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Weight gain may cause heartburn in women
Compiled from Times wires
Published June 1, 2006
NEW YORK - Women who put on extra pounds raise their risk of getting frequent heartburn or making symptoms worse - even if they aren't overweight, a study found. Compared to women whose weight didn't change, a moderate gain doubled the chances of heartburn and acid reflux. Shedding the pounds cut the risk by about 40 percent, according to the report in the New England Journal of Medicine. "I see this as one more good reason to try to lose weight if you've put on a few pounds," said the lead author of the study, Dr. Brian C. Jacobson of Boston University Medical Center. Persistent heartburn is the result of stomach acid backing up into the esophagus. It creates a burning pain in the chest or a bitter taste in the throat or mouth. Dr. Caroline Apovian, director of the Center for Nutrition and Weight Management, said heartburn medicine is usually the first to go when patients drop weight. "It's as little as 10 pounds. It's amazing," Apovian said. The research used data from the long-running Nurses' Health Study. Previous research that showed a connection between weight and heartburn focused on the overweight and obese. Elsewhere ... PLEA DEAL REACHED: A California man pleaded guilty Wednesday to a lesser charge rather than be retried on allegations that he lied to the FBI about his son's attendance at a terrorist training camp. Umer Hayat, 48, will plead guilty to lying to customs agents about money he was carrying on a Pakistan trip three years ago and other charges will be dismissed. His son, Hamid Hayat, 23, was convicted of supporting terrorism by attending an al-Qaida training camp in Pakistan in 2003 and lying to the FBI. COURTHOUSE SHOOTING: In Scottsboro, Ala., a man shot two people on the lawn of a county courthouse after a hearing in a domestic case Wednesday because he disagreed with a children's visitation arrangement, officials said. The man and woman shot suffered head wounds and were in serious condition, officials said. The suspect was tackled by a marine conservation officer. CARBON MONOXIDE DEATHS: In Packwood, Wash., a married couple and their daughter were found dead of carbon monoxide poisoning in a locked camper, authorities said Wednesday. The man and wife, both 40, and their 13-year-old daughter were from Seattle, officials said. They did not release their names.
[Last modified June 4, 2006, 05:24:47]
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