Everyone suffering from heartburn pain would benefit from a special acid reflux diet.  Obviously, there are bad foods we love but should avoid in an effort to avoid heartburn exacerbations.  Likewise, there are good foods to help with the symptoms as well.  Gastroesophageal reflux disease treatments are many, and simple changes in our diets can have a huge effect on sufferers and their associated symptoms.  Not everything works for everyone, but these are some ideas to keep in mind the next time you sit down to eat either at home or in a restaurant.

Safe Foods for the Acid Reflux Diet

There are plenty of foods from every main category that can help avoid indigestion and heartburn pain.  People with acid reflux or GERD often find themselves limited with dietary restrictions, when in fact, there many foods that won’t upset the gastric system.  Fish, extra-lean ground beef, London broil (steak), and skinless chicken breast are all meats you can enjoy.  Vegetables such as green beans, broccoli, carrots, cabbage and baked potatoes are good as well.  For fruits in an acid reflux diet, eat bananas and apples.  And of course we all love desserts.  Eat desserts that are fat-free, or try jelly beans or red licorice.  Baked potato chips are also a good snack to enjoy.  For the salad lovers, try using low-fat or fat-free salad dressings to help avoid acid reflux symptoms.  Dairy sometimes gives heartburn symptoms, but if you stick with the acid reflux diet foods such as fat-free cream cheese, fat-free sour cream and even feta or goat cheese, you’ll be doing yourself a favor.

So-So Foods Associated with the Acid Reflux Diet

When using an acid reflux diet, every individual has different needs.  What may be okay for you to eat without symptoms may not be so great for another.  Some of the so-so foods to consider eating in moderation are chicken salad, fried eggs, tuna salad and ham in the meat category.  Vegetables could include garlic, onions, leeks and scallions.  Try granola cereal, muffins or garlic bread for grains.  Root beer and non-alcoholic beer is listed in the so-so acid reflux diet category as well.  Fruits include apple cider, peaches, blueberries, strawberries and grapes.  To get your dairy requirements try frozen yogurt, cheddar cheese and even mozzarella.  Again, for desserts keep it low-fat or fat-free. 

Acid Reflux Diet Bad Food List

Basically, this list contains anything fried, fatty, greasy, or acidic.  Stay away from orange juice and lemonade.  Ground chuck and chicken nuggets are problem foods.  Spaghetti with marinara sauce, french fries and raw onions aren’t the best foods to consume either.  Creamy salad dressings, brownies, chocolate, corn chips and regular potato chips can exacerbation your GERD symptoms as well.  Regular sour cream, milkshakes and ice cream are foods to stay away from in the dairy section. 

All in all, the good foods list actually has a lot.  Even the so-so list is workable into almost every diet.  You idea is to find the best foods that won’t irritate your stomach and cause indigestion or other acid reflux symptoms.  Find natural foods that aren’t processed, high in acid or fatty and you’ll avoid most diet-related issues for your gastroesophageal reflux disease.  Everyone can work these suggestions into almost every lifestyle, even if you frequently dine out.