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Does the combination of a particular heartburn diet and changes to a healthy lifestyle get you heartburn relief? Recent studies bring information to show that new diet plans can really lower heartburn and simultaneously make major improvements in quality of life in general. But the question remains, will a diet really bring permanent heartburn for you personally? Classical medicine has run foul of huge populations of heartburn victims in this respect, because of the potentially dangerous side effects that it produces as well as its poor record of results over a long duration. Because heartburn is just a symptom of a complex medical problem known as GERD (gastro-esophageal reflux disease) or acid reflux, we need to know if new diet plans will target the real causes. It is important to understand that chronic heartburn cannot be healed in a permanent way without a full holistic solution that clearly works on the root causes. A circular muscle called the lower esophageal sphincter (LES) is a key part of the syndrome of heartburn. When acid escaping via the LES corrodes the cells lining the esophagus, this causes the unpleasant burning sensation known as acid indigestion or heartburn. GERD is the result of this valve-like muscle between the stomach and the esophagus weakening and no longer keeping the stomach contents away from the esophagus. New diet habits must therefore handle both aspects that bring on acid reflux. They must reduce excessive acidity in the stomach but also work in conjunction with the weakened sphincter. We set out seven simple guidelines for diets below as the preliminary step for a holistic, all-natural GERD solution: 1. Reduce meal size. Mega meals put too much stress on the digestive system, more stomach acid is fabricated and an existing acid reflux condition can be degraded. Eat 5-6 smaller meals per day rather than 2-3 big meals. 2. Make your last meal of the day a light one and go for a short walk if you can, to help digestion. This gives your stomach a better chance to function properly in the 2-3 hours for digesting a light meal, compared to 5-6 hours for a heavy one. It also means when you are lying down, the time window for acid to flow back into your esophagus is reduced. 3. Chew and eat your food in a leisurely way. This prevents air from being ingested at the same time as the food, and avoids pressure in the stomach and bloating which all put extra pressure on the esophageal sphincter, with the resulting splash back of stomach acid. 4. Make way for herbal tea instead of coffee as well as reducing intake of high-fat or spicy meals, peppermint, citrus juices, soda and alcohol, coffee and caffeine, chocolate and any food with a large amount of tomato. Don't eat food that irritates the inside of your digestive tract, which in turn can cause your esophageal sphincter to malfunction and relax at the wrong moment. 5. Studies done in Sweden support the theory that acid reflux danger can be reduced by 50% by adopting a high fiber diet and that high-fiber diets are effective for optimizing digestion and sweeping away toxic matter. 6. Reduce intake of dairy produce, in particular milk. Milk encourages acid, allergies and mucus, which in turn encourage Candida overgrowth and further digestive problems leading to GERD. 7. Because obesity and excess weight also act to lever open the lower esophageal sphincter, reduce calorie intake as well. The right plan based on the diet principles above will reduce the chance of GERD and make you healthier and fitter at the same time. A food plan to combat heartburn with the right inner balance is the first part of a full natural and holistic program against acid reflux. It is the only way to permanently improve this condition. Diet plans are just one part of the whole solution, in the same way that heartburn is a fragment of the whole acid heartburn picture. All the factors need to be treated by the solution in order to bring an effective resolution of the problem.
Article Source: http://www.just-article.com
Jeff Martin is a certified nutritionist and author of the #1 best-selling e-book, Heartburn No More . To Learn More About Foods that Might Trigger Heartburn Visit: Food and Heartburn
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