Acid reflux is not fun to deal with, but with these home remedies for acid reflux, you can manage your pain and prevent future issues in no time!
Discloser: I am not a trained health professional. All articles are based on my own experience and opinions. Please consult with a health professional before making lifestyle changes.
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If you’re like me you don’t like reaching for antacids every time you experience acid reflux. In my experience antacids actually make acid reflux worse in the long run.
Instead, I focus on simple home remedies that can help my acid reflux quickly as well as prevent it from coming back again.
What causes acid reflux
First let’s talk a little bit about what causes acid reflux.
Acid reflux can be caused by a variety of issues including the foods you’re eating, stress, or your lifestyle.
It occurs when stomach acid creeps back up in your esophagus causing a burning pain or even feeling like you threw up in your mouth.
Having occasional acid reflux or heartburn is fairly normal, however chronic acid reflux can really negatively impact your life.
These home remedies are great for occasional acid reflux or heartburn or if you have chronic acid reflux and want to treat it naturally instead of relying on prescriptions.
Home Remedies for Acid Reflux
Avoid Trigger foods
The first step in treating your acid reflux is to identify your trigger foods and try to avoid them. You don’t have to give them up forever, but knowing your trigger foods can help you better prepare for acid reflux. Plus, if you don’t eat them often you are less likely to experience as much pain with them.
Check out this list of foods to avoid for acid reflux as well as tips for figuring out which ones are your specific triggers.
Slippery Elm
This is my go-to supplement for acid reflux. I thought it was strange at first but it’s seriously magic! I take 1-2 slippery elm capsules whenever my acid reflux starts to bother me and it handles it really quickly. You can order slippery elm on Amazon or pick it up at your local grocery store or health foods store.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Mixing a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar in a glass of warm water with some honey can really help your acid reflux. Personally, this is more of a long-term strategy than a quick-acting remedy. For some people, this can make the acid reflux worse, but for a lot of people, it helps balance acidity in your stomach which will prevent pain.
Aloe Vera
Drinking Aloe Vera can help cool the heat you may experience really quickly. It’s great when you’re on the go or need some immediate relief while you wait for a longer-term remedy to help. Aloe Vera drinks come in a large variety of flavors and you can typically find a few at gas stations and your typical grocery store. For the best selection check out your local whole foods or other natural food/health food store.
Peppermint
I’m personally not a fan of anything peppermint, but peppermint has been known to settle stomachs and aid in reducing acid reflux. Try a warm peppermint tea to help soothe your throat.
Bananas
If you experience acid reflux often try eating more bananas. They’re known to help with acid reflux and can be soothing to eat during a flare-up.
Avoid Raw Veggies
If you experience acid reflux often you’ll want to avoid raw vegetables and stick to steamed or cooked vegetables. For some of us with sensitive stomachs the raw veggies can cause more irritation to the stomach lining which may aggravate your acid reflux.
More Foods to Eat
There are lots of foods you can eat that will actually promote healing in your gut and stomach lining that can help prevent acid reflux in the long run. Here’s a list of foods that help acid reflux that you can start incorporating in your daily life.
Habits to prevent acid reflux
If you regularly experience acid reflux then we want to work on healing your body so that it can handle a variety of foods in the future. There are a few strategies I’ve found to help me prevent acid reflux in the long run.
Take A Prebiotic And Probiotic
First and foremost, we want to focus on healing your gut. Acid reflux and other stomach issues are often caused by an imbalance of gut bacteria. By taking a prebiotic and probiotic you’ll start to balance the good and bad bacteria in your gut and allow your body to better respond to a variety of foods. You may have to pull out your trigger foods for a few weeks after starting a probiotic to allow your body to heal. However, the long-term goal is to allow your body to heal enough that it can handle everything you eat. You may not be able to overindulge every day on your trigger foods but after a while, you should be able to have them in moderation without feeling like you’re going to die. This is my favorite probiotic.
Sleep on your left side
Proper sleeping posture is really important. If you’re a side sleeper make sure you sleep on your left side, this allows your stomach to be properly situated while you sleep. If you sleep on your left side your stomach isn’t at the right angle and stomach acid might creep up while you sleep. You can also try propping your head up with a few extra pillows to keep it elevated during the night. If you only really have acid reflux in the mornings this is probably your trigger.
Intermittent Fasting
This has surprisingly been really helpful for me personally. Switching to a loose intermittent fasting schedule has improved my acid reflux and a variety of other stomach issues like bloating. Basically, I only eat within an 8-12 hour window. Typically that looks like eating breakfast around 9 am or 10 am and then dinner around 8 pm or 9 pm and no late-night snacking. Giving your body at least a 12-hour break from food allows your body to properly digest your food and give it some rest. To start, try just eating dinner at your normal time and then not eating a few hours before bed. If you eat right before going to bed or laying down right after dinner that in itself may cause some acid reflux.
Mindful Eating
A common trigger of acid reflux is overeating or eating too fast. If this is your trigger you might only experience acid reflux occasionally and not from any particular foods. You might get it most during a rushed lunch where you’re traveling or multitasking or maybe when you’re eating with friends. Being mindful about what you’re eating means focusing on the meal itself without being distracted by your phone or other tasks and listening to your body so you can stop eating when you’re full. Sometimes it takes us a few minutes to realize we’re full, so slow down and really pay attention to your body.
Get Some Exercise
Regular exercise can reduce inflammation in your body and aid in preventing acid reflux. If you’re having a flare-up I don’t recommend doing a lot of exercises that require you to move up and down a lot (like burpees). Instead, start with a gentle walk outside or some lightweight training. HITT workouts will likely be too much for you during a flare-up.
Reduce Stress
Stress is my main trigger, so I know how hard it can be to reduce it. However, reducing stress can be a major relief to acid reflux and other stomach issues. What I try to do to reduce stress is plan times in my day where I have nothing scheduled. Time for myself where I can binge Netflix, take a bath, listen to soothing music, whatever I feel like doing at the moment. It also helps to write what’s causing my stress in a journal. I’ve also found talk therapy to be really helpful.
How to treat chronic acid reflux and prevent it in the future
When I started really focusing on getting rid of my acid reflux I was reliant on taking a daily antacid. But I decided I wanted to heal my body so it could handle it on its own so I took steps to get rid of my acid reflux.
If you also want to get off your antacids here’s a guide on how to get rid of acid reflux in 4 weeks.
Once your body is reliant on that medication you can start really healing your body to the point where you won’t experience chronic acid reflux and occasional acid reflux can be managed.
If you have any questions about my personal experience getting rid of acid reflux please leave a comment below or email me at acidrefluxqueen@gmail.com.