Heartburn: what to eat and weekly menu for reflux

Acidity or heartburn is a painful burning sensation in the chest or throat area that causes acid reflux from the stomach. It can occur occasionally, but if it occurs frequently, it may indicate that you have gastroesophageal reflux, a problem that requires medical tests to determine the cause. In most cases, acidity can be prevented naturally changing some lifestyle and eating habits.

It can appear at any time or after eating, and that can give us some clue about its possible causes. Keep in mind that, normally, heartburn after eating is usually due to lack of hydrochloric acid in the stomach and that this partly determines what is the best diet for heartburn and what foods to eat or not eat. A simple test with bicarbonate allows us to find out if we produce enough hydrochloric acid.

In these cases, we are interested favor the sufficient formation of gastric juices that help to digest well, especially proteins. Drinking some warm water with tangerine juice before eating is a good option, as are some natural remedies against heartburn that we can add to our meals. But this is not always the case, as we will see below.

treatment with “stomach protectors” such as omeprazole It may be effective in the short term, but it doesn’t get to the root of the problem: it doesn’t tackle the causes of heartburn. In addition, they have side effects, such as a deficit in the absorption of vitamin B12, calcium or magnesium, which favors osteoporosis and muscle weakness, among other problems. They also favor the overgrowth of the Helicobacter pylorisomething that should precisely be avoided in the face of a reflux problem.

In this article you will find:

In it downloadable weekly menu against reflux that we present to you at the end of this article, you will find reflected the two basic principles that we must take into account if we want to improve stomach acidity:

Basing our diet on natural foodsgenerally avoiding foods that cause heartburn and favoring the consumption of other more recommended foods. Prepare them in a make your digestion easy.

What to eat to relieve heartburn

It must be emphasized, as we have pointed out before, that the causes of heartburn can be different and that, however, the same symptomatic treatment is often prescribed. It is worth finding out what is the reason behind each heartburn and recognizing the differences that exist between the symptoms. This will allow finding ways to improve acidity in a personalized way and use more appropriate strategies.

symptoms like burning They can have curiously opposite explanations: they can be due to both excess acid in the stomach and a deficiency.

In fact, the discomfort you feel indicates whether the heartburn problem is caused by an excess of acids in the stomach or its deficiency. In each case, prevention and treatment are different. However, there are some common symptomswhich can occur in both cases, such as burning in the chest or in the pit of the stomach, a tendency to constipation and inflamed and red gums.

Let’s see in detail both cases, How to identify if it is one or the other and how to address them.

1. Acidity caused by an excess of acids

In this case it usually appears on an empty stomach or before eating and improves both when eating and drinking. Other signs that the problem is excess acidity are hungry and thirsty for cold drinks.

It must be taken into account that the pH of our stomach has to be very acidic so that it can digest (break) the bonds of proteins, therefore, even if we have an excess of acids, Do not lower the pH too much. In many cases, the increase in this acid secretion is compensated in the stomach by the secretion of mucin on its walls. Nevertheless, hyperacidity can cause problems, mainly at the entrance and exit of the stomachwhere the mucous membranes are not prepared for this increase in acidity.

Excess acids can in turn have various causes and depending on what they may be, it may be more convenient to emphasize some measures or others:

Excess heat. According to traditional Chinese medicine, it is due to excess heat in the stomach.Helicobacter pylori bacterium. A common cause of excess acidity in the stomach is the overgrowth of bacteria. Helicobacter pylori, which we all have but which, in certain situations and depending on the state of our stomach mucosa, can be reproduced more or less easily. The H pylori attacks the mucosa of the stomach wall, destroys it and inflames it. Hence the feeling of heartburn and pain.A valve that does not close properly. Heartburn may also be due to the fact that the valve between the esophagus and the stomach, the cardia, does not close properly. Behind this malfunction is sometimes the H pyloriand sometimes sustained stress, the consumption of medications, alcohol, tobacco or coffee, and physical alterations such as hiatus hernia, which occurs when a part of the stomach “sneaks” through the diaphragm.

To do? One of the goals of treatment should be improve the regenerative capacity of the mucosa. In addition, the doctor will have to assess whether it is necessary to treat the H pylori.

In general, they can help us foods that Chinese medicine describes as “cold”such as celery, cucumber, sprouts, quinoa or corn.

2. Acidity caused by a lack of acids

As we said, the opposite problem, that is, the deficiency of acids in the stomach, can also cause heartburn, since causes food to not digest well and ferment in the stomach.

In this case, discomfort does not appear before, but after ingestion. This difference allows us to determine the cause. In addition to burning, other symptoms include heaviness, abdominal swelling, belching, a feeling of fullness, a dry mouth, and thirst that persists even after drinking.

according to chinese medicinethe problem is that there is “cold” in the stomach and then it is convenient for us to heat the “pot” with warm nature food such as onion, garlic, pumpkin or sweet potato.

take some of warm water with tangerine juice before eating It is also a good option to stimulate the formation of acids in the stomach.

The best natural remedies and habits against reflux

When the discomfort is intense we can resort to effective natural remedies without the side effects of antacid drugs:

White clay: dilute a small amount of white clay in 100 ml of water and drink when discomfort appears.Raw potato juice: Take 100 ml when discomfort appears.Umeboshi paste: put a small amount under the tongue and wait until you secrete abundant saliva to swallow it.Kuzu with umebsohi: make the kuzu drink and add some umeboshi.Millet custard: you can prepare a flan based on millet, kuzu and apple juice that is a real balm for the stomach. You will find the recipe in the downloadable anti-reflux diet that you will find below.

Apart from these specific remedies, you can habitually resort to the following remedies and habits to digest better:

Tangerine juice: take 100 ml before meals.fresh ginger: Season vegetables and legumes with fresh grated or juiced ginger.Soy lecithin: put a little in high-fat foods.Chew well: Chew 20 times each bite. Dedicate at least half an hour to each meal and avoid eating standing up and in stressful places and where it is cold. Chewing a lot and eating without haste is basic to guarantee happy digestions. Drop the utensils between bites.Gentle cooking: it prefers steaming, boiling and sautéing to frying, barbecuing or roasting.Don’t be satiated: get up from the table without an excessive feeling of fullness. Do not fill the stomach completely.Apple cider vinegar and fermented: If the discomfort is after eating and your problem is a deficiency of acids in the stomach, season the dishes with a little apple cider vinegar and complete meals with something fermented, such as sauerkraut, kimchi or kombucha it will help you too. The organic acids that are formed in the fermentation favor the digestive process.Sprouted with their enzymes: Adding sprouts to meals is another good measure, as they provide digestive enzymes.Relaxation before eating: Before eating, practice three deep breaths to activate the autonomic nervous system responsible for relaxation and informing the body that it is time to eat.

weekly diet for heartburn

We have prepared a weekly menu with the ingredients that give peace to your digestive system without altering the mucous membranes or the microbiota. You will find many of the foods suitable for heartburn that we have included in this article, raw or only gently cooked. Have breakfast, lunch and dinner proposals from Monday to Friday, with the option of choosing what you liked best on the menu for the weekend.

You will also find the millet flan recipe that you can use as a remedy to relieve discomfort.

You can download the weekly menu to relieve heartburn here.