Hyperacidity is called with several names like acid reflux, extreme heartburn, acidity, and Gerd. This problem occurs when the esophagus gets irritated due to stomach acid. The primary cause of the problem is the food we eat. Others like constipation, pregnancy, and obesity put pressure on the stomach, causing the problem.
Home Remedies for Hyperacidity
Many simple and easily available natural remedies like ginger, aloe vera, and basil leaves can effectively treat these problems.
- Basil leaves: Chewing on a few basil leaves, ideally on an empty stomach, helps control acid levels in the stomach. This helps alleviate symptoms and provide relief and is one of the best home remedies for hyperacidity and heartburn.
- Ginger: Fresh ginger juice mixed with honey can be consumed right after meals. This helps normalize the acid levels in the stomach and give relief. This is a remedy for both problems.
- Vanilla ice cream : This is one of the yummiest and most enjoyable home remedies for heartburn. It helps cool down the system and makes you feel better
- Almonds: You can munch on one or two almonds whenever you experience heartburn. It helps relieve the discomfort and provide relief
- Aloe vera: This is an excellent remedy for any problem related to the stomach as it has curative properties while also helping soothe the system. It can be consumed fresh as gel or juice
- Buttermilk: Diluted buttermilk can be had along with a pinch of powdered pepper every day. It is soothing to the system and provides relief from both problems.
- Cold milk: Cold milk that is free of all fat can be consumed every few hours. It is one of the most effective remedies for both these problems.
Some of the other remedies include –
- Keep away from stress, do yoga and meditation.
- Light massage also helps in keeping a tap on stress.
- Morning walk on empty stomach or light exercises goes a long way in curing this problem.
- Avoid pain killers on empty stomach especially Aspirin.
What is Hyper-acidity?
Hyperacidity is the excessive production of gastric acid in the stomach. Heartburn is chest pain and discomfort caused by reflux of this excess acid into the esophagus or food pipe. These problems are interrelated and can be cured with simple home remedies like basil leaves, ginger, and almonds.
What should be Diet for Acidity?
Having fresh ripe fruits like watermelons, apples and bananas are beneficial. Including fresh green leafy vegetables in the daily diet is also advisable. Try to have as much water as possible. Meals should be taken simultaneously every day as much as possible, and meals should not be skipped. Avoiding foods that are spicy, fatty, and foods that contain onions, garlic, radish, and pepper is advised. Here is a list of food that one should eat if suffering from this condition –
- Fruits – Fruits like banana, papaya, raw coconut pulp and its water, cucumber, sapodilla, phalsa and pomegranate are beneficial.
- Vegetables – Carrot, radish, bitter gourd, turnip, bottle gourd, snake gourd, cucumber are good for this condition.
- Milk – Taking a cup of cold mile 3-4 times a day helps.
- Water – Drinking 1-2 glasses of water every day in the morning on empty stomach is advised.
What Foods to Avoid?
One should not have food that might trigger heartburn or acidity. In addition to the food one eats, it is also important to keep a tab of when exercise needs to be done and how much it is safe. An empty stomach could also be a cause of related symptoms.
Fatty or Junk Food – Having a big burger, french fries, or pizza could be an excellent way to start heartburn. Having it late in the night could result in hyperacidity.
Large meals – Having large meals with various food could make people feel heavy in the stomach. This could affect the stomach’s acid flow and could be one of the primary causes of this problem. If that is not enough, the problem might return when one takes the next meal.
List of Top Foods to avoid
- Oil or Fats – Food that are fried or are rich in fats requires more acid to digest. This causes acidity due to release of extra acid in the stomach
- Citrus Fruits – These fruits are store house of Vitamin C but causes problems to. Avoid oranges and even it juice if you are sensitive to it
- Caffeinated Drinks – Avoid drinks such as tea or coffee. Even soda or aerated drinks should be avoided
- Alcohol – All types of alcohol are bad especially red wine
- Frozen foods – These foods have preservative mixed in them which are the real cause for the problem. Avoid them
- Chocolate – All types of chocolates and peppermint causes acidity problems
- Tobacco – Any form of tobacco makes the problem worse. Cigarette, smokeless tobacco, gutka, pan and above all some of the nicotine chewing gums.
Causes for Hyper Acidity
The leading cause of heartburn is acid reflux into the food pipe due to hyper-acidity. Hyper-acidity may be caused by several reasons like irregular meals, spicy foods, stress, insomnia, excessive smoking, or alcohol consumption. Sometimes even ill-fitting and tight clothes can cause this problem.
Top Symptoms of Acidity
- Heartburn – Pain or burning sensation that originates from the stomach and goes up to chest. The sensation could also go till throat. This problem unlike its name has nothing to do with heart
- Dyspepsia – Nausea and vomiting are some of the signs that causes discomfort in the stomach. Burping might be another sign with bloating
- Regurgitation – Sometimes the acid in the stomach could go all up to the throat and could give a sour taste in the mouth. This could be followed up it small bit of food from the stomach in the form of small vomits
- Asthma – If a person is suffering from asthma, the acid back to esophagus could irritate the airways. This could worsen the asthma problem
- Bad Breath – Chronic cases could result in bad breath which could cause lot of discomfort
- Hoarseness – If the stomach acid goes into larynx or pharynx, sore throat might happen
- Laryngitis – Inflammation of larynx might also happen due to acid in the throat for people getting affected by this problem for long
