If you suffer from extremely painful heartburn more than twice a week, then you are suffering from chronic heartburn. It is also a sign of a much more serious illness. Heartburn is also called acid reflux, pyrosis, and even acid indigestion just to name a few. Basically, the root cause for heartburn is lifestyle or diet. This will require surgery in order to treat heartburn. You also need to keep in mind that lifestyle changes are important in order to treat heartburn permanently. This will involve losing weight, avoiding foods that cause heartburn, avoiding cigarette smoking, drinking of alcohol, and it will also involve eating smaller meals instead of 3 large meals a day. You have to know that millions of people from different parts of the world suffer from heartburn and it is also a very old condition that humans suffer from. If you suffer from heartburn on a regular basis, you may need to treat it in order to prevent heartburn attacks or at least lessen its frequency. Most drugs of this type may be purchased over the counter and what it does is that it decreases the amount of acid that your stomach produces. Usually, they are taken twice a day and they provide relief from heartburn within 30 minutes of taking it. You have to remember that although it can be purchased over the counter, you still need a doctor s prescription for higher doses. It s an unpleasant feeling that you have to learn how to prevent in order for you to continue living a normal life and also keep your body healthy. The first way to get rid of heartburn is to lose weight if you are overweight. Too much fat on the midsection will mean too much pressure in the stomach. Chronic heartburn is also a sign or symptom of a more serious condition called GERD or Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease. Frequent heartburn will prevent you from living normally. It will limit your daily activities and it can also lead to further complications, such as ulcers in your esophagus and Barrett s esophagus.