Acid Reflux Foods to Avoid Chart: What Not to Eat

Why do you have acid reflux? How can you combat it? What are the possible risks related to acid reflux? Are GERD and acid reflux the same? Which acid reflux foods to avoid chart to use? Multiple questions hover in your mind when it comes to searching for answers for acid reflux related problems. Two of the most obvious ways to beat acid reflux is leading a balanced lifestyle and following a healthy diet. The food you eat and the amount of sleep you get every day say a lot about your digestive capability.

What happens when you experience acid reflux? The function of gastric acids in your stomach and intestines is to digest, absorb, and assimilate the food you eat. Once all three processes are over, the remaining toxicities go out of your system through urination and excretion. Therefore, your everyday meals and their consumable intervals decide whether or not the digestive functionality is up to the mark.

There are certain acid reflux foods to avoid chart to ensure healthy digestion with minimum risks of GERD. Leafy low-calorie vegetables and fruits with low citric acid percentage are preferable foods to prevent acid reflux. When it comes to the treatment of GERD, it usually begins with a visit to a gastroenterologist. As the symptoms become quite serious with time, you can no longer base on a homemade diet to fight acid reflux.

How is acid reflux different from GERD?

To answer whether acid reflux and GERD are the same, you need to understand the biology behind the disorder. Both GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) and acid reflux are close cousins, but there are slight differences.

Acid reflux also goes by the name of gastroesophageal reflux (GER). The condition where the gastric acid flows backward from your stomach into the food tube or esophagus. During acid reflux, you feel an uncomfortable burning sensation near the chest area (heartburn). The probability of acid reflux increases whenever you finish a meal or right after drinking alcohol and caffeinated beverages.

On the other hand, gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD is a more severe form of GER associated with frequent heartburns. The incidence rate of acid reflux during GERD is almost once or twice a week. Common signs of GERD are mostly chest pain that increases at night and regurgitation of sour liquid or undigested food. Other symptoms of gastroesophageal reflux disease include coughing, difficulty in swallowing, and wheezing.

If you are seldom coming across acid reflux, minor changes in your lifestyle can work wonders. Sometimes the frequency of GER increases when you are obese. Obesity is always a big NO when it comes to leading a healthy and balanced regime. Thus, one of the effective ways to avoid acid reflux is by losing excess body weight. Burning extra fat from your body will help build a perfect physique and cut down possibilities of GERD. List out the acid reflux foods to avoid chart and include only the ones with high nutritious content.

Which foods prevent acid reflux?

Fruits

When you have to steer clear of GER or GERD’s slightest possibilities, cut down on citrus fruits, mostly lemons, and oranges that have high citrate percentage. For non-citrate or low citric acid content fruits, choose bananas, honeydew, apples, watermelons, peers, and cantaloupe.

Vegetables

Consider a diverse range of vegetables while choosing the right ones for your ‘non-GER’ diet. Veggies belonging to the family of legumes are an excellent choice to stay away from acid reflux. Eat as many lettuces, green beans, potatoes, broccoli, cucumber, cauliflower, and other green leafy vegetables. Strictly avoid eating tomatoes or any tomato-based sauces or dips as they have too high-fat content and other irritants.

Healthy fats

Fat is necessary for your body, keeping in mind that you only consider the healthy forms of fat. There are broadly two classifications of fats- unsaturated (healthy fat) and saturated fats (unhealthy fat). Out of the unsaturated fats, you can again divide them into monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats. You mostly get saturated fats from dairy products and meat. Trans fat is also a form of unhealthy fat from processed or canned foods, shortenings, and margarine. Try substituting all forms of saturated and trans-fat with unsaturated fat-containing foods like fish or plant sources.

• Monounsaturated fats containing foods include certain types of oils of olive, sunflower, canola, and sesame. Other sources include seeds and nuts (mostly peanuts), avocado, and peanut butter.
• Polyunsaturated fats containing foods include oils of soybean, safflower, flaxseed, walnut, and corn. Other sources include tofu, soybeans, fatty fishes like trout, and salmon.

Can high proteins and complex carbs fight GER?

Proteins are significantly essential for your body to carry out several physiological functions in equilibrium. Whether you are into bodybuilding, weightlifting, or weight loss routine, you need lean proteins for support. Proteins help gain muscle mass and overall body strength, and the functionality of many digestive organs.

When it comes to a high protein diet, you got to have eggs in it. Eggs are rich in protein called albumin that is present in the white part. If you have any problems related to egg consumption, stay clear of the yellow yolk portion. Just consider the white albuminous amount for the high protein content. Lean meat is another option to avoid problems related to acid reflux. Encourage the habit of eating boiled, grilled, broiled, or baked lean meat portions instead of frying them.

While deciding on which acid reflux foods to avoid chart, do not entirely carve out carbohydrates from your daily diet. Talking about carbs, focus on the complex carbohydrates than the unhealthy ones. Eat healthy sources of complex carbs like oatmeal, brown rice, and whole-grain bread, as they are high in fiber. A perfectly balanced combination of proteins and complex carbs can easily prevent possibilities of GER.