Gastroesophageal Reflux Disorder, also known as GERD or acid reflux, is a disorder is which contents from your stomach and intestines enter your esophagus. The acid from the stomach migrates upwards past your lower esophagus, causing a burning pain and, at times, actual erosion of the tissue of the esophagus. Approximately 25 to 35% of Americans are affected acid reflux.  It is uncomfortable and quite painful in some cases.   The discomfort can be assessed on a spectrum from just mild burning to a severe burning chest pain, mimicking a heart attack. The pain of acid reflux is brought on by the gastric fluid, which has a very low acidic pH. It migrates up the esophagus and finds its way into an environment where it doesn’t belong and is not intended to be, such as your esophagus. The migration of gastric fluid that causes acid reflux can be caused by a loose lower esophageal sphincter (LES). It can also be due to gravity, which can take effect if you lie down right after a meal. Acid reflux can also be caused by overeating and applying too much pressure to the LES, forcing the stomach contents back past the sphincter. Other situations that may cause acid reflux are smoking, obesity, high intake of sodium, low intake of dietary fiber, limited physical exercise, and taking certain medications. There are multiple underlying conditions that can cause or be caused by acid reflux. Other conditions that can lead to acid reflux are pregnancy and a hiatal hernia, which is where a hole in the diaphragm allows the upper portion of the stomach to enter the chest cavity.  Acid reflux can cause other conditions, such as a condition called Barrett’s Esophagus. Ask your doctor if you think your acid reflux has an underlying conditional cause or if you think it is causing more serious problems.
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One-sentence summary -- Understand acid reflux. Recognize the causes. Be aware of underlying conditions.


Even though they're left to ferment for a long time, the apples you choose can significantly shape the flavor of your finished vinegar. Choose the best quality apples available to you in order to get the best apple cider vinegar at the end.  For a more complex and deep vinegar at the end, try using a combination of different apples. Use two sweet apples, such as Golden Delicious or Gala, with one sharp tasting apple, such as McIntosh or Liberty, for a slightly sharper vinegar at the end.  Instead of using whole apples, save scraps from apples used in other dishes to make your apple cider vinegar. One whole apple is roughly equivalent to the scraps of two apples. Keep the peel, core and other scraps in your freezer until you’re ready to use them to make vinegar. It's always a good idea to wash your fruit and vegetables before eating them, and the same is true when cooking or fermenting them. Give your apples a thorough rinse and scrub with cold water to clean away anything you don't want in your vinegar.  You can use any number of apples you want to make apple cider vinegar. The more you use, the more vinegar you’ll get! If you’re just starting out making your own apple cider vinegar, try using 3 apples for your first batch. This will give you a good amount of vinegar but won’t put too much at risk if something goes wrong.  If you're using apple scraps, make sure to wash the whole apples before separating the scraps from the rest of the apples.
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One-sentence summary -- Choose quality apples. Wash your apples in cold water.


When selecting a stem, you should look for young, green growth, as they have a better chance for taking roots when planted. Select a piece of stem with a few leaves on it. You want to be sure you're able to identify the nodes, which are places where a leaf meets the stem. You'll want to have enough length on the stem to plant it deeply within the soil so that it can form roots. It should have a few sets of leaves located along the stem. Once you've measured the stem, cut just below a node. The node will look like a knob in the stem where it connects to the rest of the plant. Make sure the node is still on the cutting.  Avoid handling the cutting by its stem or node by gently holding onto one of the lower leaves. You can sterilize scissors by wiping them with rubbing alcohol. This is to prevent contamination of the cells located at the node. While the new plant needs leaves to provide energy through photosynthesis, too many leaves will compete with the plant's efforts to send out new roots. Lower leaves will touch the soil and likely cause the cutting to rot, so they can be removed. By doing so, you can prevent them from wilting while you work. This is especially important for cuttings taken outside, because the sun can cause them to lose water quickly when removed from their plant.
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One-sentence summary -- Select a healthy stem with new growth. Measure the stem out to 5 to 10 centimetres (2.0 to 3.9 in) long. Cut below a node with a sharp pair of sterilized scissors. Remove the lower leaves of the plant, leaving 1 or 2 pairs at the top. Gather your cuttings in a plastic bag containing a few drops of water.


Don't assume that you've reached a pinnacle of cleverness. There is no such thing. You'll need to constantly be learning, and a good way to do that is to study people who you or others find to be clever.  Ask yourself what makes them seem clever: do they have a pithy comment about everything? Are they able to come up with facts and figures on the spot? Do they present creative solutions? Pick out some of the biggest traits of the clever people you know or observe and incorporate them into your own work and life. A lot of people who are considered to be clever, are good at keeping abreast of the latest developments in the world. They pay attention to what's happening and can talk knowledgeably (or appear to talk knowledgeably) about news and current affairs. try to get multiple points of view, so you aren't just getting information from one source. For example: instead of only getting news from Fox news, check out other news stations, as well. Research the information, statistics, and "facts" that each news station (on the internet, on the radio, on the t.v., in print) presents. This will give a better, more balanced view, and help you to discuss the news in a more knowledgeable way. Words and the way they act together can make you sound more clever, because words are so important to communication. Wordplay includes things like puns, cryptograms, and simply using language in a way that opens up sensory details that other people might not have noticed.  Practice describing things in unusual ways, and focus on the aspects that people might normally ignore. For example: describing fire as like silk, or coming up with a way to describe the sound of the waves on the shore. Slip the occasional alliteration or pun into your words. Practice noticing them in other people's speech and pointing them out. . One way to seem clever is to practice memorizing facts and information (like the "pocket facts"), so that you're able to recall them with ease. Fortunately there are techniques you can learn to make fact recall easier.  Pay attention to information the first time around. Make sure that you're getting the right information. You never actually lose information (except in cases of illness or injury), so you want to make sure that the information you're putting in is actually correct. Write things down several times. Writing down facts or information you want to remember helps you to recall it more easily and makes it stick in your brain, in a manner of speaking. The more you practice writing something down, the easier it will be to remember. Choose carefully. Sherlock Holmes once said that his mind was like an attic. Instead of storing everything you come across, right or wrong, pick the facts and information that interest you and will serve you well. Try to put your hand up in class.
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One-sentence summary --
Study clever people. Keep up-to-date on world events. Embark on wordplay. Remember information