Gastro oesophageal reflux disease (GORD/GERD or Acid Reflux) is a common and painful condition but often the conventional treatment, while making you feel better fairly quickly in the short term, can make things worse in the long run for your whole digestive system and overall health.

Symptoms include heartburn (burning rising from the stomach into the chest & sometimes throat), feeling of food rising, sore throat & belching. Also halitosis (bad breath), bloating, nausea, flatulence & constipation depending on how long the GORD has been present & the quality of diet & lifestyle.

As a rule this is NOT caused by excessive stomach acid, but the stomach acid is actually in the wrong place (the oesophagus) causing the discomfort and sometimes damage to the mucosa resulting in ulceration. GORD or reflux is actually associated with low stomach acid and underactive digestion (hence the bloating, flatulence, & constipation) so the most effective way to treat this is improve digestive function. Of course the acid being in the wrong place may be caused by other medical conditions or may result in other medical conditions so it is always sensible to get everything checked out to so you know exactly what you are dealing with.

Conventional medical treatment is to use a medication type known as Proton Pump Inhibitors or PPIs (e.g. Nexium), in simple terms, these stop the stomach lining producing Hydrochloric acid (stomach acid) and therefore stop the pain caused when the stomach acid rises. Often the rationale for using these if ulceration is present is to allow healing to take place.

Symptomatic relief is gained by the use of antacids (Gavascon, Mylanta, Quickeze etc.) which are alkaline and neutralise the effects of stomach acid. These often contain Aluminium which is toxic so it is important to read the ingredients if you are going to use them. 

Effective digestion begins when we salivate and chew in the mouth, the stomach is the next stop where digestion continues. If the upper digestive system inefficient it causes problems down the track so to speak! Other conditions associated are Leaky Gut Syndrome and Candida albicans and long term effects of underactive digestion can be things like sinusitis, hayfever, eczema & other skin conditions.  

What can you do to assist GORD naturally?

Improve your digestion

• Avoid drinking 30 minutes before or after meals, small sips are ok but drinking too much with a meal will dilute your stomach acid and decrease digestion
• Make sure you are enjoying your food with all your senses – sight & smell will get you digesting before you’ve begun ingesting  
• Relax and eat rather than eat on the run. Your body needs to be in ‘rest & digest’ mode which is when the parasympathetic nervous system is in effect, not ‘fight or flight’ when the blood is directed from the stomach to the muscles
• Take a load off the digestive system by eating small frequent meals
• Reduce starchy carbohydrates or other foods that commonly cause bloating

Anything BITTER will increase stomach acid production and bile secretion and this is one of the main goals. It’s another one of nature’s wonderful coincidences that all the liver herbs prescribed by naturopaths or herbalists have a very bitter taste, thereby stimulating the stomach and liver secretions in preparation for food.   

•  Aloe Vera Juice is bitter with the added benefit of having healing & cleansing properties. Take 10-15 ml of pure (unflavoured) Aloe Vera Juice in a small amount of water 10-15 minutes before each meal
• Include leafy gourmet lettuce varieties in your salad, they have quite a bitter taste
• Make your own salad dressings with balsamic vinegar & lemon juice
• A commercial preparation called Swedish Bitters has been used for years for many health concerns. Take 10ml in a small amount of water before each meal
• Commercial Liver tonics are available from a health food store or your naturopath would prepare one specifically for you after a consultation. Take as suggested on the bottle
• Dandelion root tea (boil if using the woody root, some brands make sachets to infuse or even the granulated/instant)
• One of the most naturally bitter things you might have in your pantries is coffee – make a cup of black coffee – no sugar, no milk – and have a few sips about 10-15 minutes before or after a particularly heavy meal and see if this reduces bloating feeling or heartburn (make sure it’s after a meal if there is any mucosal damage or the acidity will make it worse). Don’t drink the whole cup because the tannins can interfere with nutrient absorption. It’s a good experiment if you want to see how the effects of a bitter taste will improve your digestion

Soothe and heal the mucus membranes

• Mix 1 tbsp of Slippery Elm Bark into a paste with warm water and 1 tsp of Manuka Honey, as required - 10 minutes before meals if you get heartburn when hungry or after meals if heartburn occurs after eating
• Add ground Chia seeds into porridge for breakfast
• Drink cool Calendula, Chamomile or Marshmallow tea (or all three combined)
• Goldenseal is extremely effective at healing mucus membranes and has also been shown to combat Helicobacter pylori (which causes inflammation that can lead to peptic ulcers)
• A commercial preparation (Greenridge GastroCalm) contains Meadowsweet, Marshmallow & Goldenseal
• Vitamin A found in Cod Liver Oil is effective at healing and protecting mucus membranes found on the lining of the gastrointestinal tract (also benefits upper respiratory tract mucus membranes & boosts immune function) as is zinc.
• The Tissue Salt ‘Nat Phos’ can be used for symptomatic relief if excessive acid is a problem, a healthier way to neutralise the acids to allow healing 

Balance the gut flora

• The acids normally present in your gut not only digest food but also kill bacteria that should not be there, neutralising this acid allows an overgrowth of the wrong kind of bacteria. Combine this with antibiotics, the wrong foods (refined, sugar laden food), alcohol etc), you end up with a major imbalance of flora in the gut which has flow on effects throughout the body. Probiotics are used for many health conditions and are essential in treatment of any kind of digestive disorder.

Obviously you don’t need to take all of these things listed but this is a good example of the inexpensive and effective options that are available.  

As a start try to do at least one or two things from each category and if you are unsure, print this out and take it to your local health food store or consult a naturopath in conjunction with your GP so you get the best of both worlds.  

This article has more useful information

http://refluxdefense.com/heartburn_GERD_articles/side-effects-antacids-and-acid-blockers.html