Acid reflex?

[SeekerOfLife]

My pharmacist said the three main triggers for acid reflux are stress, caffeine, and chocolate.

I can not eat anything now, without it killing me, thanks to my pancreas problems, or what`s left of it.. I wish you luck in finding something that doesn`t trigger an episode for you.

[The_little_didgee]

I have GERD and can eat just about everything. The only foods I avoid are fast food, soda pop, chocolate, alcohol, grapefruit, syrup, and anything that is excessively sweet. Sometimes foods that cause a lot of intestinal gas can trigger it such as beans. The gas seems to press on my stomach and push its contents up my esophagus.

When I have an attack I usually drink water. It seems to dilute the acid and ease the discomfort. I eat bland foods and drink milk when it is really bad. Eating a small amount of food at a time helps a lot too.

[dillpickle1983]

I take pantoprazole for my GERD. I am able to eat just about anything without a mjor problem. Before going on the med, I was unable to eat without having problems.

[BlueGreenTabbyCat]

I've been told to steer clear of dairy and highly acidic foods such as fruit, fruit juice, vinegar-based dressings or sauces and tomato.

I have been told the best thing is little and often, with water, with starches making up parts of each meal because this helps line my stomach and neutralise some of the acid but that it will still happen. And that laying flat on my back in bed also causes problems so sleep propped up if possible (which is supposed to also be helpful for reducing puffiness if it's any benefit at all for those of us vain enough to care...)

But the only thing I've found to help is to take medication to reduce the acid my stomach creates which I can get on prescription here (Omeprazole or something like this). Does slow down my digestion and can create havoc for IBS sufferers like myself but it's a toss up between which I'd rather live with.

[amandalouise]

Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease Diet : GiCare.com

[(JD)]

Not food suggestions this time, but enzymes!
MOST acid reflux is due to a LACK of stomach acid believe or not... the good kind. Lack of all the enzymes one needs to prevent reflux. There are 3 that your body isn't making enough of, perhaps due to some med you take, or foods you eat, yes.

proteases (which break down proteins), lipases (which break down fats), and carbohydrases (such as amylase, which break down carbohydrates)

Buy them at a health food store... and ask for help in the strength and balance of them...I bought the vegetarian ones as I didn't need any extra chemicals to react!

There's a quick test to see if your reflux is from a lack.... though you'll think you're going to die for 30 seconds but then voila! you'll feel great.... take a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar. If you are lacking the enzymes, it will balance your stomach acid immediately (I always had to count to 30 to be sure I would live, because you feel like you won't lolol for 30 seconds anyway)...

My MD tried all sorts of homeopathic stuff on me... even DGL which was a waste of my time and money (deglycerized licorice?)

I can't eat but healthy raw foods 6 hours before bed. I must sit up after taking any medicine for at least 10 minutes.... if you sleep on your back, propped up or on your left side, you will have less issues while you figure out what is causing this and what your solution is...

(PS I don't eat fried foods, high fat foods, anything carbonated, if I do have coffee at night it's very weak and more psychological than coffee )

Try over the counter antacids for quick help on the road... but try them all, they are different. The colored ones, the slick coated ones do me NO good. Tums in any form doesn't do a thing for anyone in my whole family, but rolaids does. Go figure. The plain, white chalky ones (lol) generic from CVS or Walgreens do fine to carry in my purse in case of a stress chemical dump ... Pepto might help you... it's pink in any brand.

I drink 3 to 4 cups of ginger green tea a day. It helps a ton with my heartburn. Ginger in general is very helpful for stomach/digestive issues.

[lizardlady]

Originally Posted by Le.Monsieur.S

Acid reflex?

When I was first diagnosed I was told to stay away from acidic food, spicy food, peppermint, onions, garlic, chocolate, coffee and tea.

I've learned through trial and error what I can eat and what I should avoid. I've found it also depends on my stress and fatigue levels. If I'm tired/stressed ANYTHING can trigger a problem. On those days I lean toward very mild food like oatmeal and plain rice. You might need to use trial and error to find out what you can and can't eat.

Some things you can do beside your diet are to not sleep flat in bed. I have a mountain of pillows supporting my upper body at night. Some folks use something that elevates the head of the bed. I found I kept sliding out of the foot of the bed when I did that!

Avoid clothes that are tight around your waist.

Eat small meals.

Don't let yourself go a long time between meals.

[Marla500]

Lots of good suggestions here. I also prop my upper body up with pillows at night and it helps a lot, I was surprised how much at first. I can't get by with a little coffee in the morning but I did give up drinking tea all day long and that helped. For the most part I have also given up spaghetti and fried foods and citrus, also spicy foods and that was the hardest, and bell peppers.