It is also often associated with a sour and bitter taste, which is primarily your stomach acid reaching your mouth. For decades, people have been relying on antacids in order to ease the pain that heartburn causes. Although this is effective, it is only temporary and you will still experience heartburn. The burning sensation will travel from your diaphragm to your throat and you will taste something sour and bitter on your mouth and feel as if food is reentering your mouth. You feel like vomiting and when you do gag, no food will come out. Around 20 percent of adults experience a mild case of heartburn. This can cause scarring in your esophagus, which will make it difficult for you to swallow food or even liquids. Chronic heartburn can also lead to Barrett s esophagus, which is a condition where cells that resemble those of the stomach lining will start to develop. This kind of damage to the esophagus can increase your risk in developing cancer of the esophagus, which is very hard to detect and very hard to treat. Endoscopy will help the doctor see if there is any evidence of esophageal inflammation and biopsies may be taken if necessary through this method. Treating heartburn will depend on the underlying cause. Antacids may be given to treat GERD and gastritis and antibiotics may be given if H. pylori are present or diagnosed. It irritates that esophagus and causes a burning sensation that starts on the diaphragm and make its way up just behind the breastbone. In most cases, it is also accompanied by a bitter and sour taste, which is mainly the stomach acid making its way in to your mouth. So, what causes stomach acid to flow up to the esophagus? Acidic beverages, such as orange juice and sodas as well as alcohol and coffee are known to cause heartburn. You really don t have to give up drinking these things but you have to limit it or control it. You should also drink more water in order to neutralize stomach acid. You also need to remember that some exercise routines can cause heartburn.