Diet to prevent acid reflux?

aloranger7708
aloranger7708 Posts: 422 Member
edited November 7 in Food and Nutrition
When I say "diet" I don't mean limiting calories, I mean what foods are good for preventing acid reflux? Or, which foods should I avoid to prevent it? Lately mine has gotten so bad it feels like my throat is burning all the time. Not horribly, but enough to notice.

I googled some stuff online and most of it is linked to heartburn, which I never get. It's just acid reflux. My boyfriend keeps telling me to buy some OTC medicine for it, but I don't want to take pills.

Anyone have ideas?

Replies

  • OnTheGround
    OnTheGround Posts: 78
    My husband had this and it turned out he has a hiatal hernia, you might want to look that up. It's fairly common.

    Anyways, he keeps Tums with him all the time. Avoid meals right before you're going to sit or lay down for a long time. Eating smaller meals more often can help. And the obvious, avoiding fried or fatty foods.
  • melimomTARDIS
    melimomTARDIS Posts: 1,941 Member
    check out my diary, its open. I have GERD, and suffered with daily heartburn for over a year. Suffered painfully.

    Any ways, I eat a very low fat diet diet now, with limited amounts of lean meat/Fat free dairy/eggs. I get most of my calories from carbs like cereal,oatmeal, bread or plain rice.

    I eat just enough fat to stay healthy, but I always suffer when I overdo it on greasy stuff.

    Also, my quantities had to go WAY down, because I would eat too much, and be in serious pain for the rest of the night. So I eat small meals pretty often.

    I gave up coffee (now can have again, if I keep it to 2 small mugs), all spicy foods (now can have mild salsa again), and citrus, and tomatoes for about a year, and slowly re introduced that stuff a bit at a time.

    Its the grease that kills me. You couldnt pay me enough to eat a brat. Or oily meats. Or a hunk of full fat cheddar. NOPE.
  • JenD1066
    JenD1066 Posts: 298 Member
    Avoiding red meat and dairy helps many people. And, to cope with symptoms, try eating raw almonds. It works, although I've never read a good explanation as to why.
  • DanielCathers
    DanielCathers Posts: 53 Member
    check out my diary, its open. I have GERD, and suffered with daily heartburn for over a year. Suffered painfully.

    Any ways, I eat a very low fat diet diet now, with limited amounts of lean meat/Fat free dairy/eggs. I get most of my calories from carbs like cereal,oatmeal, bread or plain rice.

    I eat just enough fat to stay healthy, but I always suffer when I overdo it on greasy stuff.

    Also, my quantities had to go WAY down, because I would eat too much, and be in serious pain for the rest of the night. So I eat small meals pretty often.

    I gave up coffee (now can have again, if I keep it to 2 small mugs), all spicy foods (now can have mild salsa again), and citrus, and tomatoes for about a year, and slowly re introduced that stuff a bit at a time.

    Its the grease that kills me. You couldnt pay me enough to eat a brat. Or oily meats. Or a hunk of full fat cheddar. NOPE.

    Basically the opposite did it for me. Not ever diagnosed with GERD to my knowledge, but with a general problem with acid reflux. I'm doing keto: high fat, low carb. I drink coffee all the time and have no problems. I don't often eat tomatoes because of the carb content though.

    It tended to come up more when I ate a lot of food. With keto, I don't really want to eat nearly that amount of food anymore. Even when I eat more than usual, I don't ever feel bloated after.
  • melimomTARDIS
    melimomTARDIS Posts: 1,941 Member
    Daniel Cathers-Eating less volume is important, for sure.

    I have heard of one other person who switched to a high fat/low carb regimen, ala paleo, with also good results with their heartburn.

    For me, that diet would make me extremely ill. Throwing up stomach acids kinda ill.

    So while not my thing, I have heard it helps others, and I think that success comes down to eating smaller portions, instead of avoiding carbohydrates.
  • mnfrank11
    mnfrank11 Posts: 35 Member
    I have a stomach ulcer and had a REALLY bad case of Reflux for a few years. I cut out the following from my diet for a year and added it slowly back in....
    - tomatoes
    - citrus
    - fried foods (still don't eat them)
    - soda (still don't drink it)
    - chocolate (moderation)
    - coffee (no more than 2 cups a day now)

    I agree with the smaller meals, but don't over consume carbs either. Lean meats are okay and try having carbs that aren't over processed. I eat a lot of scrambled eggs due to being easy to digest but that isn't the same for everyone. I took nexium for years and it helped, but I too didn't really want to take pills. Exercise and drinking water is key to reducing acid. Keep something on your stomach at all times to avoid the build up of stomach acid in your throat.

    Hope you get to feeling better soon! I know it isn't fun, but sometimes things like this lead to someone having better/healthier habits. Best of luck!!!
  • ChrisUK70
    ChrisUK70 Posts: 54 Member
    Hi,

    I have suffered with this for years and have taken loads of Gaviscone.

    For me it all stopped when I quit drinking, I do not get it at all now.

    So if you drink then I suggest stopping for a while and see if it improved.

    Chris
  • morehealthymatt
    morehealthymatt Posts: 208 Member
    Keep away from dairy, caffeine, overly greasy foods.

    Mine usually hit me when I was trying to sleep. Definitely cutting out the types of foods above really helped.

    Using the CPAP really helped to block any acid reflux at night. It's amazing how many other ancillary things the CPAP helped with, other then with the apnea I had.

    oh, and excercise also helps.
  • ABabilonia
    ABabilonia Posts: 622 Member
    I have a stomach ulcer and had a REALLY bad case of Reflux for a few years. I cut out the following from my diet for a year and added it slowly back in....
    - tomatoes
    - citrus
    - fried foods (still don't eat them)
    - soda (still don't drink it)
    - chocolate (moderation)
    - coffee (no more than 2 cups a day now)

    I agree with the smaller meals, but don't over consume carbs either. Lean meats are okay and try having carbs that aren't over processed. I eat a lot of scrambled eggs due to being easy to digest but that isn't the same for everyone. I took nexium for years and it helped, but I too didn't really want to take pills. Exercise and drinking water is key to reducing acid. Keep something on your stomach at all times to avoid the build up of stomach acid in your throat.

    Hope you get to feeling better soon! I know it isn't fun, but sometimes things like this lead to someone having better/healthier habits. Best of luck!!!

    I am basically following this same diet, and I also cut onions and garlic. I am also taking Medium 40mg. According to my Doctor after eating that diet for like three months things should improve.
  • aloranger7708
    aloranger7708 Posts: 422 Member
    Interesting, thank you everyone for your help!

    I drink only one cup of coffee daily, and have decided to cut it out since my acid reflux starts immediately after that. I've noticed it starts after eating canned tomatoes (like in a soup or stew) and happens when I lay down, so I think I might be eating/drinking too late! Also I do not drink alcohol or soda, so that is not an issue.
  • denisegresham1
    denisegresham1 Posts: 47 Member
    no coffee.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    Honestly, before I lost weight I would get heartburn/acid reflux from damn near everything. Didn't really matter what it was. I didn't cut any foods out of my diet and I haven't had even the slightest case of heartburn in 1.5 years. Not sure of the science, but just being healthy has made it disappear.
  • MoeHameed
    MoeHameed Posts: 260 Member
    Hornsby wrote: »
    Honestly, before I lost weight I would get heartburn/acid reflux from damn near everything. Didn't really matter what it was. I didn't cut any foods out of my diet and I haven't had even the slightest case of heartburn in 1.5 years. Not sure of the science, but just being healthy has made it disappear.
    Same here. Once I started eating healthy foods and avoided fried stuff, chips, sodas and most processed foods I rarely get heartburn. Even with citrus fruits or some pre workouts.
  • bokaba
    bokaba Posts: 171 Member
    I have acid reflux as well. It appears to be very common and many people that have it are likely not diagnosed. You should stay away from grease, spicy foods, citrus, dairy, and foods with high acid content.
  • Lasmartchika
    Lasmartchika Posts: 3,440 Member
    Doctor told my bf to stay away from fried foods, dairy, caffeine, citrus/acidic food, and spicy food. Also, the doctor prescribed him medication. He's feeling better now that he's following doctor's orders. So if you don't feel better after trying our suggestions, I really think you should go see your doctor to get checked out properly.
  • RekindledRose
    RekindledRose Posts: 523 Member
    Low carb works well for a lot of people. It took about a month to see the results for most.
  • NoelFigart1
    NoelFigart1 Posts: 1,276 Member
    edited October 2014
    aloranger7708 wrote: »
    When I say "diet" I don't mean limiting calories, I mean what foods are good for preventing acid reflux? Or, which foods should I avoid to prevent it? Lately mine has gotten so bad it feels like my throat is burning all the time. Not horribly, but enough to notice.

    I googled some stuff online and most of it is linked to heartburn, which I never get. It's just acid reflux. My boyfriend keeps telling me to buy some OTC medicine for it, but I don't want to take pills.

    Anyone have ideas?

    Yes, talk to a doctor. Really no kidding. Yes, you will be given something like omeprazole. This works over a period of time.

    That said, I know this is weird and it goes utterly against common wisdom, but I find that if I mostly avoid grains, and center my diet around meat and fresh produce, I don't have much of a problem with reflux, even if I have alcohol. I know "they" say fat is teh ebbil for reflux, but I do not find it so for myself. You may find another approach is different for you.

    Oh yeah, and I drink a metric buttload of coffee, which you are not supposed to do.

  • nicsflyingcircus
    nicsflyingcircus Posts: 2,899 Member
    Losing weight has done it for me. For years now been taking 300mg ranitidine(zantac). Cut it to 150mg at bedtime about 4 months ago, now have not taken any the past 5 nights(I ran out so I risked it, yay). I eat keto, but only switched to it the past couple weeks. For me, I think it is mostly the 91lb loss.
  • PokeyBug
    PokeyBug Posts: 482 Member
    edited October 2014
    My experience was similar to Daniel's. I'm not exactly doing a keto diet, but I AM eating fewer carbs and more proteins and fats. I try to get around 30% carbs, 50% fat, 20% protein, and that has pretty much cured my acid reflux. I've stopped having to take Famatodine.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
    Mohamed18492 wrote: »
    Hornsby wrote: »
    Honestly, before I lost weight I would get heartburn/acid reflux from damn near everything. Didn't really matter what it was. I didn't cut any foods out of my diet and I haven't had even the slightest case of heartburn in 1.5 years. Not sure of the science, but just being healthy has made it disappear.
    Same here. Once I started eating healthy foods and avoided fried stuff, chips, sodas and most processed foods I rarely get heartburn. Even with citrus fruits or some pre workouts.

    Yea. I didn't cut any of that stuff out though.
  • MJKHutch
    MJKHutch Posts: 1 Member
    Eat half an apple after each meal to help prevent onset of reflux and to alkalinize stomach acids. Adjust the amount of apple eaten according to how you respond. Also eat an apple as a midafternoon snack.
  • Ideabaker
    Ideabaker Posts: 531 Member
    Bump!
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 18,341 Member
    I have this, really badly. It got so bad that I ended up with a nasty, persistent wracking cough that stumped the doctors because I didn't appear to have any respiratory issues and nothing helped. Turned out it was just irritation from the reflux!

    I find that avoiding fatty foods and acidic foods helps. So low fat, and avoiding tomatoes, citrus, spicy foods... It also gets worse if I have been drinking the night before.

    I also recommend seeing a doctor for a good daily acid reduction pill, I take Nexium, and also a referral for a gastroscapy. It might be a hiatal hernia or the like, which can be fixed.

  • DaniiMarie13
    DaniiMarie13 Posts: 19 Member
    I've had reflux for 11 years now but it has eased dramatically since losing weight and easing up on foods listed above, cutting out milk was a big helper too but I am also lactose intolerant.

    A tip, since you said you get it when laying down, try to sleep slightly elevated to stop acid coming up the throat. Also laying on your left side helps with stomach aches and acid reflux, definitely helps me.
  • singer201
    singer201 Posts: 563 Member
    I had acid reflux/heartburn so bad I was taking both omeprezole and ranitidine. Once I started losing weight with a Primal/paleo eating plan, limiting carbs to 100g/day, and eliminating wheat, it went away completely (gone for 3 years). Now, it only bothers me slightly if I eat too many carbs or wheat, so I know it wasn't just the weight loss that was the answer. Eliminating the foods that are traditionally recommended to avoid didn't help me at all, and I eat them with no problems. Acid reduction pills are not a benign solution.
  • habit365
    habit365 Posts: 174
    A lot of my triggers have been mentioned already. Citrus, cooked tomatoes, dairy, gluten, fried foods, alcohol, and soda may trigger flare-ups (some more consistently, some mostly when I'm already having trouble or if I have too much at once). Fat does not bother me. Losing weight helps me.
  • evileen99
    evileen99 Posts: 1,564 Member
    Heartburn *IS* acid reflux.
  • aloranger7708
    aloranger7708 Posts: 422 Member
    evileen99 wrote: »
    Heartburn *IS* acid reflux.

    Really? I have had heartburn only a few times but acid reflux seems completely different. Whenever I get my reflux my chest doesn't have that pain of heartburn. So I don't know.
    singer201 wrote: »
    I had acid reflux/heartburn so bad I was taking both omeprezole and ranitidine. Once I started losing weight with a Primal/paleo eating plan, limiting carbs to 100g/day, and eliminating wheat, it went away completely (gone for 3 years). Now, it only bothers me slightly if I eat too many carbs or wheat, so I know it wasn't just the weight loss that was the answer. Eliminating the foods that are traditionally recommended to avoid didn't help me at all, and I eat them with no problems. Acid reduction pills are not a benign solution.

    Interesting. Wheat/bread also seems to be the problem for me. The reflux starts mainly after I eat bread, and it's funny because most people said fried foods but I hardly eat anything fried but when I do it doesn't bother me.
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