Heartburn and Food: Your Best Choices
Sunday, April 12th, 2009Many people experience heartburn on a regular basis. If this describes you, you have probably discovered that it’s your favorite foods that seem to do you in every time. Not too long after a great meal, you might suddenly experience a burning feeling in the chest area that’s quite painful. And it can sometimes even drive your meal right back up into the esophagus.
But those who suffer from heartburn can often find a way to make friends with food. They just need to learn which foods are safe to eat and which ones to stay away from.
In order to relieve the symptoms of heartburn, you need to reduce the excessive amount of acid being produced in your stomach. You’ll also want to soothe and restore the lining of your esophagus, which shields your body from harm.
Healthy eating on its own isn’t an effective treatment of heartburn. Following the recommendations of the food pyramid will certainly help. But those who suffer from heartburn will most likely have to make some other changes in their eating habits as well.
If you study the food pyramid, you’ll see that grains should be the focus of your diet. When it comes to heartburn relief, grains are particularly essential for good health and pain management. Concentrate particularly on consuming more whole grains. Stay away from highly processed, starchy products that contain a lot of sugar and fat.
The next level of the pyramid recommends eating lots of vegetables and fruits. But if you suffer from heartburn, not all produce is created equal. Some of these products can actually make your condition worse.
To avoid any issues, stick with fruits such as apples, pears and grapes that are unlikely to aggravate the problem. But fruits that contain citric acid, such as grapefruit, lemons, oranges and limes, can lead to an instant outbreak of heartburn.
On the other hand, most vegetables are perfectly safe for those who suffer from heartburn, so eat your fill. Just make sure to prepare them in healthy manner. Avoid using generous amounts of fat as a garnish, particularly those that are considered to be unhealthy. Heartburn is very frequently triggered by consuming excessive quantities of fat.
When choosing which proteins to include in your diet, always opt for the lower fat products. Lean meats won’t lead to heartburn problems. So avoid the marbled cuts of beef, and enjoy the well trimmed choices.
Similar to vegetables, though, how you prepare your healthy cut of meat is important. Bake, grill, or broil it and your heartburn symptoms are less likely to make an appearance.