FIX your GERD-Acid Reflux-Heartburn
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If you've been taking a PPI for longer than 2 weeks, STOP IT.
Actually don't just STOP. You have to wean off them because your body is now dependent. Nobody told you that would happen, did they?
The other factoid you probably weren't told is that those magic little pills (mostly purple) are linked to fatal heart disease, fatal kidney disease and stomach cancer. And that death risk INCREASES the longer those drugs are used.
Doctors who recommend taking a pharmaceutical that a) won't fix the problem and b) has dangerous side effects are irresponsible at best. Most of them don't know how dangerous PPIs are because they don't keep up with new info and rely SOLELY on what the drug rep tells them. "It's perfectly safe!!!" she says. "The box says don't use more than 2 weeks but everybody does (wink wink)!"
How did the drug rep determine these drugs are “safe”? Because the drug company she works for DID THE SAFETY TESTING ON THEIR OWN DRUG. If no one dies during the short testing period, they deem it safe. Do you trust ANY company to do its own safety testing, particularly when billions of dollars are at stake?
GERD is not "Too Much" Stomach Acid
Did you know that the cause of acid reflux is NOT too much stomach acid (hydrochloric acid or HCL)? It's TOO LITTLE.
Acid reflux is actually a malfunction of your LES (lower esophageal sphincter): it's supposed to close after food passes thru, keeping your stomach acid in your stomach. With too little stomach acid, the flap doesn't get the signal to close and undigested foods and acid can travel back up your throat.
Stomach acid is so corrosive — just shy of battery acid — that if you got some on your hands, it would burn right thru them. You can see how damaging that might be to your esophagus!
ConMed (conventional medicine) docs, rather than fix the LES problem will give you a magic pill that stops your body from producing HCL so it won't travel back up the throat.
Yes, it works in getting rid of acid reflux. The logic is clear: stop the acid, stop the burn. And truth be told, a LOT of people want that quick fix! Having had acid reflux, I totally get it.
A pill relieves the burn, but it does NOT fix the digestive issues that caused the reflux/heartburn.
Plus these pills cause other, MUCH BIGGER PROBLEMS, like...
increasing your risk of cardiovascular disease, chronic kidney disease and upper gastrointestinal cancer
preventing you from getting the nutrients from your food (stomach acid is required)
leaving you exposed to food-borne pathogens, parasites and bacteria (stomach acid kills this stuff)
Non-Pharma Fixes for GERD, Heartburn
👉 Fixing your reflux is NOT complicated or expensive: a few simple diet/lifestyle changes, adding in a few quality supplements... SIMPLE. But not necessarily easy. Your success totally depends on how much you want permanent relief. Once I understood the long-term consequences of allowing it to continue, my desire for permanent relief went up!
Reflux RELIEF
In an acute situation (you are currently suffering), here are a few things that can help asap:
Baking soda in water: I put 1/2 tsp of baking soda in a short glass of water, stir and shoot. The relief is pretty immediate. If not, I'll do it again. I've done 3x in a row in a really bad situation. Wonderful, happy belching ensues =/:-)
Digestive enzymes are essential. We use these. This is also a probiotic and a prebiotic so 3-aids in one! PS. You get the best deal buying 3 boxes at once: you get free shipping, a free account, and a free gift valued up to $75 on your next order!
Gentle exercise: a 10-minute walk is perfect, 10 minutes of gentle rebounding, or 10 minutes on a Vibe (love my Vibe!!!). You want to get your muscles warm and active, this helps sluggish digestion. I have even gotten out of bed at night, done 10 minutes on the Vibe and gotten back in bed much better!
Don’t eat 3 hours before bed so there is no undigested food in your stomach.
If you do eat too close to bedtime:
Lay on your left side. Your stomach is on your left side and slightly angled so this helps keeps the acid down. If you lay on your right side, the acid comes right back up!
Arrange your pillows so that your upper body is slightly elevated which helps gravity keep it all down. This HELPS but does not always work. If it's bad, I have had to sit UP. Hugely unpleasant but stops the burn.
Do the Vibe or treadmill or take a walk (10 minutes) to help along the digestion.
You can also raise the head of your bed 6-8" for the same reason. Frankly, this never helped me but I have heard from others that it helped them. Worth a try until you are CURED.
Reflux PREVENTION
Here's how to keep reflux at bay until you are CURED.
STIMULATE YOUR HCL PRODUCTION:
Take 1 tsp to 1 tbsp of ACV (apple cider vinegar) before meals. You can shoot it back "neat", or mix with a little water and shoot. This wakes up your stomach and helps get the HCL going. There is no hard science on this but there are literally MILLIONS of people who swear by it. I have done it and it helps. You want a brand with the mother: Bragg’s is reliable and available in every grocery store.
If you can’t stomach ACV, try bitters. I have used this brand, they are wonderful. Since I can do ACV, I don’t bother with bitters.
You can try an HCL supplement but it burned my stomach and the above 2 suggestions work just as well.
Digestive enzymes are essential. We use these. This is also a probiotic and a prebiotic so 3-aids in one! PS. You get the best deal buying 3 boxes at once: you get free shipping, a free account, and a free gift valued up to $75 on your next order!
Use a good quality salt (we use this). Salt stimulates your digestion. Salt is essential to your physical health, we'd die without it.
Eat clean. Glyphosate is a known cause of leaky gut, part of the perfect acid reflux storm. To avoid glyphosate, eat as much organic and non-GMO foods as possible. Eat pastured meats & eggs from animals supplemented with non-GMO feed.
Fermented foods are also good, but alone will likely not heal you. Once you are healed, it can help keep you that way. Healing from such a fierce digestive issue needs a few more tools than just fermented foods. But you have to see what works for you! Yogurt, sauerkraut, kimchi, kefir, kombucha -- the best fermented foods are home made. Store-bought, unless it says made with live cultures, are often made with vinegar which means it’s pickled and may not contain a single live bacteria. So check the label. If there’s vinegar in thar, it’s not fermented.
Cut out commercial sweeteners: most are unhealthy chemical compositions and mess with digestion and blood sugar. Use organic sugar, honey or maple syrup for your sweetener. I know, I know… contrarian here. But you won’t die and you’ll feel great. Go for it.
Cut grains from your diet, either out or way back. Even if you are not celiac or even grain-sensitive, grains are problematic when it comes to digestion. The book Wheat Belly is an excellent resource on the topic. Cut grains for 30 days, then reintroduce slowly, see what happens.
Pasteurized dairy is "dead" food meaning it's had all the beneficial enzymes and bacteria killed in the pasteurization process. These are the very nutrients that help you digest your food. Raw dairy is an amazing healing food. I highly recommend giving it a fair trial and see how you do with it.
Industrial oils are actually a dangerous food. Humans need good quality fats to help build and maintain healthy cells -- industrial oils do not promote health, they are anti-nutrients! The best oils to use are avocado, organic coconut and/or a REALLY GOOD QUALITY olive oil. If you have access to ghee and clean lard, this is best for cooking and frying! Here's how to make ghee, really simple.
Stop eating 2-3 hours before bed so that you are fully digested when you lay down. This is one of the BEST practices that gives me almost instant relief from reflux!
Besides the above, here are...
Foods that tend to make reflux worse: alcohol, any drinks/foods full of chemicals, artificial sweeteners, fried foods, veg oils, processed foods. Then you might have your “special” foods. My special "avoid" list includes cooked tomatoes and raw onion… weird because raw tomatoes and cooked onions are zero problem!
Foods that can help prevent acid reflux: Bone broth is excellent, simple to make and very healing for the gut. Aloe vera gel is also very healing (I add this to my smoothies). Teas that help digest are parsley, ginger, peppermint, fennel.
Reflux CURE
Here's the cure. It includes ALL of the above which will be habits any day now, right? These are practices you’ll keep.
Remember that you can get reflux again. Just like with weight loss: if you go back to your old way of eating, you'll go back to your old way of looking and feeling. There ain't no way around it.
The main idea is to promote healthy levels of HCL in your stomach so that you kill pathogens and digest your food with no reflux.
Take your digestive enzymes every day. If I’m going to have a “dangerous” meal, I’ll take a second packet beforehand. Even when you feel you are cured, it’s cheap insurance against stomach cancer!!!
If you’ve been doing ACV before your meals, no need to stop. Again, cheap insurance.
Eat clean, nutrient dense food
Digestion starts in your mouth and your salivary glands secrete digestive juices. Think of a lemon: does your mouth water? Good! If not, get a lemon and practice with it: cut it and have a lick. You want your salivary glands fully operational.
Chew. Chew until your food is mush or close to it. Even cottage cheese. This is WHY we have teeth and WHY your salivary glands are set to digest.
Eat slowly, putting down your fork at least every few bites.
Don’t overeat at one sitting. You can always have more in an hour. Overeating is a common cause of reflux.
That will fix you up. Take 30 days and implement the above, see how you feel. You should get relief.
Which PPI are you taking?
omeprazole: Prilosec, Zegerid
esomeprazole: Nexium
lansoprazole: Prevacid
dexlansoprazole: Dexilant, Kapidex
rabeprazole: Aciphex
pantoprazole: Protonix
#youcanhealyourself #realfoodheals #ifyourdoctorisnothealthyrun
RESOURCES
Digestive Enzymes-Probiotic-Prebiotic bit.ly/xoguthealth
Vibration Plate https://amzn.to/3hp4RXe
Bitters https://amzn.to/36e5RrD
Aloe Vera Gel https://amzn.to/2ElMQds (this is Lily of the Desert and you can get for the same price in a local health food store!)
The book Wheat Belly, excellent resource on grains & digestive health
Wash U article: https://medicine.wustl.edu/news/popular-heartburn-drugs-linked-to-fatal-heart-disease-chronic-kidney-disease-stomach-cancer/
More than you ever wanted to know about HCL: https://draxe.com/nutrition/hydrochloric-acid/
Updated 230805