I was diagnosed with acid reflux (also called GERD for Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease) in 1999. My doctors put me on medication, and then stronger medication, then the strongest medication, then increased my dosage to twice a day. Still it got progressively worse over the course of four years. Finally my doctor told me the only option was surgery or I would ruin my voice, and ultimately, my career as an opera singer. Also, I was afraid of Esophageal Cancer, which can happen with the constant acid wash in the esophagus. My reflux was so bad; I could get it from just drinking water! Believe me, my case was not mild. So, I talked to a few singers who had had the surgery, and did some research. Turns out, the surgery is quite severe. Essentially, the doctor twists the upper stomach around the esophagus and stitches it into place. This keeps your stomach sphincter from opening and washing acid into your esophagus. The effect is like having your stomach stapled. Side effects include diarrhea for a year or more, and surgery failure occurs in 85% of patients within 15 years. You should know that when your stomach is made smaller by surgical means, your body could easily suffer from malnutrition. You have to be very, very careful about what you eat. So, I set out to read everything I could and to find out how I could cure myself naturally. And, the results were really surprising! I found the cause, and I cured myself, and since then (beginning of 2002) I have had no problems. I’ll tell you what I found through reading and my own experience. I used these methods to cure myself from all acid reflux symptoms (and keep them away) and then 2 years ago, my doctor cured me from the root cause, which can be different in each case.
I found that there are many things that can contribute to acid reflux. One is emotional. I believe every physical problem is caused by an emotional one. Stomach acid is sometimes caused by stress, or more accurately, fear. I suffered from this in great detail... fear of many things involving my career (of no success, of too much success, of so many, many irrational things). Luckily, I cured my reflux way before I tackled most of these fears, but it is something to think about.
Many people find that their acid reflux is simply a symptom of a food allergy or some other problem that causes food not to digest properly. I “cured” my symptoms of acid reflux for 9 years but found later the root of the problem was that I cannot digest gluten. Any stomach problem that inhibits digestion can cause acid reflux because of undigested food. We’ll get to that in a moment.
How did I find out I couldn’t eat gluten? Well, I failed the Celiac Disease test- so I am not a Celiac (Celiacs cannot digest gluten at all). Also my allergy test came back negative for everything. I went to a doctor (an Applied Kenesiologist/Natural Doc) and he diagnosed me quickly, easily, and cheaply. I lost weight I had been unable to lose for years, and am healthier than I have ever been. Acid Reflux is just one problem of many that I am now free of. That’s the thing- acid reflux is a symptom of some other problem. So this paper can tell you ways of controlling acid reflux as a symptom – but you’ll need an alternative doctor to find the cause. You’ll need a doctor who finds causes instead of throwing prescriptions at symptoms, which is unfortunately the American Way. I can find you an A.K. doc in your area if you contact me.
How fast do you eat? Do you sit and enjoy each bite of food? Or do you scarf down your lunch in front of your computer while working, or while driving somewhere? Some people have completely cured their acid reflux by simply sitting down and concentrating on what they are eating when they are eating it. If you are not doing this, you must begin now.
First make sure that the acid reflux is not just a side effect of another condition you may have. Hernias, especially, can cause acid reflux until they are corrected. After the hernia is corrected, the patient is usually cured of the reflux. I’ve also had a hiatal hernia corrected by a chiropractor (my A.K. doc), so they don’t always need surgery.
Another condition could be a side symptom of thyroid disorder. Check the web for more information if any kind of thyroid diseases run in your family or if you have a waking temperature under 97.2 degrees consistently, and fatigue.
Also, you could have a problem with Candida albicans, an overgrowth of yeast in your stomach caused by antibiotics, birth control pills, too much sugar/yeast containing foods, pregnancy, or anything else that disrupts your body’s natural flora. There is a test you can do at home to check if you have this (see www.candidasupport.org ) which is free and easy. Symptoms include heavy cravings for sugar, carbs, and/or alcohol; white coating on the tongue; and fatigue. In my own life, I have found that heavy Candida overgrowth can appear as all the same symptoms of a thyroid problem. So, test yourself for this first before you take the expensive tests for thyroid diseases. Untreated, Candida can lead to Fibromyalgia, Leaky Gut Syndrome, and finally Chronic Fatigue Syndrome. If so, see a naturopath for relief from this.
If you smoke, you have acid reflux. Until you quit, you will continue to have it. So, there is no reason to go further than this until you quit. If you are a singer, there are more reasons than this to quit. Try seeing an acupuncturist if you have trouble quitting on your own. I’ve heard a drop of clove oil on the back of your tongue can help eliminate cravings. Also, you can explore EFT, called Emotional Freedom Technique. You can find out more at www.emofree.com. It is a simple way to free yourself from addictions. It is also free. Woohoo!
What else causes food to be undigested? Overly processed foods are hard to digest (white sugar/flour, unfermented tofu, foods with a lot of chemicals like frozen foods, or foods that don’t agree with you). If you eat a lot of these foods, I would recommend you take a high quality enzyme supplement to help them digest for now. You can get them from your health food store- try to get one that has all the different kinds of enzymes (different enzymes break down different foods). And work towards eating a healthier diet of natural foods – naturally raised organic meat, vegetables, and fruits without chemicals and preservatives will make a world of difference in your life.
Most importantly, clean out what is stuck in your colon now. This step is what completely eradicated my acid reflux until I found the root cause. Do yourself a favor and do a high quality colon cleanse (I strongly believe everyone should do this). I only recommend Dr. Schultze’s products (1.800.Herb Doc). His colon cleanse is a two part series (Intestinal Formula #1 and #2). This insures that when your body releases its toxins, it doesn’t get held up in a constipated colon and cause nausea, with very little success. His products are amazing, and inexpensive. You can call for a free brochure and tape. Please remember that a colon cleanse is a time to abstain from alcohol and heavy foods like red meat and dairy. This will help the cleansing product work it’s best (so you don’t have to repeat it!). When you order these products, make sure you ask for the catalog or anything that has all the steps and instructions. The instructions on the bottles are not complete. Dr. Schultze believes in veganism for everybody, and I don’t. Besides that, I think he’s pretty right on most things, and his products are the highest quality herbs I have found.
I love Dr. Mercola’s diet ( www.mercola.com) that he advocates in his books and on his website. His recommendation is for raw foods, organic grass-fed natural meat (cooked as rare as you can handle it), high quality fish oil supplements, superfoods, raw organic grass fed dairy and eggs, and no sugar or grains. His website is my favorite health site. It is so comprehensive. I have lost about 25 lbs so far following his diet (and getting rid of gluten!).
Take an enzyme with Hydrochloric Acid (HCI). Many times the problem is actually that you don’t have enough acid in your stomach to break down your food (works like enzymes). So to test for this, do the following.
Buy some HCI tablets from the health food store (or betaine hydrochloride) plus enzymes. Take half a tablet before the last mouthful of a main meal. Burning or indigestion means you have plenty of hydrochloric acid. Don't take any more tablets. Use antacid or teaspoonful of bicarbonate to relieve discomfort. If no burning or indigestion, next day take 1 tablet in the same way. If still no burning or indigestion, next day take 2 tablets in the same way. If still no burning or indigestion, then you need more acid. So if you need more acid, then you take 2 betaine hydrochloric acid tablets with main meals and 1 tablet with small meals.
Here is something very interesting that I learned. Remember how I told you my story and how it got worse each year, so I had to take stronger and stronger medications? Well, it turns out that the prescriptions were making it worse. The prescription works by stopping the hydrochloric acid from being released in your stomach. Maybe this sounds like a good idea if you are trying to stop the acid from splashing in your esophagus, but it’s not. The hydrochloric acid is being released in your stomach for a reason. Your body needs it to break down proteins in your stomach. Without it, you will have even more undigested food rotting in your stomach, and eventually your colon. So, it starts all over again. Also, your GERD could be caused from too little HCI in the first place, as you have already read.
After I did Dr. Schultze’s colon cleanse, I was able to get off my prescription for the first time in four years. I was able to gradually get off (cutting down my dosage slowly to nothing), and I improved more and more as time went on.
Of course, I did do a few other things to help stop the acid when it’s already there (like maybe now as you are reading this). Get some high quality peppermint oil, mix a few drops with water, and drink it, it should neutralize the acid. Drinking organic raw apple cider vinegar- 1 tablespoon with a glass of water- will neutralize the acid in your stomach as well. Also, there is a product at the health food store called Herbal Melange. It’s scary looking but has no taste, and works well to help heal your stomach. You can also buy Aloe Vera juice for ingesting (not the same as topical) from the health food store, but just take a little shot of it a few times a day, not too much! Can have undesirable side effects... which can be counteracted with applesauce. Stevia (natural replacement for sugar) helps digestion as well.
Virgin Coconut Oil is an excellent digestive aid (more on that in the next paragraph), 1 tablespoon for each 50 lbs of your weight (1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons) a day. Juicing fresh vegetables and fruit can also make such a difference that you will feel immediately. More on that later... If you have reflux away from home and can’t get to anything... you can drink some lemon juice in water.
Yes, I gave up coffee for a while. OK, don’t scream or freak out. It is possible to live without coffee. I drink it now again, but I only have one cup (and my stomach is in good health now and has been for several years). If you need a pick-me-up in the morning, there are better alternatives until your stomach is healed. I suggest Virgin Coconut Oil. It can give you that energy kick you need in the morning. Contrary to what the soy monopolies would have you believe, virgin (NOT hydrogenated or even refined) coconut oil can actually help you lose weight, improve energy, help thyroid problems, and lower T-cells in HIV positive patients. (Please go to http://www.coconut-info.com for more information. Or read Dr. Bruce Fife’s books Eat Fat, Look Thin, and The Healing Miracles of Coconut Oil. You will be shocked at the amazing and well-documented information in these books!) People report that using coconut oil has improved their acid reflux as well. It will even help stop cravings for coffee.
For a replacement morning drink, you can drink the water from a young coconut. These are the white coconuts with a peak on the top. You can find them at Asian Grocery stores or health food stores. They cost about 70 cents to $3, depending where you live. (Coconut water is the juice inside the coconut, and coconut milk is that water blended with the coconut meat.) It is very refreshing, is so good for you, will give you energy, and make you feel great. Now I see them everywhere in a little paper to go container for drinking (like a juice box).
If you really need something warm, you can try Roobios Tea. This is a tannin and caffeine free tea from Africa that is a natural antioxidant, and very tasty. You can find it in health food stores. It is sometimes called Red Bush Tea.
Yes. I’m sure you know this. Alcohol is acidic. And the bubbles in any kind of soda can contribute to acid reflux. Of course, soda also contains the evils of refined sugar, caffeine, and artificial ingredients. If you are consuming aspartame, please quit. It has been shown to kill brain cells, cause tumors, and Multiple Sclerosis. Also, aspartame makes you fat. It is so deadly in the bloodstream that your body tries to protect you by isolating it in fat molecules and storing it away from your organs and bloodstream. It is not better for you than sugar. It’s deadly. Also I’m sure you know Splenda is not really made from sugar. In fact France sued them for saying that. It is a chemical process, not good for you, and causes all kinds of problems in pregnant women. In my thinking, if it’s bad for a pregnant woman, it’s bad for anyone. If you want something sweet, eat organic unfiltered and uncooked honey (to substitute, use half the amount of sugar called for), try unrefined sugar (can find anywhere now, and tastes no different), agave nectar, maple syrup, sugar alcohols (they don’t create an insulin rise) or use Stevia.
As for soda, soda contains a deadly ingredient, sodium benzoate, which when mixed with certain things (vitamin C-ascorbic acid, sodium) can turn into benzene, a carcinogen that causes leukemia. If you love soda, try to switch to a more natural one, without sodium benzoate, or high fructose corn syrup.
I found an amazing drink called Synergy drinks. It is a raw product: unpasteurized juice mixed with a fermented type of mushroom that tastes like champagne. The result is a fizzy yummy juice drink that is a natural probiotic and is so good for you (it is raw, therefore alkaline). (You can find them at www.naturezone.net.) Also, you can buy coconut water now (check ingredients though for sugar, sometimes they are over-sweetened and nasty), and when your stomach is better, there are plenty of natural soda water (seltzer) and juice combos that are pretty tasty.
I gave up cooked tomato products for a while. Believe me, not easy - especially with my Italian background. Now, I can eat them once in a while. Please know that tomatoes, oranges, and other “acid fruits” are actually alkaline (non acid forming) while they are raw. Once cooked, or pasteurized, they are acidic. But, if your stomach is in severe condition, I would suggest laying off these foods (even raw) for a month or two, until your stomach is healed, then you can resume them. But contrary to what my doctors told me, natural raw foods are always alkaline. Cooked foods are acid forming. Remember that. So, fresh squeezed orange juice will be alkaline. Pasteurized orange juice (pasteurization is a heating process, WAY over 118 degrees- which kills all enzymes) is acid forming. Pasteurized dairy products are too. (See www.realmilk.com for more info.) I only drink raw milk, and love the healthy raw cheeses, cream, and yogurts that are coming available more and more. If you are allergic to cow’s milk, you can also find raw goat’s milk, an excellent source of nutrition (and great for asthma sufferers), on this site.
A note about tomatoes: Grocery store tomatoes are acidic because they are picked before they are ripe, then gassed to make them turn red. But if you try organic vine-ripened tomatoes (when your stomach is a bit better), and eat them raw, you will find that they are alkaline.
Juicing is a powerful way to increase your health. It is amazing and delicious. It is the easiest way to get raw vegetables in your life... all the vitamins and enzymes in very little time. And it tastes great! Please choose organic vegetables, so that you are not juicing pesticides in your juice. According to Cherie Calbom, the “Juice Lady”:
The alkalinity of raw vegetable juices is a powerful ally in our fight against cancer, since cancer cells thrive more easily in an acidic environment. Raw juices are “alive” and packed with an abundance of nutrients—from phytochemicals to a cornucopia of cancer-fighting vitamins and minerals. They are also replete with enzymes, which greatly benefit the digestive system.
You can read anything you want to know about juicing in any of Cherie’s books. She even has a section titled “low-carb juicing” which I urge you to read if you are on a low-carb diet. You can eat low carb and still juice! Juicing is also a very easy way to maintain your good health after curing yourself of acid reflux!
You can also visit a qualified Acupuncturist or Energy Worker. This will help ease the symptoms of acid reflux. Also Rolfing is amazing for singers. It’s a little expensive but amazing body work! www.rolf.org for more info. Applied Kenesiology doctors can really cure you of anything. I had one reverse a hernia I had once and also help me get my thyroid working and lose weight (which was impossible for me for many years). Even Bikram Yoga can heal you from the inside out and is great for digestion.
Have you ever wondered why so many opera singers suffer from Acid Reflux Disease? Well, I believe it is because many singers also have TMJ. There is a link between them. There is an acupressure point in between the jaw joint (way in there), which causes stomach problems, and specifically acid reflux. So please see an alternative healer, massage therapist, or even massage the joint yourself if you have TMJ. When your TMJ acts up, then your stomach will correspond, so please have your TMJ treated. See a Rolfer, an Acupuncturist, a Chiropractor, an Energy Worker, or Massage Therapist to help you with your TMJ problems. (You can try EFT as well!)
Curing yourself of anything is an amazing thing. But remember that if you go back to your old habits, it could come back. Also, just eating an American diet can cause it come back, so maintenance is important. I recommend that you keep on the lookout for classic symptoms. The most classic symptoms are:
I have written this based on my own experience and research. I am not a doctor. Although I found my doctors to be misinformed on the subject of GERD, I am not claiming to have any medical background. I have written this because I hope to help anyone avoid what I went through. There was a time when I was afraid that my career would be over if I did not get my acid reflux under control. I am glad to report that I have no problems at all now, and my doctor has told me there is no evidence at all of reflux when he looks at my vocal cords.
Avoid until you are better: Pasteurized foods (juices and dairy), cooked tomatoes, coffee, chocolate, late night eating. Take: enzymes with HCI (take the test in the HCI paragraph), probiotics, fresh juiced juices, Dr. Schultze’s colon cleanse. Relief for burning from now until it is healed: peppermint oil, lemon juice in your water, organic raw apple cider vinegar. See a natural doctor if you can: Applied Kenesiologists – my first choice... or a nautropath, an acupuncturist, etc. There are probably more things at play inside your body than you realize.
The Healing Miracles of Coconut Oil by Bruce Fife
Eat Fat look Thin by Bruce Fife
Eat Right For Your Blood Type by Peter D’Adamo
Fit For Life by Harvey and Marilyn Diamond
The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Fasting by Eve Adamson and Linda Horning, R.D.
Dr. Richard Schultze (1.800.HerbDoc)
www.mercola.com
www.thedoctorwithin.com
http://rheumatic.org/hcl.htm