to inflammation, if this condition occurs continuously. Several causes can trigger GERD in a person, such as:
- A Person's Health Condition
For someone who is obese, hiatal hernia, pregnancy, and experiencing scleroderma are some of the triggers for someone experiencing GERD.
- Bad Lifestyle or Habits
In addition to health conditions, lifestyle or bad habits that are lived for a long period can also be the cause of GERD. Starting from smoking, eating too much at night, eating fatty, spicy, and acidic foods, sleeping after eating, consuming soft drinks, containing alcohol, or caffeine, to consuming certain types of drugs. The foods that trigger excessive stomach acid and can go up the esophagus are foods that contain coffee, alcohol, and several foods that delay gastric emptying such as chocolate, cheese, and coconut milk (Ashadi, 2021).
- Psychological stress.
An unstable mental condition is one of the triggers for GERD because sufferers experience stress to make stomach acid spike. This condition is known as a new term, namely GERD-Anxiety. GERD Anxiety is referred to as a symptom of anxiety that can worsen GERD. In this condition, GERD symptoms can occur without any problems in the esophagus, which is then often associated/caused by anxiety (CNN Indonesia, 2021).
b. The symptoms that you must watch out for
GERD or stomach acid can be treated as soon as possible, you need to recognize the symptoms. There are several symptoms you may experience that indicate that you have

GERD. One of the main symptoms is heartburn and acid regurgitation. However, some people have GERD without heartburn, but instead experience other symptoms such as chest pain, hoarseness in the morning, or difficulty swallowing. You may feel like you have food stuck in your throat, or you may feel like you are choking or choking. GERD can also cause symptoms of a dry cough and bad breath. The author also felt the symptoms of a dry cough and sometimes coughing up phlegm. If you experience these symptoms, you must treat them immediately by checking with the doctor. because if you don't handle it right away and let it go, other dangerous complications will arise.
c. Prevention of GERD
Here are some tips you must follow to prevent GERD/stomach acid :
- Get rid of bad habits
GERD disease can be caused by a lifestyle that carries out bad habits for health, such as smoking because the pollutants in cigarettes can irritate the stomach, eat-in large portions at one time, eating too hastily, lying down or sleeping right away after eating, eat late at night or having a late meal, and drinking alcohol, soda, coffee that is not good for your health. You must need to get rid of these bad habits and get a new healthy lifestyle
- Do not wear clothes that are too tight around the stomach
Try not to wear clothes that are tight in the belly area, such as wearing too tight a belt or pants that are too tight. They can squeeze your stomach and push acid up into the esophagus.
- Avoid foods that are bad for GERD disease
Adjusting your diet and eating habits play a key role in controlling the symptoms of GERD. There are some foods that can trigger GERD and keep giving you heartburn, such as spicy foods, fried foods, fatty (including dairy) foods, chocolate, tomato sauces, garlic and onions, and citrus fruits. You must avoid these types of food t prevent GERD and Keep a record of the trigger foods that give you trouble. Talk with your provider to get help with this. They’ll have suggestions about how to log foods and times of day you should eat.

III. Closing
As the result, there are 3 important points why we must recognize and understand this GERD disease, because prevention is better than cure, as follows:
1. We can know the dangers of this disease, so we can prevent it by adopting a healthy lifestyle and avoiding bad habits that trigger the disease. You need to start a new lifestyle that is good for your health and start to worry about your future if you still do bad habits that are bad for your health, you may get worsen your health before reaching old age.
2. We can detect if we experience symptoms of the disease and can deal with it immediately. Learn the symptoms and then you can get ready if you or people around you feel this disease. If you already knew the dangers of this disease, then you can get rid of it immediately dan takes serious action.
3. Become a reference for basic knowledge that can also help people around who have experienced or felt the symptoms. You can save yourself and the people around you with this knowledge. Be the one that can help everyone around you that may take it easy. Maintain your health by paying attention to your lifestyle. Also, avoid bad habits that make us regret later. While still young, then take care of yourself. Because we also don't want to be sick when we are young.