Cooking Tips for Heartburn-Friendly Meals
Frequent heartburn is a painful annoyance that most sufferers would love to be able to avoid. Before your doctor prescribes medication or more invasive treatment options, you may try making a few simple lifestyle changes to find relief from your heartburn. For many, this means taking a second look at what you eat and how you prepare your meals. Learn how to make great food that won’t leave you suffering from heartburn pain.
Cooking Tips for Heartburn Sufferers
1. Stay away from heartburn-inducing ingredients. While not everyone responds the same way to all foods, there are a few foods that are more likely to cause heartburn than others. Try leaving these foods off your plate and take note of how your stomach responds.
Top Heartburn Foods to Avoid:
- citrus fruits
- spicy foods
- tomato-based foods
- mint
- chocolate
- coffee
- alcohol
2. Go lite! Fatty foods often take longer to digest, which increases the chances of you finishing your meal with heartburn. Experiment with low-fat ingredients and less fatty cooking techniques, like broiling instead of frying.
3. Practice portion control. Diet experts will tell you to watch how much you eat in order to keep tabs on your weight, but eating smaller portions can also help you avoid heartburn. Large meals sit longer in your stomach and cause your body to produce even more stomach acid, which is a known risk factor for acid reflux and heartburn. Use measuring cups to dole out portions on a smaller dinner plate.
4. Add water. Drinking water with your meals can help dilute stomach acid and reduce the risk of reflux. Stay away from carbonated water—the extra bubbles can make your heartburn worse. Stick with tap or filtered water during your meals to help wash down those painful stomach acids.
Frequent heartburn is a painful annoyance that most sufferers would love to be able to avoid. Before your doctor prescribes medication or more invasive treatment options, you may try making a few simple lifestyle changes to find relief from your heartburn. For many, this means taking a second look at what you eat and how you prepare your meals. Learn how to make great food that won’t leave you suffering from heartburn pain.
5. Stay away from heartburn-inducing ingredients. While not everyone responds the same way to all foods, there are a few foods that are more likely to cause heartburn than others. Try leaving these foods off your plate and take note of how your stomach responds.
Top Heartburn Foods to Avoid:
- citrus fruits
- spicy foods
- tomato-based foods
- mint
- chocolate
- coffee
- alcohol
6. Go lite! Fatty foods often take longer to digest, which increases the chances of you finishing your meal with heartburn. Experiment with low-fat ingredients and less fatty cooking techniques, like broiling instead of frying.
7. Practice portion control. Diet experts will tell you to watch how much you eat in order to keep tabs on your weight, but eating smaller portions can also help you avoid heartburn. Large meals sit longer in your stomach and cause your body to produce even more stomach acid, which is a known risk factor for acid reflux and heartburn. Use measuring cups to dole out portions on a smaller dinner plate.
8. Add water. Drinking water with your meals can help dilute stomach acid and reduce the risk of reflux. Stay away from carbonated water—the extra bubbles can make your heartburn worse. Stick with tap or filtered water during your meals to help wash down those painful stomach acids.