How to Stop the Effects of Constant Acid reflux Disease
February 5th, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
While acid reflux is a lifelong, chronic illness, there are some simple procedures that you can follow to ensure that the problem will not affect you in a big way. In this article, we’ll discuss ways for keeping acid reflux conditions tame.
One of the best things that you can do to limit the affects of acid reflux is to eat smaller meals more often. When you keep to a diet pattern that involves little meals at frequent intervals throughout the day, you decrease the chance of causing a back-up in your stomach. Having less food in your stomach also helps to put less stress on the LES muscles which are responsible for closing the passageway between the esophagus and the stomach. One important thing to note is that acid reflux’s affect on your body is increased when you eat certain acid-creating foods.
It’s important to avoid citrus fruits, potatoes, raw onions, ground beef, buffalo wings, chicken nuggets and thick dairy products such as ice cream or cottage cheese. Other foods with that increase the acid in your system include macaroni and cheese, spaghetti, any type of liquor or wine, coffee, tea, and certain salad dressings. If you can avoid eating these foods as much as possible, you’ll be doing your body a favor and decreasing your chance of encountering heartburn.
Another thing to consider is when you are eating your meals. For those with acid reflux, it is recommended to eat your last meal at least two to three hours before you go to bed. This is important due to the fact that lying down causes added pressure to be put on the LES muscles, increasing the chance of reflux. Simply elevating your head with extra pillows can help to decrease acid reflux as well, since gravity weighs on the LES muscles when you are lying down flat. Keeping in shape is another important aspect to consider if you have a reflux condition.
When overweight, the abdomen pushes on the stomach, causing excess fluid to be pushed into the esophagus. A study that was conducted on acid reflux showed that a full thirty five percent of all overweight people experience heartburn. Other important lifestyle factors to monitor are your consumption of alcohol and smoking. Nicotine, the most active ingredient in cigarettes, causes a relaxation of the esophageal sphincter, allowing fluids to roam freely. Smokers also experience an increased buildup of acid in their stomachs. While not as visible as other factors, stress can also play a hand in an acid reflux condition.
When trying to treat your acid reflux condition, it is generally a good idea to keep a record of your progress. Record when and why you experienced acid reflux so that you can better understand which behaviors to avoid in the future. After you get a good baseline for exactly what is causing your reflux conditions, consult a doctor to get a professional opinion on what you should do to avoid future problems with this chronic illness.
Eat These Foods or Continue to Suffer with Acid Reflux
February 3rd, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
There are certain foods that make heartburn symptoms worse so they should be avoided at all costs. Then there are certain foods the have a risk of causing heartburn that should be eaten in moderation. Then there are foods that have no risk of causing heartburn, which can be eaten. The following is a list of common foods that don’t cause any heartburn.
” Fruit: apple either fresh or juice and bananas.
” Vegetables: baked potato, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, green beans and peas.
” Meat: extra-lean ground beef, London broil steak, skinless chicken breast, egg whites, egg substitutes and fish with no added fat.
” Dairy: feta or goat cheese, fat-free cream cheese, fat-free sour cream and low-fat soy cheese.
” Grains: multi-grain or white bread, bran or oatmeal cereal, corn bread, graham crackers, pretzels, brown or white rice and rice cakes.
” Beverages: mineral water.
” Fats and Oils: low-fat salad dressing.
” Sweets and Desserts: fat-free cookies, jelly beans, red licorice, baked potato chips.
Then there are foods that have a little risk of causing heartburn. You should eat these foods in moderation until you can determine if they pose a heartburn risk for you. Then they should be either avoided or added to your regular food depending on your body’s reaction to the foods.
” Fruit: low-acid orange juice, apple cider, peach, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, grapes and dried cranberries.
” Vegetables: garlic, cooked onions, leeks, sauerkraut and scallions.
” Meat: lean ground beef, chicken salad, scrambled eggs in butter, fried eggs, fried fish, tuna salad, beef or pork hot dogs and ham.
” Dairy: yogurt, two percent or skim milk, frozen yogurt, low-fat cottage cheese, cheddar cheese and mozzarella cheese.
” Grains: garlic bread, muffins and granola cereal.
” Beverages: non-alcoholic wine, beer, non-alcoholic beer, cola and root beer.
” Fats and Oils: ketchup.
” Sweets and Desserts: low-fat cookies.
Then of course there are foods that are known to cause heartburn and indigestion problems. These foods should be avoided at all costs unless you have determined they have no effect on your heartburn and indigestion. However, even if they do not cause problems it is a good idea to only eat these foods in moderation.
” Fruits: orange juice, lemon, lemonade, grapefruit juice, cranberry juice and tomato.
” Vegetables: mashed potatoes, French fries and raw onions.
” Meat: ground beef chuck, marbled sirloin, chicken nuggets and buffalo wings.
” Dairy: sour cream, milk shake, ice cream and regular cottage cheese.
” Grains: macaroni and cheese and spaghetti with sauce.
” Beverages: liquor, wine, either decaffeinated or regular coffee and either decaffeinated or regular tea.
” Fats and Oils: creamy, oil or vinegar salad dressings.
” Sweets and Desserts: high-fat butter cookies, brownies, chocolate, doughnuts, corn chips and regular potato chips.
These lists are by no means extensive and do not include all the food on the market today. If there are other foods you should use them in moderation and determine to what extent they aggravate your heartburn or indigestion and then determine the proper course of action to take with the food. In addition to preventing your indigestion and heartburn, adopting a better diet will help your body in many other ways and provide you a healthier life.
Should You Be Using Coconut for Acid Reflux Relief….
February 3rd, 2007 Subscribe To Our Feed
Coconuts grow in abundance in tropical countries like the Philippines. People in these areas found plenty of uses for coconuts from its trunk, leaves and fruits. Not a single part of the coconut plant is wasted as all of it has specific uses. Recent developments have brought the attention of Americans to the medical values of the coconut fruit.
In the past years, clinical studies showed that components of the coconut have remarkable effects as antihistamines, anti-infectives/antiseptics, enhances and strengthens the immune system as well as a glucocortcoid antagonist. Recently, coconuts are also found to be effective in relieving acid reflux symptoms.
What is acid reflux? Acid reflux is caused by common irritation on the walls of the esophagus, which comes about after consuming a meal or a snack. Acid reflux is commonly known as heartburn, which is often characterized by the tightening of the chest couple with difficulty in breathing. For some patients, acid reflux symptoms may include a burning sensation in the stomach and in the esophagus, vomiting and the general feeling of being so full.
Physicians and other medical practitioners explain acid reflux as a result of the failure of the Lower Esophageal Sphincter or LES to remain closed. By nature, the Sphincter closes and locks away acid and food into the digestive system. However, when an abnormality occurs and the sphincter fails to close, food seep back into the esophagus and causes that burning sensation which we commonly call as heartburns. Heartburns are usually associated with poor digestion.
How does coconut relieve acid reflux? In tropical countries, people rely on coconuts to relieve gas pains and heartburns. There are two ways of administering coconut as a form of relief for acid reflux. First, coconut oil can be applied as a form of liniment on the stomach of the person suffering from acid reflux and second, it can be taken internally in the form of virgin coconut oil. In administering coconut oil as a form of liniment, you need to prepare the solution by extracting the oil from the coconut fruit.
Local practices involved in extracting oil from the coconut fruit involve grating the pulp of a mature coconut fruit and then squeezing the milk out from the grated pulp. The milk extracted from the coconut pulp will not be strained to make sure that no solids are left. The coconut milk is then cooked in slowly in a low fire until the milk evaporates, leaving the oil behind. The coconut oil extracted will not be used as liniment for relieving acid reflux by inducing the sufferer to belch.
The second form of applying coconut to relieve acid reflux is to ingest it in the form of virgin coconut oil. Virgin coconut oil can be extracted from the coconut fruit by placing the coconut milk and in an even container for 48 hours until the cream, the water and the oil separates naturally. The oil extracted through this process is a potent anti-oxidant.
Research shows that coconut oil, especially the one it its purest form is very rich in short and medium chain fatty acids. This shorter chain length allows for faster metabolism and without use of the carnitine transport system, which is associated with the oxidation process. This means that having high quantity of coconut oil in the body would mean high anti-oxidation capacity.
