Acid Reflux Food To Avoid   


 

One of the ways to prevent acid reflux from reoccurring is to adjust your diet.  Acid reflux food to avoid include many of the foods you might guess.  It has been shown that fatty foods, spicy foods, acidic foods and foods containing caffeine should be avoided as they tend to put more strain on your digestive system, especially your stomach.  As one trying to avoid the regurgitation of stomach acid into the esophagus, it is best to reduce the workload your stomach must shoulder in breaking down foods.   

 

Acid reflux food to avoid includes a lengthy list.  Fatty foods should be avoided because of the extra effort it takes to break these foods down.  The most common example would be fast food style burgers which have a high amount of fat.  Beyond fatty foods, spicy dishes should be reduced because of their risk of aggravating your stomach.  A number of fruits high in acid such as oranges should also be avoided as they will be adding more acid to your stomach.  Even milk products can be a problem.  Although it may initially calm your heartburn, it will actually act as a stimulant to more acid secretion. 

 

After reading the above list, you may be concerned about what you can actually eat.  However, the belief here is to eat in moderation rather than to cut out certain foods completely.  Also, a recent study in 2006 suggests that cutting out certain foods did not help its patients.  Regardless of this finding, two things have been found to help sufferers of acid reflux.  One is the reduction of your calorie intake.  By simply reducing the number calories consumed, you will put less strain on your digestive system and thus, produce less acid resulting in less of chance for acid reflux.  The second is to keep from eating 2 to 3 hours before bedtime.  This helps ensure your food is well digested before you start sleeping in a horizontal position.  It has been found that the body can actually reduce the amount of acid that is regurgitated into the esophagus because of merely standing upright.  Naturally, acid reflux tends to be at its worst while your sleep.  Therefore, it is best to have your stomach start breaking down food well before bed. 

 

Acid reflux food to avoid may not prove to be as effective as other methods such as herbal or prescription drugs.  However, it is clear that reducing the eating of certain foods puts less stress on your digestive system.  Even the simple action of replacing some high fat and highly acidic foods with more nutritional foods may help reduce your overall caloric intake.  If this occurs, you will definitely help prevent your risk of future refluxes.