Acid Reflux Home Remedies, Foods for GERD, and Beyond

“Give yourself or a loved one an optimum trial on these acid reflux home remedies and foods for GERD before you need acid reflux medication. Acid reflux medication specifically proton pump inhibitors (PPIs), place you at higher risk of pneumonia, osteporosis, hip fracture, and nutrient deficiencies (1).”

Acid reflux home remedies and foods for GERD advised here may be useful for the symptoms of this condition. Risk factors for developing this condition include smoking, overweight, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), pregnancy, alcohol use, hiatal hernia, and less common diseases such as scleroderma. Acid reflux often occurs from a weakening of the lower esophageal sphincter allowing stomach contents to travel backward and upward. When stomach contents go upward into the esophagus, symptoms of heartburn, nausea, chest pressure, and chest pain may occur. Other symptoms include acid or sour taste in the throat, burning in the throat or chest, bad breath, difficulty swallowing, abdominal pain, sore throat, coughing, and hoarseness. Give yourself or a loved one an optimum trial on these acid reflux home remedies and foods for GERD before you need acid reflux medication. Give yourself or a loved one an optimum trial on these acid reflux home remedies and foods for GERD before you need acid reflux medication. Acid reflux medication, specifically proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) place you at higher risk of pneumonia, osteporosis, hip fracture, and nutrient deficiencies (1).

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When does acid reflux become a disease ?

A physician will diagnose gastroesophageal reflux as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) once it causes symptoms which interfere with your daily lifestyle or after it causes esophageal damage. See a physician for chest pain, bloody vomiting, bloody or black tarry stool, unintentional weight loss, or if food becomes stuck with swallowing, It is often unclear if chest pain may be related to the heart or esophageal reflux. Therefore a prompt medical evaluation is necessary for this and other concerning symptoms to ensure it is not cardiac related. The symptoms are often relieved by antacids (Maalox, Tums, Baking Soda), H2 blockers (Zantac and Pepcid), or proton pump inhibitors (Prilosec, Nexium, Prevacid, and Protonix).

Dangers of Proton Pump Inhibitors

Proton pump inhibitor’s (PPIs) significantly reduce the amount of acid produced in the stomach. They also reduce the acid production in other cells of the body. The many documented dangers of proton pump inhibitors such as Prilosec (omeprazole), Protonix (pantoprazole), Nexium (esomeprazole), Aciphex (rabeprazile), and Prevacid (lansoprazole) include an increase in risk of the following:

• dementia such as Alzheimer’s disease
• cognitive impairment in young adults
• stroke
• heart attacks
• chronic kidney disease
• fractures
• pneumonia
• tuberculosis
• nutritional deficiencies
• vitamin and mineral deficiencies
• Clostridium difficile colitis (Cdiff colitis)
• gastroenteritis
• low magnesium levels
• more acid production than before after stopping PPIs

Guidance for Acid Reflux Home Remedies and Foods for GERD

Acid reflux home remedies and foods for GERD are listed below, but the advice goes beyond simply changing the types of food. A lifestyle change is necessary which will require committment. Many years have contributed to the condition and it will not resolve overnight, but a significant difference can be seen within 1-2 weeks.

• Remain upright for a minimum of 30 minutes following a meal. Some sources quote to remain upright for as long as 3 hours to lower symptoms. Being in a reclined position allows stomach contents to reflux more easily. Raise the head of your bed by 6-10 inches while you sleep using a foam wedge.

• Avoid large meals but instead consume small balanced meals more frequently. American culture and many different ethnicities emphasize filling up your stomach at 3 separate meal times. Large meals over stress the ability of the gastrointestinal tract to properly metabolize a meal. A small unbalanced meal high in fat, concentrated sweets or carbohydrates is able to result in acid reflux. When these foods are eaten in larger amounts, the chance of acid reflux worsens.

• Acid reflux home remedies and foods for GERD includes avoiding concentrated sweets, fried foods (French fries), meals with high fat content, meals with over 50% carbohydrate content, mint, chocolate, alcohol, carbonated beverages, caffeine, high fat dairy (regular milk, cream, sour cream, ice cream, cheese), cranberry juice, citrus fruit, citrus drinks (lemon, orange, lime, grapefruit, orange), spicy foods, salty-smoky food, garlic, onion, and tomatoes. Lowering the amount of alcohol will improve symptoms, but avoiding alcohol completely would help the most.

• Acid reflux home remedies and foods for GERD with lower acid content include the foods which are not excluded above. Consuming alkaline foods is not specifically supported in research to reduce the symptoms of GERD. There were no randomized controlled trials located showing lower GERD symptoms with alkaline foods. Apple cider vinegar is a commonly used acid reflux home remedy. There are countless anecdotal reports that 1-2 tablespoons of unpasteurized apple cider has helped many patients obtain relief from acid reflux. The use of vinegar is supported by a belief that reflux is related to a lack of acid, not an excess in production. The body uses calcium and sodium chloride (salt) in the diet to produce acid for digestion. Short term use of 1-3 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar appears safe, but long term use for GERD will result in significant health consequences and is not advised. Those with a history of esophageal or stomach ulcers should also avoid use of vinegar.

• Lower your level of stress to improve acid reflux. Stress was reported as one of the most common reasons for worsening GERD (5).

• If you smoke, quit. Use a combination of several methods to assist in cessation to increase the chance of success. For instance, combine nicotine replacement with an exercise program, medication, hypnosis, or formal counseling such as support groups. Many resources are available to assist in smoking cessation such as the online sites Smokefree.gov, CDC advice to quit smoking, and the phone number for free help 1-800-QUIT-NOW.
  

• Melatonin at a dose of 3-6 mg by mouth daily has had some success in research with improving GERD symptoms (8,9). Melatonin was able to improve GERD symptoms when added to a proton pump inhibitor for up to 8 weeks, but did not control acid reflux alone as well as a proton pump inhibitor alone (8). Melatonin may reduce the damage by acid and pepsin in the gastrointestinal tract (10). Melatonin needs more research to be routinely recommended.

• In patients with asthma, treating GERD relieves asthma symptoms, Less esophageal reflux will improve asthma control. Asthma medication may make GERD worse by lowering pressure of the esophageal sphincter (2).
  

• If you have diabetes with GERD, gastroparesis may be present which may be diagnosed by obtaining a gastric emptying study. There are some other diseases which can cause gastroparesis, but diabetes is the most common. If the gastric emptying study shows a significant delay in gastric emptying, treatment with medication to increase stomach transit time may be necessary. All narcotic pain medication slows gastric emptying and these pain medications should be minimized to improve the transit time.
• You may want to ask your physician if there are any alternatives for the following medications that can worsen acid reflux. These medications include iron, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (ibuprofen, naproxen, aspirin), bisphosphonates used for osteoporosis (Actonel, Fosamax),  nitrates (Imdur, Isordil, nitroglycerin), calcium channel blockers (verapamil, diltiazem, amlodipine), antibiotics (tetracycline), iron supplements, narcotic pain medication (oxycodone, hydromorphone, morphine, codeine), benzodiazepines (Xanax, Ativan, Valium), anticholinergics (Ditropan, Bendryl, Atrovent, Spiriva, Cogentin), and potassium chloride.
• If you have had acid reflux for years, a precancerous condition called Barrett’s esophagus may develop from chronic acid exposure to the squamous mucosa (esophageal lining). Barrett’s esophagus is the columnar cell changes in the lining of the esophagus. Barrett’s esophagus requires to be monitored for esophageal cancer by endoscopy (camera on a tube down the throat into the esophagus and stomach). This is recommended by a Gastroenterologist. Your primary care physician is able to refer you to a Gastroenterologist to consider this procedure.

References for Acid Reflux Home Remedies, Foods for GERD, and Beyond

1. Abramowitz J, Thakkar P, Isa A, Truong A, Park C, Rosenfeld RM. Adverse Event Reporting for Proton Pump Inhibitor Therapy: An Overview of Systematic Reviews. Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2016 May 17. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27188706
2. Dua S, Mohan L. Lower esophageal sphincter pressures in patients of bronchial asthma and its correlation with spirometric parameters: a case-control study. J Asthma. 2016;53(3):289-94. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26365309
3. Taylor PR, Li B, Dawsey SM, Li JY, Yang CS, Guo W, Blot WJ. Prevention of esophageal cancer: the nutrition intervention trials in Linxian, China. Linxian Nutrition Intervention Trials Study Group. Cancer Res. 1994 Apr 1;54(7 Suppl):2029s-2031s. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8137333
4. Sadiya A. Nutritional therapy for the management of diabetic gastroparesis: clinical review. Diabetes Metab Syndr Obes. 2012;5:329-35. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23055757
5. Haruma K, Kinoshita Y, Sakamoto S, Sanada K, Hiroi S, Miwa H. Lifestyle factors and efficacy of lifestyle interventions in gastroesophageal reflux disease patients with functional dyspepsia: primary care perspectives from the LEGEND study. Intern Med. 2015;54(7):695-701. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25832928
   
6. Ness-Jensen E, Hveem K, El-Serag H, Lagergren J. Lifestyle Intervention in Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2016 Feb;14(2):175-82.e1-3. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25956834
7. Asl SF, Mansour-Ghanaei F, Samadi H, Joukar F. Evaluations of life style factors and the severity of Gastroesophageal reflux disease; a case-control study. Int J Mol Epidemiol Genet. 2015 Sep 9;6(1):27-32. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26417402
8. Kandil TS, Mousa AA, El-Gendy AA, Abbas AM. The potential therapeutic effect of melatonin in Gastro-Esophageal Reflux Disease. BMC Gastroenterol. 2010 Jan 18;10:7. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20082715
9. Werbach MR. Melatonin for the treatment of gastroesophageal reflux disease. Altern Ther Health Med. 2008 Jul-Aug;14(4):54-8. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18616070
10. Madalinski MH. Does a melatonin supplement alter the course of gastro-esophageal reflux disease? World J Gastrointest Pharmacol Ther. 2011 Dec 6;2(6):50-1. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22180850