Add the Right Kind of Food to Your Acid Reflux Disease Diet

Acid reflux can happen to just about anyone. The best way to prevent (if you don’t have it yet) is watching what you eat. Knowing what to put on your plate is important. An effective acid reflux disease diet may help you either to avoid it, or help ease your pain. Eating the right food, and avoiding others that cause acid reflux like milk, coffee and spicy food is one of the ways that may help your condition, or prevent it.

A healthy and effective acid reflux disease diet may be summed in one word: Moderation. Try eating small, frequent meals. Small amounts of food would exert less workload on the stomach. This means that your stomach would not need to produce a lot of gastric acid to digest the food you’ve eaten. Medically known as Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD), acid reflux is caused by too much acid in your stomach. This acid eats away at the stomach lining and affects the muscles in the stomach and the esophagus.

Start by including foods that are high in complex carbohydrates in your acid reflux disease diet. Rice (brown or white), bread (try either multi-grain or white), corn bread and cereal, and pasta (but avoid tomato-based sauces) are great for your diet. They are easy on your belly and will even out the acid level in your stomach. But this means giving up your favorite high-fat fastfood. Fatty foods stay in the stomach longer and require more acid to break down. You really don’t need that in your belly.

Fruit and vegetables are good additions to your acid reflux disease diet. Apples and bananas are great; but exercise care when adding on peaches, blueberries, grapes or cranberries. Vegetables like potatoes, broccoli, cabbage, carrots and peas will make you acid reflux disease diet perfect. But take it easy on the onions, leeks, and garlic. These are not advised for your regular consumption. You may sneak them in every now and then, but not by much. Don’t even think about spicy food.

Meat and dairy products are essential for a nutritious and balanced meal. But when you’re on an acid reflux disease diet, you’ll have to start choosing the right kinds to eat. Fish is great steamed, but not fried. Beef or pork must be lean, with none, or very little fat. You may also have chicken (without the skin) on your acid reflux disease diet. Egg whites are okay, as well. For dairy products, go for feta cheese, fat-free cream cheese, as well as soy cheese. But milk is not advisable as it may only aggravate your acid reflux and plunge you through a severely painful heartburn.

As for beverages and drinks, only mineral water is recommended. Soda, alcohol-based drinks, beer, wine, and even apple cider is a no-no, when you’re on an acid reflux disease diet. You might not know it but beverages stimulate acid reflux. Even coffee and milk should be avoided as they can easily aggravate your reflux, and get your stomach pumping out more acid than your stomach can handle.

Acid reflux is a disease that can stay with you for the rest of your life. Keep it in check with a healthy acid reflux diet. Stay away from foods that can do you more damage; don’t overeat, or you just might experience why.