Healthy Diet to prevent acid reflux symptoms
One of the best ways to prevent symptoms of acid reflux is to pay close attention to your diet and eating habits. Before taking medication, most
doctors will suggest that the person with acid reflux disease make some changes to his/her diet by having a proper acid reflux diet plan. It is a simple and useful change that one can make. An effective acid reflux diet plan includes knowing what food to avoid, what food to eat and a good eating habits.
In order to minimize the problems of acid reflux, you must also modify certain behavior. First of all, slow down when eating and chew thoroughly. Digestion begins in the mouth, where food is first broken up and saliva starts the process. By chewing thoroughly and slowing down, you relieve the strain put on the esophagus to move the food down, and relieves the stomach from producing large amounts of stomach acid.
Avoid Certain Foods .
Avoid fried foods and foods that contain excess fat. Not only these are bad for your arteries but they stay in your stomach a lot longer. Most fast foods are rich in fat and will cause your stomach to produce more acid. Fast foods can also lead to weight gain, which will increase the problem of acid reflux. Knowing what type of foods and stay away from is key in reducing the symptoms of acid reflux. You should try to avoid chocolates of all kinds and also fruits that contain a lot of citric acid such as oranges, grapefruits, lemons and limes etc. this also creates excess acid in your stomach and causing reflux symptoms.
Choose Smaller meals
It is advisable to eat five - six small meals a day instead of three large ones in order to avoid overextending the stomach and putting pressure on the LES valve. The reason behind this is when you eat smaller meals your body has time to digest the food properly and when you eat large meals. In fact, this is a good habit for everyone, even if you don't suffer from acid reflux disease. This is to allow the stomach to have sufficient capacity for proper digestion . Therefore this minimize the chances for acid build up in your stomach and reduce cause of acid reflux symptoms.
Avoid Foods That increase Acid Production
An acid reflux diet plan should avoid foods that stimulate the production of acid in the stomach. These foods include coffee, spicy foods, tomatoes, citrus fruits, chocolate, and alcohol.
Add plant proteins to your food
Foods mixed with plant proteins such as beans, lentils, green leafy vegetables, are very good for digestion system as the body uses the enzymes in these foods to reduce the amount of acids in the stomach.
Avoid meals late in evening
It is difficult to keep a certain schedule for meal we should eat but for those of us that suffer with acid reflux is essential to keep a proper meal schedule.. Eating just before bedtime, especially heavy meal, is prone to cause reflux symptoms. This is because the stomach have to produce large amounts of acid in order to digest the food. The unused acid tend to flow up into the esophagus when you lie down. Generally, a good practice is to eat at least 3 hours before going to bed.
Remain Upright After Meals
It is imperative to remain upright for at least one hour after a meal in order to keep the stomach acid from escaping into the esophagus and inflaming the tissue. When you lie down, especially after a meal, gravity will speed up the back up process of the acid in the stomach. Thus, it is better to remain upright for at least an hour after a meal
Consider Foods High In Complex Carbohydrates
While avoiding fatty food, you should eat foods containing complex carbohydrates such as rice, breads and pasta, because the complex carbohydrates in these foods can help bind with the acid in your stomach so there is less chance to reflux back into the esophagus.
Limit intake of Alcohol
Alcohol will increase the secretion of acid in the stomach. It may also suppress the contraction of esophageal sphincter. It is the failure of the sphincter muscle to contract tightly that leads to acid reflux.
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