Acid reflux is a kind of medical condition which is caused when the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) does not close after taking the food. Whatever food we eat passes into our stomach through the LES and if it does not close, then acid produced inside our body can reach to our esophagus causing acid reflux disease. This causes heartburn or chest pain. Hence, it is extremely important to know which types of foods are best to prevent or reduce acid reflux.

Preparing a diet regimen for treating acid reflux can be intimidating. ?The problem may increase if you have any kind of food allergy. Normally acid reflux increases post meal, hence it is important to have food that discourages reflux. It is important to know that patients suffering from this disease should have food in small amounts. It is even better, if they can spread their meals throughout the day instead of having a square meal a day. The last meal of the day must be taken well in advance before going to bed. If you take small amounts of food throughout the day, then you can ensure less bulging of the stomach. And a small meal is more or less easily digestible. This results in low acid levels thus leading to reflux free life.

An acid reflux reducing diet consists of all the essential food groups- fruits, vegetables, grains, meats and dairy products. However, some of the items under these groups are not prescribed. You must note and remember them. People suffering from acid reflux disease, are asked to avoid drinks containing caffeine, alcohol, chocolate and peppermint. One should also avoid high fat containing food.

Normally patients are asked to have grains that have low fat content. Rice, multigrain, corn, oats, graham crackers, unseasoned pretzels and bran can be eaten. White bread and rice cakes are also good for patients suffering from acid reflux. Cabbage, celery, fennel, peas, green beans, broccoli, carrots and cabbage can be included in the diet. Fruits like bananas, apples, peaches, berries, melons are good choice. Any kind of citrus fruits must be avoided since they aggravate the problem. Low fat dairy products are good for sufferers.

Feta cheese, cheese prepared from soy and vegetables can be eaten, while ice cream, whole milk and chocolates must be avoided. If you wish to have meat, then have the lean variety. You can have skinless breast of chicken, no fat fish, egg whites, London Broil steaks and ground beef. We normally use a wide variety of seasonings, toppings, condiments while having food. However, you must remember that these should also contain low percentage of fat.

Avoiding chocolate based desserts is mandatory. Jelly beans, pudding, baked chips, cookies, fat free snacks, sweets, sorbet and yogurt containing low fat are prescribed. You should also eat high fibrous food since it clears the stomach nicely and is quite filling at the same time. Food items like strawberries, scallions, ham, scrambled egg, Mozzarella and Cottage cheese, muffin and root beer can be had in moderation.

If you suffer from acid reflux, acid indigestion, acidosis, digestive upset, dyspepsia, flatulence or heartburn you should know not to eat foods high in animal fat, wheat gluten or refined sugar or salt, to name a few.

On the other hand do you know what foods you can eat that will help prevent or cure your acid reflux, heartburn dilemma?

This whole acid causing food thing can be a little confusing, but I?m going to clear that up for you real fast today. I get a lot of people asking me about this, but it?s really quite simple to understand. You see many foods that are ?acidic? actually create an ?alkaline? condition inside your body and alkaline is good, that?s what you want.

This includes heirloom tomatoes, organic lemons and oranges . . . basically all citrus fruits. Once you know this, the rest is straight forward.

Now that we have that cleared up let?s take a closer look at what having an ?acid condition? or an ?alkaline condition? really means and why it?s important to know.

A Comparison: Acid Vs. Alkaline

First, an acid or alkaline state are opposite poles on a scale measured according to the ?pH,? which is short for ?potential of hydrogen.? Pure, living mineral water, which is made of hydrogen and oxygen, should have a natural pH of 7.0 representing the neutral, or half way mark on the pH scale.

A neutral 7.0 pH is neither in an acid or alkaline state. When the pH reading drops below 7.0 it?s considered to have an acidic pH and when the pH reading rises above 7.0 it is said to have an alkaline pH. So as you can see the entire pH scale is only from 1.0 pH being the most acidic to 14.0 pH reading being the most alkaline.

Your optimum health depends on you having a slightly alkaline reading, a 7.4 pH is good. This will naturally fluctuate from 6.5 to a 7.5 pH depending upon the time of day, your metabolic cycle and what you just eat.

The pH reading of your blood, urine and saliva determines your health.

Your urine will naturally become temporarily acidic in the morning because that?s when you carry the most acid waste.

If your blood pH becomes too acidic the hemoglobin is destroyed making it impossible for your red blood cells to carry oxygen to your cells. This is called acidosis and ignored will cause illness, cancer and even sudden death.

Perhaps now you can see why eating the wrong foods could cause an illness like acid reflux disease.

Bottom line is you need to know which foods will cure acid reflux and most of them are alkaline foods that create a slightly alkaline pH, the one exception being citrus fruits as I mentioned above.

German researchers discovered eating acid forming foods flushes the magnesium out of your kidneys, leading to magnesium deficiency. Magnesium is vital for heart health, for proper gastric acid balance and helps maintain optimum pH levels. So naturally, food rich with magnesium and other minerals will qualify as alkaline producing foods. Actually most raw green plants are rich in alkaline minerals.

Here?s a list of 9 very alkaline foods:

• Organic bananas or plantains
• Organic dark chocolate (70%+)
• Organic figs
• Natural mineral water
• Fresh squeezed orange juice
• Organic potatoes
• Organic spinach, kale or collards
• Seeded watermelon
• Organic dandelion greens

I hope you?ve found this information useful. On a final note, keep in mind that anything with refined sugar in it will tend to give your urine a more acidic pH. I would suggest supplementing with agave nectar, raw palm sugar or raw honey, at least these provide a lower glycemic load and provide useful minerals, vitamins and cofactors, whereas refined sugar and artificial sweeteners actually deplete these.

Live well,

Todd M. Faass?

Health Ecologist