If you experience a burning sensation in your chest or a bitter or sour taste after eating, you may be experiencing the symptoms of acid reflux. Acid reflux is the backward flow of stomach acid into the esophagus. Lifestyle changes, including changing your diet, can help improve your symptoms. If you don't control your symptoms, acid reflux can progress to gastroesophageal reflux disease or GERD, a more severe form of reflux.
Fatty Foods
Fatty and fried foods should be avoided if you experience acid reflux, as these foods are slow to digest and end up sitting around in your stomach. Foods such as French fries, cream-based soups, fatty meats like bacon and sausage, and vegetables or pasta made with cheese sauce fall under this category.
Avoiding fatty and fried foods also means avoiding the calories that come with it. Losing weight if you're overweight can reduce reflux symptoms. In a meta-analysis of nine studies, physicians from the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Affairs Medical Center found that six of the studies showed a statistically significant association between obesity and GERD.
Large Meals
Avoiding large meals can help with acid reflux symptoms. As with fatty or fried foods, large meals have a tendency to sit in your stomach. In addition, large meals can cause your clothes to feel tight, which increases pressure in your abdomen. It's especially important to avoid large meals right before bedtime. When you lay down, it's easier for the acid to reflux into your esophagus because gravity isn't working in your favor. Waiting two to three hours after eating before you lie down should be sufficient. Break your large meals into five or six "mini meals" throughout the day to prevent eating too much at once.
Acidic Foods
Because of their acidity, citrus fruits can aggravate the lining of the esophagus that may already be damaged. Some people may be more sensitive to these fruits and need to avoid them completely while others may tolerate a small amount. Besides citrus fruits, tomato-based products like tomato sauce, pizza, salsa should be limited or avoided.
Flavorings
Spicy foods can contribute to reflux symptoms. Therefore, it's best to avoid spicy flavoring and sauces. You should also avoid mint flavoring, such as peppermint tea or candies. Chocolate can lower the tone of the muscular valve at the lower end of the esophagus called the lower esophageal sphincter, which allows stomach acid to reflux back into the esophagus.
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