GERD Diets

GERD stands for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease and is more commonly referred to as heartburn. A lot of people experience the occasional heartburn. These occasional sufferers simply take an antacid and they are fine. It's the people who suffer from heartburn on a regular basis that usually search for other ways to control it, including trying gerd diets. In this article I will talk about some acid reflux disease basics. I'll also outline some of the things you can do to minimize your heartburn, including the food you should not eat if you thinking of trying a reflux diet.

What is GERD?

Acid reflux is basically stomach acid making its way into your esophagus. Your esophagus is the tube that allows your food to travel from your mouth to your stomach. When you eat and swallow food, it travels down the esophagus to your stomach. It accesses the stomach through a valve or muscle at the bottom of the esophagus. This valve opens to allow the food to drop into the stomach, and then closes again immediately. What happens when someone is experiencing heartburn is that the valve does not close quickly or tightly enough after the food passes through it. Then stomach acid manages to get into the esophagus, causing the burning sensation you feel during heartburn. Some acid can also end up in your breathing tube. This can cause shortness of breath, hoarseness of voice, or a nagging cough.

GERD symptoms are common during pregnancy. Up to 80% of women who are pregnant tend to experience some acid reflux symtoms during their pregnancy. These symptoms usually go away after the baby is born. If a persons GERD is mild in can cause slight inflammation of the lower esophagus. If the acid reflux is stronger, it can cause some more serious problems. These may be esophageal bleeding, breathing problems, ulcers, tooth decay, and if it is let go too long a person can even contract cancer in the esophagus.

Acid Reflux Causes

When you swallow your food, it travels down your esophagus to your stomach. A valve or muscle at the base of your esophagus opens and lets the food enter the stomach. When a person has acid reflux, this muscle malfunctions and doesn't seal properly after letting the food into the stomach. Some stomach acids are able to trickle into the esophagus. Some people experience acid reflux disease symptoms even if their valve is working fine. If you lean too far forward to early after eating you can get a mild case of heartburn. Other factors that may contribute to experiencing heartburn is overeating, smoking, alcohol consumption, and certain foods, which I'll talk about later in the article. Pregnant women can get acid reflux symptoms. When you're pregnant, your hormones can play havoc with your bodies systems. Sometimes they slow a womans digestive system, which may affect the esophagus/stomach valve. Sometimes as the baby grows, a womans uterus can push against her stomach a push some stomach acid into the esophagus. Usually all of these issues go away after giving birth.

Symptoms of GERD

The two most common symtoms of acid reflux are a burning sensation in your chest area and/or a bitter taste of bile in your mouth. Be aware that some people can experience GERD and not have heartburn. If you think you're one of these people, look for other signs that you may have GERD. Is your voice always hoarse? Do you experience chest pain often? Do you have a cough that just won't go away? Maybe to you it always feels like there is something stuck in your throat, even when there isn't. Acid reflux symptoms can feel like a burning, a squeezing feeling, a heaviness in your chest, a tightness, a pressure, or just a dull ache. Do not just assume that if you get any of these feelings that you have gastroesophageal reflux. Make sure that you get any chest pains checked out by your doctor right away to rule out any heart problems you may be experiencing.  A lot of people get heartburn at night when they go to bed. Another common time to experience symptoms of acid reflux is right after you eat.

Treating GERD

Treating your acid reflux can take many forms. Taking an antacid like Gaviscon helps a lot of sufferers. Antacids work by neutralizing the acid in your stomach to relieve your heartburn. For most people antacids to the job. People who only experience heartburn occassionally should be the ones relying on antacids. Anyone who has already been diagnosed with a chronic case of GERD should look to other treatments. Another medication you can try if antacids aren't working is an H2 blocker. H2 blockers reduce the stomach acid quantity in hopes that this will minimize the chances that acid can get into the esophagus. They come in different strengths. They can be bought without a prescription, but the stronger ones require a prescription. H2 blockers can be a good option for people who are experiencing heartburn more than just every once in a while.

The next step if neither of these are working are proton pump inhibitors. These are only available through a prescription. They also reduce the amount of acid in the stomach, but are stronger than H2 blockers. You should only look at these as a choice if you have sever GERD symptoms and if your esophagus is already inflamed. These will help with the inflammation and minimize further damage. Don't take any acid reflux medication for longer than a couple of weeks. If your symptoms haven't disappeared by then, be sure and see your doctor. 

Lifestyle Changes for People with GERD

Changing your habits and lifestyle are the simplest things you can do, and sometimes the most effective. If you're a smoker you should try and quit, or at the very least, cut back. It has been shown that nicotine can weaken the muscle at the base of the esophagus that controls food entry into the stomach. Chewing gum or chewy candy can also lead to heartburn. This happens because you swallow a lot of air when chewing gum or candy. When you swallow more air you burp more, and frequent belching can aid in causing acid reflux. If you usually snack late at night, try to eat earlier. Also try not to go to sleep immediately after eating. Tight clothing can also being on a bout of heartburn. Wear loose clothing, especially around your waist. After eating, don't bend forward too far or too suddenly. This can sometimes cause your stomach to push on your esophageal muscle and force stomach acid through it. Try not to overeat. Instead concentrate on eating smaller meals more often. Overweight people tend to experience heartburn more than people who are not overweight. Do your best to lose a few pounds. If you are one of those people that get heartburn at night, elevate your head a few inches when you sleep. Don't just use more pillows, that will just hurt your neck. You need to elevate the whole bed to make a difference. 

Acid Reflux Diets

Changing the way you eat is definitely one of the better things you can do to prevent getting heartburn in the first place. The list of foods below have been found to irritate acid reflux symptoms and make them worse. It's not like you have to go on a diet for acid reflux. Just do your best to minimize or avoid the foods on the list.

• citrus fruits
• deep fried foods
• peppermint
• full fat milk
• citrus juices
• creamed soups
• chocolate
• coffee or tea
• soft drinks
• spicy foods

GERD Surgery

If all other attempts at curing your GERD have been unsuccessful, your doctor may recommend having surgery. Fundoplication surgery is a common one. It strengthens the valve between your esphagus and your stomach. It is usually successful about 70% of the time. Some people who get this procedure still need to take medications for the rest of their lives, but their GERD symptoms are very minimal. People opt for GERD surgery for a number of reasons. Sometimes they have tried all of the available medications and still have GERD. Others experience too many side effects when taking the medications, and still others have found some relief with meds but not to their satisfaction. Gastropexy is another procedure that is sometimes performed, although much less common than fundoplication. This surgery attaches the stomach to the diaphragm. This way the stomach cannot move through the opening in the diaphragm.

There are always new non-surgical procedures being tested. Most of these use an endoscope placed in the esophagus so the doctor can see during the procedure. They are considered non-surgical because no cuts are made.

GERD Wrap Up

Trying an acid reflux disease diet should be one of the first things you try, even before you try medications. It is the most natural and safe way to deal with your acid reflux symtoms. Beyond that, antacids and other medications are relatively safe and effective also. Surgery should only be considered as a last resort. You should always do lots of research on the internet. You never know when you're going to stumble across a treatment or something someone else is doing that will work for you. Getting rid of your heartburn and other GERD symptoms is a struggle for some, so trying different GERD diets and constantly experimenting with different home remedy options is definitely the best path to take.