Acid problems are pretty awful. Not only do you feel conscious of everything you eat but it can sometimes be difficult to move around. For me this can affect relationships and work life, does this sound familiar. SO enough of the self pittying- What helps acid reflux!!!!- for me the following has helped my mini battle:
- Dont sit scrunched up for too long- moving your back up and down and gently swaying side to side- short walks.
- Breathing glently in through the nose and out through the mouth keeps me relaxed and calm if it gets bad.
- Bananas!! with natural antacids bananas help to prepare you for a meal, google it!
- Thinking happy thoughts, when i was having a bad day of reflux, i sat quietly and pretended i'd won the lottery i called all my friends (in my day dream of course) to tell them was going to change their lives by giving them some cash. it was a great feeling. having a happy state of mind is imperitive to speed any recovery!!!
i hope this helps at least one person, i will add more here later as i discover new things.:p
Having suffered with 'acid' for many years, a few years ago I came across a homeopath/naturopath who told me to eat a diet of 70% alkaline foods and 30% acid. Alkaline foods are basically veg (including potatoes) and acid foods are everything else - meat, fish, nuts, bread etc. Every now and then, when I get stressed, which I find is the biggest factor of acid production, I cook myself a plate of potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower and a few other veg and it does the trick every time. I also eat pumpkin and sunflower seeds which are very alkaline. Drinking lots of water helps and cutting out tea and coffee is also good. I did also take some digestive enzymes (bio care and Nutri do some good ones) and take these straight after a meal if I've eaten something too acidic. This is not intended to be taken always, just as and when I'm a bit naughty. I've recently heard about Coral Calcium which naturally alkalines the body so I've bought some that you drop into water and drink that throughout the day - there are loads of rave reviews about this on various sites. But the main thing I would say that controls acid production is stress - I have reiki regularly (as well as giving it to myself), reflexology, meditation (when I remember) and yoga (also when I remember) If you calm your mind, everything else calms down. Hope this helps and good luck fellow acid sufferers!
This may also help
Hi everyone,
If you and your diet are prone to giving you acidic flux, especially enought to induce heartburn regularly..then try this .as it will help:
When you are eating large meals..esp lunch or dinner..mix a tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar with a glass of water ..and sip it through out your meal..and notice the difference this makes to you..
Stay well !
with warm wishes
Vathani
I would seriously recommend anyone who suffers with acid reflux to go to the doctors and get physically checked out. There are two conditions it could be, both of which are curable:
One is an infection with H.pylori, which is treatable with antibiotics. If left untreated this infection will cause stomach ulcers, and you really don't want one of those! This condition used to kill thousands of people in the past, until one really insane doctor decided to infect himself with H. pylori to find out whether it caused hyperacidity, reflux and gastic ulcers. Result: he suffered all these symptoms, and cured himself with antibiotics. I know it sounds strange but it's really true. Antibiotics are now the treatment of first resort and the incidence of perforated ulcers has dropped by about 80%.
The other is a hiatus hernia, which is a condition where the sphincter controlling the opening of the stomach is weakened and the stomach itself pops up through the opening. I have this condition, and I control it with tablets. Severe cases may require surgery, though this is usually done by keyhole means these days.
Don't suffer and try things. Do get checked out properly - by your GP and ask for a referral to a specialist. I promise you it's worth it!
I searched for posts on cider vinegar and heartburn because its something I have seen recommended before despite it being totally counter-intuitive - and I found this very old thread. It shows how much I have changed that I would prefer to give the cider vinegar a go and stay away from the conventional treatments recommended above. It isn't that the treatments above don't work.....they do. Its just that I wonder what unexpected damage may be done....especially by the antibiotics. I currently have a problem with heartburn (due to a hiatus hernia which I have had for some time) and I reckon the cider vinegar option is worth trying out.
[USER=28489]@CarolineN[/USER] once sent me some information on the acid/alkali diet.
It's surprising how some foods you consider acidic are actually alkali forming in the stomach, so help to counteract acidity in the body.