Meal ideas for Acid Reflux

lessonlearned

Although I never developed a HH, I did suffer from both GORD and a duodenal ulcer.

I was prescribed Omeprazole 20mg which I took for over 10 years:eek:

The long term affects of these types of medicines are devasting, often making the initial problem far worse over time.

I tried several times to wean myself off them, always going cold turkey. The rebound acid reflux was horrendous and I gave up, going back on to the meds.

I eventually said enough and weaned myself off them, very gradually over a period of several months.

I searched through the internet and found all sorts of helpful tips.

I drank fennel teas, very soothing. I used aniseed flavoured gaviscon, not the peppermint one.

I have also taken to chewing gum, it helps saliva production which in turn helps neutralise the acid.

As for my diet., well that is very much a case of trial and error. I find that dairy products have a soothing effect so I do drink milk. I eat Greek yoghurt every day and that has really helped.

I am fine with I spices, onions etc. and can still eat mild curries, etc

My only real trigger is if I eat too much wheat. I only eat real bread, no chorleywood processed stuff, no lasagne (cripples me) I can eat spaghetti and macaroni occasionally, rarely eat pizza, am ok with rice and Cous Cous now and again.

I'm gradually converting to a Paleo type diet, meat, fish, veg, fruit, some dairy and replacing grains with nuts and seeds.

My oesaphegus has finally healed, my ulcer has healed over and as long as I avoid too much wheat I'm fine. I can eat tasty spicy food with no ill effects.

I think it's trial and error but with careful management you can learn to work round it.

Getting off the medication wasn't easy but I'm glad I finally managed it. I feel better now than I had done in years.

Medication such as the protein pump inhibitors such as Omeprazole and lanzaprole should not be used long term, they mess up the stomachs natural enzyme production and make matters worse.

The stomach needs some acid to help you digest food and absorb nutrients, stopping acid production is counter productive.

Butterfly_Brain

When I was first diagnosed I was told to eat bland foods, nothing spicy, tomatoes etc and not to eat food that was boiling hot.
So I had basic foods such as scrambled eggs, omelettes,porridge for breakfasts
roast dinners, fishcakes, plain fish , chicken......lots of chicken, plain greek yoghurt with real honey which really helped, honey is a great healer and the yoghurt was cooling. The cheapest way to do it is to buy a big tub of greek yoghurt and just and honey to taste.
Cream sauces are ok and pasta is great because you can add anything to it, I had plenty of veg and baked potatoes in their jackets, mash and new potatoes, macaroni cheese was another favourite and you can eat fruit such as bananas. Stuffed mushrooms were another great meal

Avoid caffinated tea and coffee

Lots of recipes here

http://www.ehow.co.uk/way_5387144_recipes-gerd-sufferers.html

http://www.thegerddiet.com/

lessonlearned

I forgot to mention the honey......I add it to the Greek yogurt. Yummy and as you say it has natural healing properties.

Liquorice tablets are also helpful.

Frith

I have GORD and was given the same sheet of foods to avoid as you, by the looks of it!.


I did stick to it for a few months but now find the only thing that really cripples me is chocolate or a real sugar overload. I couldn't have anything with sugar in at all when I was really suffering - and no jam or honey.


The best alternative to milk I found is oat milk (I get it from Sainsburys). I actually prefer it to cows milk now, especially in tea! Also handy because you can keep it in the cupboard until you open it.


When I was sticking to the diet properly, I found I basically lived on baked potatoes. :-(

Frith

P.S I agree with the previous posters about coming off omeprazole etc as soon as possible. The new guidelines are to take it for just 2 weeks. There is an episode about it on Inside Health (radio 4 on iplayer) that I can't find to link to right now!


ETA - found it! It explains the rebound acid when coming off anti acid medication gives you an unpleasant fortnight but to stick with it.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03q8z4k


Re: curries - I stopped making them with tomatoes and used a tin of coconut milk instead for a while.


And I read that having extra pillows doesn't make a difference and better to raise the head of the bed. I had mine propped up on dictionaries and other thick books for a year!

bigmaz

lessonlearned wrote: »

Although I never developed a HH, I did suffer from both GORD and a duodenal ulcer.

I was prescribed Omeprazole 20mg which I took for over 10 years:eek:

The long term affects of these types of medicines are devasting, often making the initial problem far worse over time.

I tried several times to wean myself off them, always going cold turkey. The rebound acid reflux was horrendous and I gave up, going back on to the meds.

I eventually said enough and weaned myself off them, very gradually over a period of several months.

I searched through the internet and found all sorts of helpful tips.

I drank fennel teas, very soothing. I used aniseed flavoured gaviscon, not the peppermint one.

I have also taken to chewing gum, it helps saliva production which in turn helps neutralise the acid.

As for my diet., well that is very much a case of trial and error. I find that dairy products have a soothing effect so I do drink milk. I eat Greek yoghurt every day and that has really helped.

I am fine with I spices, onions etc. and can still eat mild curries, etc

My only real trigger is if I eat too much wheat. I only eat real bread, no chorleywood processed stuff, no lasagne (cripples me) I can eat spaghetti and macaroni occasionally, rarely eat pizza, am ok with rice and Cous Cous now and again.

I'm gradually converting to a Paleo type diet, meat, fish, veg, fruit, some dairy and replacing grains with nuts and seeds.

My oesaphegus has finally healed, my ulcer has healed over and as long as I avoid too much wheat I'm fine. I can eat tasty spicy food with no ill effects.

I think it's trial and error but with careful management you can learn to work round it.

Getting off the medication wasn't easy but I'm glad I finally managed it. I feel better now than I had done in years.

Medication such as the protein pump inhibitors such as Omeprazole and lanzaprole should not be used long term, they mess up the stomachs natural enzyme production and make matters worse.

The stomach needs some acid to help you digest food and absorb nutrients, stopping acid production is counter productive.

I'll stick to my meds for the 8 weeks, she was clear that this is how long it will take to heal. I am on 40mg Esomeprazole twice day.

Yeah, after the 8 weeks, I would like to try and control it without meds. And your advice looks amazing!! Thank you for sharing... Will be very helpful in the near future

freezspirit

got to go out now but will write more later in the meantime thought this might be helpful, http://www.seriouseats.com/talk/2010/08/acid-reflux-preventing-foods.html?ref=search

Emm-in-a-pickle

Hi OP, just read to catch up, sorry I didn`t get back earlier with the curry thing - basically, just fine chop fresh ginger (gives heat so you don`t miss the naughty chilli!), a sweet potato and/or some fennel bulb and sizzle in a frying pan with very little oil then simmer, put a tight lid on to keep steam in, stir and maybe add a drop of water if it looks dry. It soon goes mushy and that`s the base instead of onion and tomato. Experiment gently with the spices, but coriander is a must.

bigmaz

Emm-in-a-pickle wrote: »

Hi OP, just read to catch up, sorry I didn`t get back earlier with the curry thing - basically, just fine chop fresh ginger (gives heat so you don`t miss the naughty chilli!), a sweet potato and/or some fennel bulb and sizzle in a frying pan with very little oil then simmer, put a tight lid on to keep steam in, stir and maybe add a drop of water if it looks dry. It soon goes mushy and that`s the base instead of onion and tomato. Experiment gently with the spices, but coriander is a must.

Brill!! Thank you so much for this

lessonlearned

bigmaz wrote: »

I'll stick to my meds for the 8 weeks, she was clear that this is how long it will take to heal. I am on 40mg Esomeprazole twice day.

Yeah, after the 8 weeks, I would like to try and control it without meds. And your advice looks amazing!! Thank you for sharing... Will be very helpful in the near future

Yes definitely follow your doctors instructions. That's a high dose so you will need to come off them gradually. Do it with your gps supervision and you should be ok.

Good luck

The really bland diet won't be forever just until your osephagus has healed.