1. Keep a Food Diary
While there are a variety of factors that can contribute to acid reflux, diet is one of the chief culprits. Identifying the foods that trigger your heartburn is the first step to eliminating it. A food diary is an easy shortcut to figuring out what's causing your discomfort. Use your food diary to record everything you eat and the time you eat it. Then, keep track of any physical symptoms, including heartburn, difficulty swallowing, coughing or stomach pain, and the time they developed. Look back over what you ate, and note which foods are associated with your acid reflux symptoms.
2. Eliminate Problematic Foods
Once you've identified the foods that give you heartburn, you can then eliminate them from your diet. Some people find that their symptoms clear up immediately. However, you may continue to experience acid reflux and you might need to then make further changes to your diet or lifestyle with the assistance of your doctor. Doctors recommend that you eliminate possible trigger foods from your diet for at least two weeks. If your acid reflux shows no improvement over that time, you might need to consider other causes of your heartburn.
3. Recognize Common Heartburn Triggers
You'll find it helpful to keep some of the more common problematic foods in mind as you try to identify dietary causes of your heartburn. Highly acidic foods such as orange juice, tomatoes and tomato products (sauce, ketchup, juice), grapefruit juice, lemons and cranberry juice cause many people discomfort. High-fat foods such as milk shakes, ice-cream, potato chips, donuts, salad dressing, chocolate and cookies may also trigger heartburn. You should also avoid caffeine and alcohol if you want to control your acid reflux, so coffee, tea, wine and beer should be consumed sparingly if at all. Other foods may cause you heartburn include fatty meats, fried foods, carbonated beverages, spicy foods, hot peppers, mashed potatoes, french fries and raw onions. However, it's important to keep in mind that everyone is different, and you may have unique or uncommon trigger foods.
4. Discuss Dietary Changes With a Health Care Practitioner
Before making any significant changes to your diet it is best to consult with your doctor or a certified dietitian. A doctor can determine whether acid reflux is in fact, the correct diagnosis, and a nutritionist can help you create a low-acid eating plan that suits your personal tastes.
