Most fruits and vegetables work well in an acid reflux diet, but you may have to avoid acidic fruits and additives in your vegetables to reduce or prevent symptoms. Acid reflux arises from stomach acid backup. Stomach acid contents flow back up into the esophagus, causing the burning or painful sensation of heartburn in your upper chest and stomach. A sour or bitter taste may occur in the back of your mouth from acidic contents.
Triggers
Heavy meals can result in acid reflux because of a delay in stomach emptying that requires the stomach to secrete excess acid. Certain foods also trigger acid reflux, including fried or fatty foods, tomato-based products, citrus fruit, chocolate, caffeine and alcohol. You may have your own specific triggers because people respond differently to foods. Trigger foods relax an esophageal muscle so that it does not shut fully and allows stomach acid to rise up. Keep a food journal for a week, writing down the foods you eat, the time of day and symptoms that follow to gradually eliminate trigger foods from your diet, according to the McKinley Health Center at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Fruits to Enjoy or Avoid
Bananas, pears, peaches, melons, berries and apples are recommended in the acid reflux diet from Jackson-Siegelbaum Gastroenterology. These fruits digest smoothly to decrease the risk of acid reflux. However, avoid citrus fruits, such as oranges and grapefruit, if you find that their acidic content triggers symptoms. Tomatoes may also result in acid reflux because of their acidic properties. Consume fresh fruit or canned and frozen fruit without added sugar or syrup.
Vegetable Choices
Like fruit, vegetables also contain fiber to aid digestion. Eat raw, steamed or lightly cooked vegetables. Avoid creamy-style or fried vegetables, which contain fats that can aggravate acid reflux. Enjoy vegetables in soups, but keep them low-fat or fat-free based. Avoid adding chicken, beef, milk or cream to the soups. Some people experience bloating and gas from certain vegetables, such as broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower. Gas symptoms can increase bouts of acid reflux, so you need to avoid gas-producing vegetables if you find that they cause problems. Celery and carrot sticks make healthy snacks, instead of high-fat snacks, to avoid acid reflux.
Low-Fat Diet
With a few limitations and knowing your trigger foods, adding plenty of fruits and vegetables to your meals will help reduce or prevent heartburn and acid reflux. An acid reflux diet focuses on low-fat intake. The diet may also include lean meat, skinless poultry, fish, whole grains and low-fat or nonfat dairy products. Eat fruits and vegetables for snacks as often as possible, but you can include snacks and desserts in your diet with 3 g or less of fat per serving.
