Intake Alert: Foods that Cause Heartburn

There are different kinds of food that may trigger heartburn and it varies from person to person. This variation comes from the difference in the tolerance level on a particular type of food for each person. Certain foods that cause heartburn in one person may not affect another, at all.

In general, foods with a high acid content are regarded as the most likely to cause heartburn. Such foods when eaten and digested may produce excessive acid in the stomach causing one to suffer from heartburn. Tomatoes and citrus fruits as well as their juices are highly acidic and may cause heartburn to some people. These include oranges, orange juice, lemon, lemonade, grapefruit juice and cranberry juice among others. Milk and dairy products such as sour cream, milk shakes, ice cream and different kinds of cheeses are also high in acid content and therefore are considered foods that cause heartburn.

Aside from foods that are highly acidic, there are lots of other foods that cause heartburn as well. Spicy and fried foods like French fries, chicken nuggets and buffalo wings; coffee, tea, carbonated and alcoholic drinks; chocolate and chocolate drinks; eggs, legumes, certain nuts, salad dressings, animal fats, vegetable oils, pasta, beef, pork, white flour, starches and sugars. Just a reminder, foods that cause heartburn may vary from person to person and there is no way that this article will be able to mention exactly every food that is to be avoided.

Now, with so many foods that cause heartburn, there seems to be nothing left to eat anymore. Again, foods that cause heartburn may vary from person to person. The trick here is to avoid or remove from one’s diet those foods that cause heartburn and eat those that don’t.

For this trick to work, one must know precisely which foods to avoid and which to eat. A food diary can be of help in this situation. By simply listing what you eat and when you eat as well as recording any symptoms you may feel afterwards, you and your doctor can easily plan your diet and even change eating habits if necessary.

Not all foods that cause heartburn to a person need to be totally removed from one’s diet. Moderation and regulation is the key in this matter, but, of course it depends on the symptoms that a particular food inflicts on you. If a particular food causes you to suffer minor or tolerable symptoms of heartburn, then eating that food in lesser quantities or less often may be fine. But for those foods that can really aggravate symptoms and causes you to suffer heartburn often, then it is necessary to totally remove it from your diet.

There’s no need to suffer from heartburn nor starve ourselves by desperately avoiding each and every type of food that causes our symptoms. Heartburn caused by the food we eat can be controlled with both patience and discipline. Patience, by monitoring our food intake. And discipline, in following one’s diet plan.