Turning onto the health path: gentle remedy for heartburn

Dear readers,

A familiar situation to many of us: the wrong food, too fatty, too heavy, too much too soon, too many or the wrong drinks - and the stomach goes to rebellion. It produces excessive acid, which then rises in the esophagus where it does not belong at all and causes heartburn and pain.

Most people in this case run to the pharmacy and get acid blockers. These do stop the heartburn for the moment and so at least protect the esophagus against further acid attacks, but they do not address the cause plus those blockers can lead to further stomach pain, they rob the body of valuable vitamins and are known to promote food intolerances.

There are many ways to cure heartburn in a gentle way and above all eliminate it on the long term.

A fundamental point would of course be to first thing change your diet and eating habits. With a balanced diet and some basic "de-stress" during food intake you can already change a lot. It is vital to chew thoroughly. The process stimulates saliva production, which in turn neutralizes stomach acid in the esophagus. Likewise, thorough chewing ensures that we eat slower and do not overeat.

Importantly, soda-based drinks including sparkling mineral water are to be avoided. Late night dining and drinking, late cocktails or other alcohol promote the reflux as well.

Coffee, alcohol and nicotine are main exciters of stomach acid and are to be avoided, especially until the problem is resolved.

A highly recommended alkaline diet consists primarily of foods that bind and reduce acid. Acid-promoting foods are absolutely to be avoided (see my previous article about alkaline food).

Many forms of cereals are acid-promoting, for example corn, wheat, normal oatmeal and buckwheat. Also, you need to avoid a wide range of animal proteins such as meat, and in serious cases or for an efficient initial elimination  of reflux, even fish.

Also, most nut types are initially to be avoided or their consumption to be drastically limited, here above all peanuts, and pecans, walnuts and cashews.

If you lie down directly after eating it can happen that the full stomach presses on the diaphragm and stomach contents or acid flows back. Movement is rather recommended after eating.

Be aware of your sleeping position. By sleeping on the left side or with your head in an elevated position the backflow of stomach contents can be prevented.

Raw potato juice can do miracles. You can either buy  it in health food stores or make it yourself. Lemon also neutralizes acid. 1 glass of freshly squeezed lemon juice in the morning on an empty stomach is very healthy, not only for reflux problems. Cucumbers help to calm heartburn as well.

Acupuncture, homeopathy and herbs are to be taken into consideration to remedy the situation. The homeopathic remedies Sodium Phosphoric, China Officinalis and Robinia Pseudoacacia are proven to heal, but each must be chosen depending on the type of heartburn and its accompaniments.

An alkaline diet in the end is a healthy diet for each of us, because excessive acid production in the body not only leads to heartburn, but also to many other diseases.