Tuesday, January 28, 2014

Natural Remedies for Acid Reflux

I'm doing something a little different today. I've suffered from acid reflux for sixteen years, and since I've heard of other people mention they suffer from the same thing I thought I'd give you some tidbits about what induces mine and what helps bring relief.

I know what you're thinking, why not just take an over the counter medication. I've tried those, I also spent quite a while on prescription medications, but my body decided it couldn't tolerate them.



My acid reflux inducer

caffeine
chocolate
tomato sauces
white potatoes

Surprised? I was. No, not by the chocolate and caffeine, and certainly not by tomato sauces. I was, however, shocked by the potatoes. And I'll tell you, that little discovery was a God thing. Since my acid reflux was so bad, and I had this little voice in the back of my head telling me that prolonged Gerd can cause cancer, I had decided to eat nothing but potatoes. They're bland, right? So I shouldn't have had a problem. Boy, was I wrong. And if I thought my acid reflux had been bad before, the potatoes brought it to a whole different level, or two, or three. I can honestly understand how people can mistake acid reflux for a heart attack. It felt as if my chest was ripping apart. Turns out I'm allergic to white potatoes, and tomatoes, and I guess you can say all the other nightshade plants.

My acid reflux relief

sauerkraut
ginger
apple cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon baking soda in 8oz of water
apples

As you can probably imagine, if you even like sauerkraut, it can only be tolerated for a short time. Ginger works, but it's not as effective as the apple cider vinegar. The baking soda water takes a while getting use to, and it doesn't always last as long with the severe cases, but it's great for your alkaline once you do. The absolute best thing I've found for relief is eating or fresh juicing an apple. Fuji apples work the best, followed by Pink Lady. I think the juicier they are the better.

You know the old saying, an apple a day keeps the doctor away? Well, I'm finding there is some great truth to it, and not just for treating acid reflux, but that's another blog for another day.

What are some of your favorite natural remedies?




12 comments:

  1. What a helpful post! I was surprised to see that potatoes are one of your reflux inducers. My dad suffers terribly with acid reflux and I look forward to sharing your remedies with him.

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    1. Britney, I never would have believed it if my aunt hadn't clued me in. Turns out she is allergic to nightshade plants too. I pray your dad finds relief.

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  2. What a helpful post you have shared today. I had no idea potatoes would be a problem. I guess through the process of elimination one finds the trouble makers. Thank you for the helpful suggestions for relief.

    mauback55 at gmail dot com

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    1. You would think with all the Irish blood running through my veins that I wouldn't have a problem with potatoes. ;)

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  3. Good post. I shared on my FB page.

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  4. How very interesting! Thanks for sharing. I'm going to have to share this with others I know as well. :)

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  5. Great post. I know some who suffer from AR so loved these remedy suggestions. Thanks much.

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  6. I have had reflux for years, it has gotten worse since I had my kids. I have tried every Rx medicine they have and all of them give me chest pains. Then I tried all the OTC meds and ranitidine (zantac) was the only one I could take long term. I was taking 600mg a day and still not finding relief so I was drinking maalox and chewing tums or gaviscon. Nothing was working. I can't afford to pay for surgery since we have a $10,000.00 deductible. Trying to figure this out has been crazy, I have tried the baking soda, it does help at times, I tried the apple cider vinegar but it burned too bad, I have tried the apples and they seem to help some. Not sure I can try the sauerkraut and ginger but it might be worth a try. I will say that prayer has worked most of all. It came to me maybe I was taking too much zantac because you have to have some acid in your stomach to digest your food so with God's help I have cut back to just 1-150mg of zantac. I still have bouts where I can't seem to get it under control but He is helping me. Thanks for the heads up about the potatoes as I also have an auto-immune disorder related to RA, so I might need to look into cutting back on them. Thanks so much for posting this and thanks for letting me rant a little with someone who understands what its like to have reflux. I'll be praying for you to find relief too!

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