Acid Reflux

Here is the information I accumulated regarding Acid Reflux. Your esophagus can be harmed by continual acid reflux but you need to know that it is also very tough and thick. We do need to work on making the acid stop to prevent any  problems down the road.

The main reason for Acid Reflux is that even though acid comes up from the stomach, there isn’t enough acid or enzymes in the stomach to digest the food in a timely manner. By the time you are 35 the natural enzymes that were in your stomach are no longer there unless you  have eaten mostly fresh foods all your life. So your body has to steal enzymes from the pancreas which leaves it open for diabetes and cancer. Even though you are bringing up acid, it does not mean you have too much, it merely means you have undigested food in your stomach and when you lay down, the food pushes the acid up into the esophagus. You need more acids and enzymes so your food will have passed into the small colon by bedtime. Meats can take 18 hours to leave the stomach! They are pretty much rotted by then. Best to get it moving! Enzymes break it down so it does not take all that time. Here are my suggestions and what worked for me.

Meals:

Dinner should be completed 4 hours before bedtime and accompanied by a digestive enzyme.  At first, enzymes and digestive acids should be taken at each meal or as directed on the bottle. You can scale down later on. An empty stomach is good for your night time rest and to prevent reflux. To rest well, you want your digestion to have a break too. If you can and until your reflux settles down, you may want to try to switch dinner and lunch. The heavier meal in the day gives you more time to digest. Just a thought.

Eat fresh first with each meal. An apple before breakfast followed by whole grain cereal with Almond Milk is a good start to your day. Slices of cucumber and carrots before lunch followed by a sandwich of good tasting whole grain bread with lots of lettuce, maybe a little mustard, a slice of tomato and a few slices of turkey – preferably organically raised but at least has no nitrites or nitrates. Dinner should be 1/2 a plate’s worth of a loaded salad with a lemon juice, mustard, honey, extra virgin olive oil based dressing. Use lots of fresh herbs but be careful of more than a few sprigs of parsley. Parsley is a diuretic and can cause you to lose your calcium and potassium along with increased eliminations. A small amount is good. Dinner can be fish, chicken, a little red meat once or twice a week, lots of veggies, or an all veggie based entree. With dinner, take an enzyme. This will help you to digest your dinner, clear out your stomach before bed and take the stress off of your pancreas by not stealing enzymes from there. NOTE: Do not mix fresh fruits and veggies. Their enzymes fight and stress your liver. I made a mango dressing for my salad but quickly cooked the mango in a bit of wine to kill the enzymes and the alcohol and then mixed it with other ingredients. Yummy and safe to mix with salad veggies. Or have a big fruit salad instead. Papaya and Pineapple pair very well with meats. Their natural enzymes break down the meat.

I had Acid Reflux so bad, I was waking nightly and gagging on acid and could not breathe. Now it is all gone unless I foolishly drink a late night cup of coffee with a piece of cake. If I take a Food Enzyme, then I will fair well but that is not a good choice for every day.

What to avoid:

Caffeine, white wine, fatty foods, fried foods, pickled foods, processed foods, sugar, white flour – including pasta – there are good Brown Rice pastas that is really good and some of the whole wheat pastas are tasty and do not taste too wheaty. Some pasta once in awhile is ok, just like a good sour dough or french bread is fine but should not be part of the daily fare. Also, avoid milk and milk products – very acid forming and robs you of calcium from your bones. Butter and a little cheese are fine and Keifer once in awhile is ok too. Avoid canned foods that are not organic and it is best to buy things that are jarred instead. We have an excellent chocolate that is sweetened with Xylitol (contains 40% of the calories of sucrose and it doesn’t hurt your sugar levels) and 2 little squares is very satisfying. Did I mention delicious? Would not have believed it if had not tried it. Better than Sees! Our chocolates are actually good for you. They have antioxidants packed into them. We have a cardio one that is dark chocolate with raspberry and it has heart healthy ingredients. Really yummy! Be careful with Xylitol at first. It can give you diarrhea if you eat too much until you get used to it. We have the bag of Xylitol to use just as you would sugar and it tastes the same to me as sugar and I am finicky about sweetners. Xylitol Bulk (1 lb. bag) and we have mints and to die for gum! All with Xylitol. Sugar is a real problem when it comes to Acid Reflux. Xylitol has no after taste at all. Safe for diabetics and pregnant ladies and children. It is in all of our dental care products too. Another subject. Take a look at the tab for Various Illnesses and Dental Care and the Gift Ideas for the chocolates.
Products I suggest:

*Slippery Elm (100 caps) It soothes and heals the whole digestive tract. 2 capsules can be opened and put into a little water, mixed well and then drink it on down. Will soothe and heal the esophagus tract and stop the acid reflux if the stomach is empty. It also contains Vitamin F which an essential fatty acid and can also be found in Black Currant Oil. Very nutritious too. Makes eliminations easy and swift!

*Food Enzymes (120 caps) This digests meats and fats and all other foods. This is the best one but we have others if you don’t need the full spectrum of enzymes.

Probiotic Eleven® (90 caps) This is good bacteria that your body needs to stay healthy and it balances your digestive tract. It is the only one we have that has L-salavarius in it and it is hard to find it in other probiotic formulas. Probiotics get you back in balance especially if you have had antibiotics. L-salavarius does not regrow in our systems and is the one bacteria that is literally killed off completely with antibiotics. It is like a pac man. It is the bacteria that gets in and chews up all the old built up waste in your colon. If your colon is healthy and clean, you not only feel better but you will not have digestive problems. I would take this at night with my calcium and Vitamin E. All of these need to work in your system without food going in too. E is depleted by Iron so it is best to take it before bed.

Stomach Comfort (60 chewable tabs) This is our chewable enzyme. It contains calcium carbonate, alginic acid (from kelp), wintergreen oil, papaya fruit, slippery elm bark, licorice root concentrate and ginger rhizome, all of which may help to protect the mucous lining of the esophagus, aid and promote digestion, and soothe the digestive tract.

Chlorophyll, Liquid (16 fl. oz.) A green drink is soothing to the digestive tract, eliminates waste, assures you of fresh breath and is very healthy for you. Must stay refrigerated. You drink 1 teaspoon in water twice a day and here are some of the benefits.
Benefits:
•Helps promote the natural blood-cleansing functions of the body.
•Promotes strong immune response.
•Strengthens cells.
•Deodorizes the body, including the bowel

Also the molecule of chlorophyll is similar to our blood. If you have heavy periods, this will make your body replace the blood quickly and replace your minerals.

Here are other suggestions if there are other digestive issues.

Gastro Health Conc. (60 caps) This heals digestive problems and irritations and is great teamed with Slippery Elm. This can also heal a beginning ulcer in a few days. I know! Have used it myself for this. This is just an item I would take if there were other digestive problems.

The way to start feeling good…

CLT-X (100 caps) This is our gentlest of cleanses and is a good way to start cleansing if you are working every day or have a sensitive digestive tract. If you add in Slippery Elm, it works even better. If your colon is clean, your whole body will function better.