New or severe chest pain can be a heart emergency. Other alarm symptoms—including trouble swallowing, bleeding, persistent vomiting, or unexplained weight loss—need prompt medical evaluation.
Call 911 for possible heart-attack symptoms
Do not use antacids or a food checker to decide whether chest pain is reflux. Call 911 for new or severe pressure, squeezing, fullness, or pain—especially with shortness of breath, sweating, nausea, lightheadedness, or discomfort spreading to the arms, back, neck, jaw, or stomach.
Arrange prompt medical evaluation
Contact a qualified clinician promptly if you have any alarm symptom.
- Trouble swallowing or pain with swallowing
- Vomiting blood or material that looks like coffee grounds
- Blood in stool or black, tarry stool
- Persistent vomiting or loss of appetite
- Unexplained weight loss
Make a routine appointment when symptoms persist
Talk with a clinician when lifestyle steps and correctly used OTC treatments do not help, symptoms happen frequently or most days, or you need OTC heartburn medicine regularly. A clinician can assess other causes and advise on treatment duration and safety.
Do not start, stop, or change prescription medicine—or begin a restrictive diet—based only on this website.
Sources behind this guide
We link to the health organizations and clinical guidance used for the claims above. External links open the original source.
01American Heart Association: Heart attack warning signs↗02NIDDK: GERD symptoms and reasons to seek care↗03FDA: OTC heartburn treatment↗Sources reviewed September 22, 2026. GERDMenu provides general education, not diagnosis or individualized medical advice.