12 Worst Foods for Acid Reflux

Acidity and heartburn are two very common forms of indigestion experienced by at least 20% of the world population today. With all other influential factors such as age, gender, posture and daily physical activity, the prime factor of concern remains dietary intake. This, in particular, pivots the food choices and eating regimen you follow each day. Yes, exactly what you eat and how you eat it will determine how you feel it!

Acid reflux disease gives a tight and painful feeling through the chest simultaneously with a bitter or sour sensation down the throat. The discomfort increases when it’s coupled with bitter burps as the stomach acid releases into the esophagus commonly known as food pipe. If this persists, the stomach acid literally corrodes away the esophageal lining causing severe damage.

To get rid of this severe discomfort, certain foods, in our daily dietary intake, can be avoided so as to help to diminish the symptoms and ease off acidity. Here, we have identified foods that mainly produce excessive acids or irritate the inflamed stomach lining leading to heartburn. These foods do not need to be totally stricken off the diet but to be taken in moderation and preferably not at bedtime.

Here are Foods that Cause Acid Reflux

1. Alcohol for Acid Reflux

Alcohol

 

Red wine and beer, in particular, taken in large quantities with meals tend to slink up the esophagus causing massive damage to the organ as well as immense pain and burning sensation. So keeping the shots short and limited to a few gulps can help miles!

Here is what does alcohol do to your liver.

2. Fried Foods

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Yes! That crispy munch with that tantalizing aroma contains all the fat to ignite that fire and cause heartburn! Fried foods take longer to digest hence, cause greater acid production and burdens the stomach leading to indigestion. Using other varieties of cooking methods such as grilling, poaching can not only help in cutting down calories but also help you from heartburn.

3. Stomach Burning After Eating Spicy Foods

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Adding spice to your food also increase up the acids in your stomach. This goes, in particular, for paprika and red hot chilies. Substituting other flavorings in food such as herbs will not only add a subtle variety to diet but also settle down the acid reflux to not trigger heartburn after meals.

4. Tomatoes

Tomatoes

While this incredibly healthy vegetable adds color to meals, it adds acids to the existing acidic food being digested. Look out for fresh or canned tomatoes, even in salsa and ketchup, as reducing the intake will result in less burning sensation.

5. Oranges

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You never know that sweet orange juice serving in the breakfast could be giving you heartburn throughout the day. Citrus fruits are naturally high in citric acid and trigger acid reflux after ingestion. Choosing other nutritious options such as apples, berries, bananas, pears and melons which are alkaline in nature not only helps in losing acid production but also soothe off the acidity damage already present in the esophagus pacifying the heartburn.

6. Beef

Beef

Primarily due to the heavy fat content and secondly due to the type of marinades and protein content, ingestion of beef causes intense acidity and heartburn. So simply by changing the type of meat you choose for dinner tonight, you can practically have a calmer, heartburn-free sleep!

7. Coffee

Coffee

Those addicted to coffee might know the crux here. Coffee not only being high in natural acids, causes the sphincter muscle at the end of the esophagus to loosen up and relax. This makes the stomach acids go easily to and fro which causes heartburn. So moderation is the key here, do not take coffee servings throughout the day.

8. Cheese

Cheese

Wondering why that stuffed chicken breast or that white sauce pasta is giving you a hard time? Yes, it’s the cheesy cheese! Naturally high in fat along with all other fatty foods, cheese in all its forms tend to relax the stomach hence delaying digestion. This puts a strain on the esophageal sphincter letting the stomach acids creep through. So cutting down on those cheesy cravings for a while can help with the discomfort and pain which surely isn’t a bad trade-off!

9. Soda

Soda

The fizz in soda is all carbon dioxide. This gas pumps up the food content in the stomach not only causing flatulence but also acidity. Being acidic generally, the reflux becomes mandatory for the stomach to maintain balance and create space for food. You can either cut down on soda for a few meals or let the fizz settle. This will actually make a considerable difference in your heartburn problem.

10. Garlic

Garlic

People often add garlic to their food during preparation perceiving it as a change of flavor and an alternative to spice. This causes acid reflux, in particular, when cooked in oil. Substitute garlic with ginger and see how this not only flavors up the food but also soothes heartburn.

11. Mint

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Mint also triggers heartburn and causes stomach acid to attack esophagus. This triggers heartburn. If you want to treat the mint induces heartburn, you must consider ginger as it reduces nausea and is a natural treatment. A cup of ginger tea every night can reduce your chances of heartburn at night.

12. Chocolate

Chocolate

It is a great heartburn inducer and has worse effects than most of the foods. It contains caffeine and causes stomach acids to pile up. It, however, is a food that relaxes you, it releases pleasure hormones and has the ability to calm you down. It is a very bad choice if you frequently suffer from heartburn. Eating chocolate can also reduce heart disease.

Apart from food choices, general dietary intake patterns such as eating small food portions, not filling up too much and sitting erect when eating decrease the likelihood of acid reflux. In addition, no smoking, sleeping in an elevated position and doing regular physical activity in the morning on an empty stomach also contribute as healthy habits which help deteriorating symptoms of heartburn. So, being healthy and wise today will ensure an acid-free tomorrow.

Why not start right away?

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