Cures For Acid Reflux?

Emily Nouvertne · #1 08/14/05, 01:17 PM

Does anyone have any long term cures for acid reflux and the symptoms it brings with it? Thanks.

Ravenlost · #2 08/14/05, 01:24 PM

I take Nexium.

Chronic acid reflux can cause esphogeal cancer and other problems. It shouldn't be taken lightly.

Windy in Kansas · #3 08/14/05, 01:26 PM

This is going to sound crazy---but a lady I know that reads a lot of natural cures swears that she halts acid reflux quickly by taking a teaspoon of vineagar. And yes, I know that it is acid. She claims that if you have acid reflux it is your body telling you that it needs more acid, not too much. Might be worth a try if you have counter measures close at hand.

I tried it once with a mild case and found it did work for me.

GrannyG · #4 08/14/05, 01:30 PM

Elevate the head of your bed, this can be done by putting the bed frame legs up on a cememt block or bricks. This will help some at night. Taking an antacid after meals will help some, too.Your DR. can give you an Rx for medication that will help reduce stomach acid.

Jaclynne · #5 08/14/05, 01:34 PM

I used to have terrible acid reflux, my lungs were irritated and I was miserable all night and often during the day. Doctors prescribed three different meds, they all gave me headaches, etc. So I started looking at my diet. First, I cut out carbonated drinks, then cut out sugar. Cinnamon is also a trigger for me. A couple of months without colas etc, and I hardly had an episode of acid reflux. Its been several years now and I occasionally drink a carbonated beverage, but still cannot get by with more than 1 or 2 a week. I still don't eat much sugar either.

So look at your diet, figure out what triggers it for you. If it was like me, it seemed liked everything caused reflux, but not really.

If you need to loose any weight, do so. This can also bring some relief.

Stress can also be a big factor. I don't know about your life but mine is seldom stress free. But do as much as you can to get rid of the stress or learn to deal with it.

Oh, and for immediate relief eat celery sticks.

I feel for you.
Halo

edited to add: I second the post about raising the head of your bed, it sure beats sleeping in the recliner and it does help a little.
Also I tried the vinegar thing - didn't work for me. But acid reflux is way more than just acid indegestion. Also know that long term use of antiacid tablets can harm your teeth, but so can constant acid reflux.

via media · #6 08/14/05, 01:44 PM

I agree with Ravenlost that it is something not to take lightly. My grandfather had to have his esophagus removed (cancer) and his stomach moved up into his neck to compensate. He had a really bad time of it.

GrannyG has good advice and I'll add that you shouldn't lie down immediately after eating.

Please see your doctor.

/VM

Tango · #7 08/14/05, 02:08 PM

I started taking prilosec (over the counter) when I gagged up a whole lot of acid in my sleep. Scared the heck out of me. With prilosec, my life has pretty much returned to normal. I use to have to schedule my day around eating - couldn't work after eating for instance. There were a lot of things I couldn't eat (like lettuce or cucumbers) I don't like the idea of having to take a pill everyday but I was taking about 12 anti-acid chewables and pills a day and still had acid reflux. For me the vinegar didn't work. I was taking apple cidar vinegar for something else for a long time while I had acid reflux. Cutting out sodas and eating smaller meals etc. didn't work for me either.

ponyexpress · #8 08/14/05, 05:57 PM

I agree with what everybody else has said. the food triggers for me are chocolate (candy bars are a killer!) and orange juice.
A quick cure when I'm gagging is to drink a LARGE glass of milk straight down. I've also found that the more milk I drink, the less trouble I have.
I take NEXIUM also, and swear by it. My insurance won't pay for it. To show how utterly STUPID they are --- if I don't have my NEXIUM, I have to use 3 asthma inhalers every day --- they cost more than twice what the NEXIUM alone does. Not to mention what an ER visit would cost.

blufford · #9 08/14/05, 06:45 PM

Prilosec does it for me. I've also used pepcid and zantac with varing degress of sucess. Nexium works great but got tired of begging the Doctor for a prescription. Can't wait till allegra goes over the counter. (allergy meds)

boxwoods · #10 08/14/05, 06:58 PM

The best cure is to change your eating habits.

like try the atkins diet for a while. at least two weeks and you will see a world of difference.

FiddleKat · #11 08/14/05, 08:28 PM

I suggest seeing your doctor first before trying anything. You want to determine your level of acid reflux. My 7 yr old DD has reflux, so bad that she would literally vomit up food everyday. She had a surgery called a Nissen in which they wrap a piece of the stomach around the espohgus becuase the spinkter valve wasn't working.
Acid reflux can do severe damage to your espohgus and your doctor can prescribe the right med.
Avoid acid type foods as well, tomato sauce, oranges and that tend to bring it on more. Eat smaller meals and more frequently as well will help. And sit for a bit after meals, don't lie down as that will cause it to inflame.
My daughter at one point was on Prevacid, Zantac, Reglan and 6 teaspoons of Mylanta a day. Now she is down to just Prevacid and doing better.

mightybooboo · #12 08/14/05, 11:47 PM

Chocolate before bed can trigger it.The purple pill works,and as Raven pointed out,its a very dangerous condition.Get it treated.May be able to go off med at later date,I was able to.For both me and mrs. it was predominately a stress trigger,got out of that situation,now very rare for me,sorta rare for her.But took the meds to get back to normal for us,I still get mild cases,but off meds.

BooBoo

mightybooboo · #13 08/14/05, 11:51 PM

Like to add,stress is a major detriment in so many ways.Its not worth the big bucks if its going to harm you.
IMHO anyhow.

BooBoo

Oregonsparkie · #14 08/15/05, 02:59 PM

I too had acid reflux at least 3 times a week. I would wake up in the middle of the night with it sitting at the back of my throat(had to swallow it back bown,yuk...) sometimes with a splitting headache - now I dont have it at all. Havent had a episode for years.. My cure ---- I was diagnosed with sleep apnea and was put on a cpap machine at night. My acid reflux was caused by my tongue falling against the back of my throat when I sleep , I would try and inhale so hard I was sucking up my stomach juices.

Not saying you have it but if you have ever been told that you stop breathing while you sleep then PLEASE go see a doctor, trust me - im lucky to be alive today....

skruzich · #15 08/15/05, 03:29 PM

sleep apnea could be the cause of it, I suffered from it too, but diet is probably the biggest problem. I found that certain spices like oregano and certain foods like pork caused alot of the problem. I also take betaine with pepsin which is a natural digestive aid, one a day. I still eat pizza every now and then and I eat hot foods all the time the hotter the better. And i was on prilosec for years until i figured out what was causing most of my problem. It was so bad taht I couldn't drink water at one time without burning.

Tango · #16 08/15/05, 03:37 PM

Not to hijack the thread- since this is relevant, but what was the problem with prilosec? I've been taking it for about two months now, maybe a little more. I had AR everyday and was taking cartons of tums. Zantac, a prescription my mother had and she'd give me a couple of pills a month, worked also. If I stop or forget the prilosec the AR is back in a couple of days. I tried experiemtning with my diet, including smaller meals, but I didn't find relief. I guess I could have problems with a larger range of foods ...

nodak3 · #17 08/15/05, 04:29 PM

PLEASE DO NOT TAKE VINEGAR IF YOU HAVE EROSIONS OR VOCAL CORD DAMAGE--it will hurt like the dickens and can cause a laryngospasm, which can kill you. Acid reflux has nothing really to do with too little or too much acid. It is about acid in the wrong place. Plain indigestion can be due to too little or too much acid, but not acid reflux or gerd. This is a serious condition, precursor to cancer and/or emphysema. It needs serious treatment, assuming you have had the tests and know you really have it. You can have deadly damage and feel no heartburn. For me, it requires eating right (my trigger foods are not the usual list, find what works for you), loose clothing, raising the head of the bed, limiting nighttime eating, AND taking prilosec as prescribed, which for me is 20mg twice a day plus 10mg pepcid at bedtime. If it had been caught when I was little (born with it and nearly died but they didn't know from what back then) surgery would have been in order. This is one disease where old wive's tales and folk medicine can bring pain relief all the while cancer is eating your esophagus and acid is destroying your lungs. This is NOT a do it yourself disease. PLEASE get appropriate treatment. My mom died of complications of it, my brother is struggling with it, and I have vocal cord damage so severe it has nearly killed me 5 times. You need a good dr and you need to do what you need to do every day, all the time.

bumpus · #18 08/15/05, 05:37 PM

First thing I did to control my acid reflux was to:

I raised the head of my bed a few inches which keep the contents heading to the other end, instead of trying to go toward my throat.

I Take 3 cheap antiacid chewable multi-flavored pills ( called Equate ) from Wal-Mart or Right-Aid etc. They come in a large bottle and costs about $4.00 to $5.00 a bottle. Chewed them up and made a spit and swallowed it with a small amount of water before bed time.

Every time I had a bad attack I would take at least 2 or 3 and chew them up and swallow.

This may be hard for some people but I stopped drinking carbonated pop.
I drink water all day now and plenty of it.

I also stopped drinking coffee with caffeine in it, because it causes acid reflux.
I drink only decaf coffee now.

After eating all of these equate pills which are full of calcium I now do NOT have the joint pains I use to have, and I can lift my arms over my head again with NO problem. Thank God ! ! !

By the way about this time last year I was just getting over having cancer in my throat on my vocal cords, which I had to have 3 operations and, 34 treatments of radiation to stop it.

It took almost a full year to heal from the radiation. They say the cancer is gone not.

This could have been caused buy the acid in my throat all of the time which does not bother me now.

I still take 3 chewable antiacid calcium pills every night at bed time.
I try not to eat after 6:00 pm at night that way nothing in my stomach at bed time to cause a lot of problems.

It all worked for me ! ! !

woodspirit · #19 08/15/05, 10:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Windy in Kansas

This is going to sound crazy---but a lady I know that reads a lot of natural cures swears that she halts acid reflux quickly by taking a teaspoon of vineagar. And yes, I know that it is acid. She claims that if you have acid reflux it is your body telling you that it needs more acid, not too much. Might be worth a try if you have counter measures close at hand.

I tried it once with a mild case and found it did work for me.

actually an old folk remedy, tonic, is vinegar and honey. apparently it has antiseptic qualities. just read about an old couple that have been married since before dirt, they are both over 100 years old and asked how they lived so long they said they both start out evry morning with honey and vinegar

MikeD · #20 08/15/05, 11:06 PM

Two big things that contribute for me are 1.) Stress and 2.) ANything, usually soda, with phosphoric acid in it. It's a battle for me because there is simply no chance of limiting the stress in my life at the moment - a three year legal battle that is now going into phase two that could last another year or two. Part of the problem, for me, is the damage that the antacids themselves do. One thing that seems to have helped get things back to regulation is yogurt, believe it or not. Increasing my probiotic intake actually seems to have helped with my acid levels. If I ever remember it I may experiment and try switching to a pill form probiotic and removing the yogurt as various forms of dairy tend to contribute to AR for me.

Something to consider also, especially for moderate to heavy soda drinkers, while in the process of building my first motorcycle 15 years ago I knew that I could save a bunch of money on a set of rims that had been sitting on a dealer's shelf that had some mild surface rust on the chrome just by cleaning them. The cleaner of choice - Coke.