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Dyspepsia - unidentified cause - Management
What lifestyle advice should I give to people with dyspepsia?
- Advise people with dyspepsia that symptoms may be improved if they:
- Lose weight (if they are overweight).
- Stop or reduce smoking (if they are a smoker).
- Stop or reduce alcohol consumption.
- Stop or reduce intake of any food or drink associated with worsening symptoms.
- Advise people with reflux symptoms when lying down to:
- Avoid having meals within 3–4 hours of going to bed.
- Raise the height of the head of the bed by a few inches.
Basis for recommendation
- These recommendations for lifestyle interventions to control dyspepsia conform with those made by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) [NICE, 2005]. Limited evidence summarized by NICE found:
- Obesity to be a significant but small risk factor for gastro-oesophageal reflux disease.
- Insufficient evidence that other factors are a significant risk in the development of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease, peptic ulcer disease, or non-ulcer dyspepsia.
- NICE concluded that although there is a lack of evidence for the role of lifestyle factors having a significant effect on the development of conditions resulting in dyspepsia, it is pragmatic to advise people to avoid factors that are commonly known to exacerbate dyspepsia.
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