View Full Version : Acid Reflux
I thought the heartburn would go away when I had my baby, but now that my daughter is two, I'm realizing it's acid reflux. As always with chronic health conditions, I'd rather treat them with a change in diet than medication.
Anybody have any experience/resources/advice to share?
A friend of mine had GERD that started with pregnancy. Her children are teenagers. She recently went on a grain-free diet, and among other problems, it has cleared up.
try2bfrugal
9-13-13, 1:41am
I thought the heartburn would go away when I had my baby, but now that my daughter is two, I'm realizing it's acid reflux. As always with chronic health conditions, I'd rather treat them with a change in diet than medication.
Anybody have any experience/resources/advice to share?
What works for our family is limiting spicy foods, coffee, meat and grains, and eating more fruits and vegetables.
There seems to be something in cabbage and broccoli that neutralizes stomach acid. Bananas and potatoes work well, too.
You can buy pH paper on Amazon and see if you urine pH is too acid. The standard U.S. diet is pretty acid.
I think carbs can really make it happen/worsen it. I used to be on a GERD forum and this guy was on it and spoke of his theories. The name of his book is "Heartburn Cured: the Low Carb Miracle". I haven't read it, but I know that I have lots more GERD symptoms, the more carbs I eat.
The supplement Slippery Elm can sometimes help.
Don't lay down within 4 hours of eating, try to avoid caffeine and chocolate, and raise the head of your bed with those special lifters.
Sometimes a small hiatal hernia can cause these symptoms.
Look for the book on reflux by Jorge Rodriguez. It has 10 or 12 minor lifestyle changes that are very helpful.
Eat less at each meal.
Only eat when you are really hungry.
Don't fill your stomach with too much at any time, and that includes liquid. Drink less liquid with meals.
Watch out for foods that create gas in your stomach. For me this means I have to cook cabbage-family vegetables longer than I used to, and I've also learned that I have minor lactose intolerance that does this. When I eat these foods, my stomach fills with gas almost immediately, putting pressure on that valve which is already rather weak, causing reflux.
Don't eat anything after dinner, and don't drink a lot of liquid within a couple of hours before going to bed.
Tussiemussies
9-13-13, 7:41am
I have found that drinking coffee, even decaffinated and chocolate along with eating too much at bedtime will cause it. What I saw I think on the Dr. Oz show once, is to lay on your left side. I don't get it very severe so this helps. Good luck with this...Christine
PS I will look in my reference book "Prescriptions For Nutritional Healing" and see if there are any other remedies.
Going gluten free completely solved my reflux, along with a bunch of other health issues.
My DH is going through a bad bout of GERD as we speak (he has Barrett's), and I was looking up some relief for him in addition to the PPI he's on. I read that natural apple cider vinegar might help. That seems to be a panacea these days, so I don't know if it's just hype--anyone else know if it works?
My DH is going through a bad bout of GERD as we speak (he has Barrett's), and I was looking up some relief for him in addition to the PPI he's on. I read that natural apple cider vinegar might help. That seems to be a panacea these days, so I don't know if it's just hype--anyone else know if it works?
I don't know if it helps with GERD, but drinking some with meals definitely helped with my gastroparesis-type symptoms. BUT.........I have IBS too, and when that vinegar hits the lower colon............LOOK OUT!! :0!
I only get heartburn when I eat wheat.
A friend had very good results with Garden of Life's Acid Defense. She had to sleep sitting up until she tried the Acid Defense.
I do think a Tbls of vinegar before a meal would help. It also helps my gall bladder and kidney stones.
I would never swallow straight vinegar as it is really caustic. Research has shown that the digestive enzyme pepsin can lodge in esophageal tissue and be reactivated by foods and beverages with a pH under 4 or 5 (search for articles by Jamie Koufmann). pH is a log scale, and that something with a pH of 3 is 10X as acidic as something with a pH as 4. I can barely tolerage lowfat vinaigrette salad dressings because without the usual oil there isn't enough to dilute the vinegar.
I mix the vinegar with v-8 juice to disguise the taste and water because the v-8 is too thick for my taste. I'd have to dilute at least a couple ounces of liquid per Tbls of vinegar
Thanks, All, for your ideas. I'm going to try them out!
I wouldn't drink it straight either. It can be very caustic to the esophagus. Like I said, it would give me horrible diarrhea when it got to my lower GI tract.
One interesting thing for me.........I have problems with food not wanting to leave my stomach. I was perfectly fine all summer long, and thought maybe it was because we hadn't gone to the Chinese buffet place every Saturday for a long time. But then it hit me.........we had soooo many cucumbers all summer, and I constantly made Danish cucumber salad (cucs/onions/salt/vinegar. I would eat them every day with my meals. I believe it was the small amount of vinegar that I would ingest that really helped the food to get digested.
I realize that my gastroparesis-type symptoms might be different from reflux........but when things don't move out of the stomach, that can really contribute to reflux.
Also EJ.........sometimes you can get reflux from not having enough hydrochloric acid in your stomach.
I have read alot that a concoction of cayenne pepper can really help with reflux. Seems counter-intuitive, but google it and see if that might help you too.
cindycindy
9-15-13, 2:29pm
I had acid reflux and LPR (acid in the larnyx - feels like a lump in your throat). In addition to the low acid diet, the following may help: chewable HGL before a meal, then chewable papaya enzyme after a meal. Slippery elm capsules before bed (they inhibit digestion of nutrients so you don't want to have them before/after food). I keep the head of my bed high by putting 6 inch high wood beams under the head board legs. Also, try to stand up after eating (but not alot of exertion). I used to slouch on the couch after dinner, and even though I wasn't technically lying down, it made matters worse. Don't eat large meals. Hope this helps.
I used to never travel without rolaids, tums, etc. Always had heart burn, acid reflux. When I cut out the excess fat out of my diet it went away almost over night. Good luck, it is such a terrible feeling.
For many people, reflux never goes away, its only managed. Here is a list of generally well tolerated foods for people with reflux
You should also be sleeping with your head raised
I am doing much better. My chest pain now only follows exertion like hiking uphill and not eating or drinking trigger foods and beverages.
Never had the chest pain during/after exercise until this year, only shortness of breath. Maybe it's a vax injury?
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