Acid reflux - what did you do to get rid of it once and for all

I think you should ask your doctor to have an H. Pylori test. 80% of us have this bacteria in our gut. A simple course of antibiotics will fix this. I told two friends about this test and both were positive in treated. I too, had this test over 20 years ago and have been symptom free after treatment.

A lot of the serious side effects of PPI usage have been debunked. They are very effective if you can’t control the acid with diet alone. Certainly better than developing Oesophageal Cancer. Eating antacids all day increases sodium intake. Many people have GERD for decades but if you suddenly develop it after 50 you definitely need to see your GP. If you have a hiatal hernia medication will be required. Many people have silent GERD too which can be symptomless other than perhaps a cough. Personally I would always opt for as low a dose of a PPI as possible and The Acid Watchers Diet to stay safe. I have regular kidney function tests and so far all ok and my bones are strong. PPI studies were done on older cohorts where other co- morbidities were likely present due to age rather than the medication.

Go to the doctor!! I had reflux like this and ended up in such discomfort and barely able to eat because food was sticking, that I had to go & get it checked out. Turned out that I had a hiatus hernia, where the stomach tube protrudes through the diaphragm and up into the chest. No amount of change in diet or medication will fix this.

I used to be a heavy smoker; I also had quite a Gaviscon habit - got through at least a packet a month.
Imagine my surprise when I eventually quit the nicotine habit, & realised that I hardly ever needed Gaviscon any more!

Stress really can affect it quite a bit. I spent some time with a very negative, demeaning person at a Christmas event and suffered for ten days afterwards with horrible reflux. The person had stressed me out.

Doc gave me Omeprazole, lost weight, cut pastry, any carbs after 6pm and oranges. Peptobismol, milk of magnesia for flare-up, but diet was the final solution.

I carry chewable Bisodol tablet if I eat unwisely when out

It really depends on why you get acid reflux. I got my first lot with my first pregnancy and subsequently on my second, third and fourth. After the first one, it went away immediately the baby was born. However, after the second one, it just didn't. I thought I had put on weight which is why it wasn't going but nothing I did would help. I started off with ranitidine and then went on to Omeprazole. The dose has subsequently doubled but I still have to careful about when I eat and not having too rich or fatty foods. Tests show I have a flappy valve (a bit like my mouth 😂) but I also have a hiatus hernia so I will unlikely have to keep taking the medicine for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, whilst I can control acid production, it doesn't resolve silent reflux so this is damaging my oesophagus, throat and teeth. It's horrible.

I had this very severely, nothing touched the pain. It was eventually found that 80% of my stomach had gone through the hiatus hernia into the thoracic cavity. There was no other option apart from surgery. I had this done privately as was abandoned by the NHS. Recovery was harsh but the result was worth it.

See a doctor, definitely, in case you have a condition that needs corrected medically.

I have a hiatus hernia and was prescribed omeprazole 14,years ago, which of course miraculously removed the terrible acid reflux and meant I could eat anything I liked.
However…… fast forward to the present day. After researching the effects of such drugs long term I do not take anything now, other than the odd Rennie.

My solution:

Small portions at all meals

Breakfast = porridge with fruit and cinnamon cooked in skimmed milk

NO coffee, wine, chocolate, bought pastries or scones (I can eat my own homemade baked goods sometimes). It’s worth doing without these”goodies” to be rid of reflux)

I wish you well with your efforts to end the pain and discomfort.

That's 2 pages of A4 notes - I've written down peoples suggestions...so I don't forget.

One smile on my face at least - as I guess I'm getting breakfast not too far off right. Down to sheer laziness I guess - but I tend to just automatically head for the porridge oats and start making myself some (duly eaten with fruit on it - must try a pinch of cinnamon). I do have plenty of fruit - given I'm growing some in my garden - to the extent I land up giving away quite a bit after I've filled my freezer up.

Hmmm....coffee...that's a bit of a sticking point. I put it down to having moved to Denmark for a while back in the 1970s and the second I discovered there was such a thing as real coffee and they regarded that as "everyday" one of the first phrases I learnt was "Vill du ha kafe?" (probably spelt all wrong) and then spent years asking for real coffee any time I was out in a cafe until the British started having it too.

Wine is now virtually non-existent #sighs - and I cautiously try a weeny bottle every few weeks - but yep...discover it definitely kicks off an attack. I have very very little sweet stuff like pastries or scones and never make baked goods myself. Luckily I'm not very attracted to British puddings/cakes/etc and there's no-one waving real Danish pastries anywhere remotely near my nose - so I have very little sweet food.

Re the "small portions" I spend my mealtimes now asking myself at intervals "Do I still feel hungry?" and if the answer is "No" then I stop eating - the incentive being to get back into my modern label size 10-12 clothes I should be wearing.

The glutamine I've ordered should turn up tomorrow - so I can start trying that out. Off to look up natural antibiotics. I was complaining about all this to my local smallholder farmer friend and - aw! - but she's decided (by coincidence? - I think not) to make the next herbal medicine mini-course she holds focus on digestion issues. She calls herself "hard" - I don't think so LOL (I think she's very kind-hearted....). So I've signed up for my place on it and see what I can learn there.

See a gp and they willPrescribe omeprazole or similar and Gaviscon .. Gaviscon at night worked for me .i didn’t like taking omeprazole so
I asked for famotodine instead which I took as and when . Mine was connected to post nasal drip and that’s still there but the reflux isn’t
then if that doesn’t work they might investigate further .. because it could be symptomatic of all sorts of things and not to be an alarmist but that’s what doctors are for! Combined with a lot of self help and led education

I'm very aware of the fact that a previous doctor misdiagnosed a severe illness (that would have landed up permanent in all probability if I'd believed him) and am only too glad I knew what it was myself/I was right/I got rid of it because I was treating it accordingly. That they'd have kept on dishing me out the Pill for decades (there'd have been no option for it if I hadnt taken matters in my own hands and paid a hefty bill for a sterilisation - job done/matter over). That they wanted me in for a hysterectomy in the end - as periods were SO problematic to me....but I found a good medical book that informed me clearly a significant proportion of women had problems with the operation itself thereafter and decided to "wait it out for the menopause". Then there was the blazing row about a pre-med in a hospital (yep...I'd got a book on "how to have an operation" and it told me there is an alternative to pre-med injection and it's a tablet - so I perfectly politely told them I would be having the tablet please instead and bingo - they did a blazing row before they gave it to me). I hate needles with a passion and it was "my body - so my decision". Nowt like getting wheeled into an operation with probably skyhigh blood pressure/still extremely upset at that row and then reappearing with a hospital-acquired infection to get rid of....

Only recently I got told "Statins" and thought "Oh for goodness sake.....NO" and thought "Lots of us know about them by now - so why are they still prescribing them?"

Basically I barely trust them. My personal experiences over the years taught me not to one way or another. I'm not saying they aren't (sometimes) useful to other people - but they're basically not for me. I'd rather look to ideas that are centuries old and not just a few decades....or the technology due in a century or two time (but that's not available yet....just mental photos in some peoples minds eye pretty much).

I don't know which is more likely to have me "putting up protective barriers" mentally speaking out of finding out someone is a thief (I literally don't know them a few minutes later - I've binned them) or finding out they're a doctor. I'm very wary indeed.....each to their own and other people can if they like....but for me = "Now what are the alternatives?"

Cariad, I appreciate you do not want to go to the GP, but no amount of change of diet/lifestyle will stop the acid reflux if there is reason for it, such as hiatus hernia. A GP can refer for blood tests, endoscopy and other tests. These tests will show if there is a problem. In my case, it showed I had gastric ulcers.

If you have the tests and everything serious is ruled out, then look for a lifestyle change,

Errrm...thanks for the thought. I've just done a quick check for symptoms of hiatus hernia and I haven't got any of them at all - only the acid reflux from the list. I would imagine I'd tick some more on the list if that is what it was.

Errrm...quick check coming up - but from memory endoscopy means = nasty procedure of sticking a tube or the like down one's throat.....errrm....that would be a no personally. I'm the one that nearly had to walk out of my dentists during Lockdown - as he tried twice to insert a thick blue sheet of plastic I'd never heard of (ie a dental dam) down my throat. When he tried a third time he realised I'd be getting up and walking out if he persisted and my filling wouldnt get done until after Lockdown (whenever that was going to be.....). Standard dental procedure only is the only time I get anything shoved in my mouth - so I wouldnt even try to see if I'd take off and run (probably would!) if they tried that procedure. I know myself very well = not happening...

I agree you really should see your GP as long term reflux can lead to serious problems. However for getting a good night's sleep I do the same as Karmalady and use a wedge pillow. For many years I had repeated sore throats until I saw a consultant and he recommended propping the head end of the bed up on a couple of books. Worked a treat so bought a wedge pillow and reflux is no longer a problem for me.

Picklesgranma

I agree you really should see your GP as long term reflux can lead to serious problems. However for getting a good night's sleep I do the same as Karmalady and use a wedge pillow. For many years I had repeated sore throats until I saw a consultant and he recommended propping the head end of the bed up on a couple of books. Worked a treat so bought a wedge pillow and reflux is no longer a problem for me.

Did your reflux attacks start in the daytime or at night or a bit of both?

I've found the pattern is they usually start in the evening - but occasionally (ie when I'm congratulating myself on having got through the day without an attack and feeling hopeful) I'll go to bed feeling normal and then an attack starts an hour or so later.

Visions of just how fast I'd need an osteopath if I tried propping my bed head up. It's BIG and HEAVY HEAVY HEAVY. A modern era kingsize bed that I seriously wouldnt like to try budging literally an inch. Will take a peek at wedge pillows.....

I started getting acid reflux last year and it got increasingly worse. After a lot of trial and error and a small fortune on natural remedies I've narrowed it down to emulsifiers in food, specifically bread. E472e and E481, also E471 in particular, they are what makes bread soft and keep longer. www.google.com/search?q=e472e+food+additive+side+effects&rlz=1CAMJNG_enGB1090GB1090&oq=&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqBggDEEUYOzIGCAAQRRg7MggIARBFGCcYOzIMCAIQABhDGIAEGIoFMgYIAxBFGDsyBggEEEUYPDIGCAUQRRg8MgYIBhBFGDwyBggHEEUYPNIBCDM1NTdqMGo3qAIAsAIA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

I use the Yuka app which is fascinating but slightly scary! The only bread I've found in the shops without these additives is sourdough which as we know makes great toast but no good for sandwiches! I also make my own bread and slice it and freeze it to keep it longer.

Being sensible, it comes down to how often you eat things with dodgy additives. Bread, I eat twice a day so it needs to be good. The same additives are in ice cream, chocolate and lots of other things so worth checking.

Unfortunately I also found that wine made me worse so have reduced consumption somewhat! I believe it's not the alcohol (!) but the acid aspect as I certainly can't drink orange juice without feeling awful. I assume this may change as my gut heals?

I got so bad at one point I dreaded my evening meal and cut right down on carbs so that at least I was eating protein and veg which were more necessary for my health. This led to me losing half a stone quite quickly which has also helped me feel more comfortable.

Photo is from the Yuka app

It wouldnt surprise me to know it was modern food additives that turned out to be an issue for you. I've long not wanted what I call "rubber bread" anyway - though I was brought up on it.

Fortunately several artisan breadshops have turned up here since I moved here - so it's always artisan bread I buy (from one or other of them) unless they're shut or run out. I was straight in there pouncing the second the first one opened - as were half the town by the sound of it. We all made a beeline for those shops the second they appeared and they always sell out rapidly and it's "NO chance by lunchtime - all gone....".

I really must get on with making my own bread again. I used to do so regularly before I moved here - but then found the exact same recipe that caused other people to buy my bread off me back in Devon sometimes turned to "blah" here. So guessing it's maybe different water here/certainly I don't buy flour or bread from one place here. Must investigate more on that front and I've got all the stuff to make sourdough bread at that.

I'm trying to throttle back a bit on carbs though. Think it's taken me such enormous amounts of willpower/energy for literally years to start with (courtesy of bad neighbours and a high proportion of unreliable workmen in this area) that I found it very tiring fighting my way through all that to get life back to "normal - as I know it". I "theenk" (fingers crossed hard) I've managed to get life back to pretty much normal (ie as it was before I moved) and trying to recover from the tiredness from all that effort I hadn't expected to have to do.

Working my way into getting those freezer meal component containers into action and a new cookbook specifically on vegan mealplanning turning up here today (I'm basically pescetarian at the moment - but vegan is what I feel I should be in many ways).

Gut healing specifically is an issue - and you've reminded me I must check out what I can do specifically to heal my gut. It was so much easier when it was a matter many years back of healing the thrush I was struggling with and I realised eventually "Duh - it's antibiotics - they keep causing it" and I had a good doctor then - and had to educate him on that rather and he duly started putting info out to other patients on that and cue for lots of live yogurt/kefir/etc to this day and that problem resolved decades ago. Useful reminder there - I identified the cause of a troublesome issue there and resolved it permanently. I've managed to resolve various issues - so cue for feeling "I can do this one too".

CariadAgain "Errrm...quick check coming up - but from memory endoscopy means = nasty procedure of sticking a tube or the like down one's throat.....errrm....that would be a no personally."

If you were to not get an endoscopy when it is needed you would have to endure worse. One of my hates (like you, my mouth and throat are another) is even the thought of someone sticking needles in my eyes.

Guess who developed an eye condition, for which the treatment is regular injections into the eyeball? This is not negotiable, as it is to prevent further deterioration, not to cure it. It is not as bad as I imagined it, though there are better ways of spending your time. All the doctors and nurses doing the injections are excellent, sure of hand and supportive.

So are the ones doing the endostomy. It only takes a few minutes, and they can give you medication so you neither feel it nor fear it. If it has to be done, you can do it.

Cardiad, you seem to know what you are doing so it's pointless going to a doctor. What works for one may not for another and it seems you are prepared to accept the consequences of not knowing, most of it is guess work and elimination.
I had a bad experience with an endoscopy but it found out my problem, need another one and dreading it but it's necessary. I wouldn't take PPI daily only if I had a flare up. I know my triggers now and every so often I fancy something on the no go list and pay the price. Very interested in the E numbers especially in bread I use Lidl or Aldi Sourdough, don't know if they have E numbers in it. I do still prefer other fresh baked bread and succumb.

Cariad, ask your doctor for medicine. Acid reflux can cause esophegeal cancer.