Anyone got any ideas help with Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD)

[MarBri]

My husband has suffered with ingestion all his life but it is so much worse lately. He had 5 bypasses 23 years ago - had a heart attack Jan2014 and it has got worse since then. Have seen two consultants and numerous visits to our GP. Tablets by the sackful but nothing is working. Got told it was anxiety - but it isn`t so dutifully took the anti-anxiety tablets - still the same after 6 weeks. We live in France and the health care is good but cannot seem to get to the bottom of this problem. Chronic fatigue so exercise is not really an option. Any help greatly appreciated.

[sandybrown]

Please keep a record of food intake and write down the reactions. One family member has worked out the food to avoid by keeping a note of all the food and drinks over three week period.

Below is from Internet.

Keep A Journal!

- Writing Down Food Eaten, Actions and Symptoms

GERD diet:

Keeping a journal. One of the best ways to begin understanding the effects certain foods have on your body is to keep a diary. For at least two weeks, and maybe longer depending on the predictability of your lifestyle, write down everything you eat, when you eat it, and any symptoms that you experience.

You may find that some foods only cause pain and heartburn occasionally, rather than every time you eat them. If this is the case, you may also want to record details about your situation at the time including environment, state of mind, and duration of meal.

Things such as stress, anxiety, eating before bed, or eating too quickly can contribute to indigestion or heartburn, so determine if this may be the case before you eliminate something from your GERD diet completely. You may find that you can still enjoy these things in moderation simply by changing when you eat them.

good luck.

[MarBri in reply to sandybrown]

Thank you for replying and diet is something to look at. I have found a Gerd cookbook on Amazon so waiting for that to arrive. I will keep a list of what we eat and see if something stands out. Thank you again.

[sandybrown in reply to MarBri]

I have food allergy and my wife heartburn! What a combination!

My allergy started after six months in Nigeria on work.

After I came back to UK, what I did was did not eat any row vegetables or fruits! both were streamed or cooked one at a time and one vegetable for fruit each day with boiled eggs or steamed fish for one week to emendate the unwanted one. Did not take any milk food, bread or rice!, tea without any milk, this was difficult. After three months worked out what to avoid.

In my wife's case it was Indian specie mixed. Home Indian cooking was OK but eating outside was a problem.

We think salad is OK. I am afraid it is not, most items have to be washed many time to remove impurities!! Even water boiled water or filtered water to start with!

I am afraid this is a slow process and it takes time.

Good luck.

[Penel]

Have a look at the FODMAPS diet, it can be helpful. It's being used by some dieticians in the UK, but may not have reached France.

If you look on the Gluten Free Guerillas site, you will find some discussion on GERD, which may be useful. Type GERD into the little top right hand box.

This is one alternative (not mainstream) site which has possible useful information on GERD and chronic fatigue.

chriskresser.com/what-every...

[MarBri in reply to Penel]

I will look at our diets but thought we were doing ok with light food - all fresh but maybe there is something we are missing. Thank you for your help

[Penel in reply to MarBri]

Probiotics can help with the general health of our guts. Perhaps try some live yoghurt, if he is ok with dairy?

This link discusses how eliminating wheat has helped some people get rid of their symptoms.

healthunlocked.com/glutenfr...

[MarBri]

Thank you so much - that really has to be worth a go.

[Leilanilea]

Hello,

Sorry to hear of your husband's gastrointestinal problems. I found this site to be very helpful and hope you will too. Be sure to note that at very bottom there are more detailed lists of low-acid foods.

mediterraneanbook.com/2010/...

Best, Leilani

[Leilanilea]

This is good information also, from:

webmd.com/heartburn-gerd/tc...

Heartburn - Prevention

You can make changes to your habits and lifestyle to prevent your symptoms of heartburn. Here are some things to try:

Change how you eat.

It's best to eat several small meals instead of two or three large meals.

After you eat, wait 2 to 3 hours before you lie down. Late-night snacks aren't a good idea.

Chocolate, mint, and alcohol can make heartburn worse. They relax the valve between the esophagus and the stomach.

Spicy foods, foods that have a lot of acid (like tomatoes and oranges), and coffee can make heartburn symptoms worse in some people. If your symptoms are worse after you eat a certain food, you may want to stop eating that food to see if your symptoms get better.

Do not smoke or chew tobacco.

If you get heartburn at night, raise the head of your bed 6 in. (15 cm) to 8 in. (20 cm) by putting the frame on blocks or placing a foam wedge under the head of your mattress. (Adding extra pillows does not work.)

Do not wear tight clothing around your middle. Lose weight if you need to. Losing just 5 to 10 pounds can help. For more information, see the topic Weight Management.

Leilani

[shirazred]

You could also take a look at the medication your husband is taking as some of the tablets prescribed when you've had a heart attack can make heartburn worse In particular I noticed when I was on clopidogrel mine got a lot worse obviously don't stop taking any medication without drs recommendation! I also suffered from extreme tiredness and whilst blood tests had me at just above the level for anemia my dr did a further test on my ferratin levels which it turned out were extremely low and can cause I was told extreme tiredness so that might be worth getting checked - hope he gets sorted it's a horrible thing to have

[OliasOfSunhillow]

I think the last poster is spot on. I would bet tings have got worse due to the med's your husband is on, they play havoc with your digestion. I came off them after a couple of months but could feel the effect they were having. What med's is your husband actually on ?.

[MarBri in reply to OliasOfSunhillow]

Thank you for your reply. We have already elimated 4 of the original 8 tablets after the heart attack in Jan 2014. Some of the other have been changed and my husband now takes Tenorine- Olmetec and Kardegic - he has taken these last two for years and years so doubt it is them -Ammlodipine. He has also been prescribed Venlafaxine and Pantoprazole by our GP and Inexium by the specialist. The Venlafaxine is recent as they have both thought most of this is due to anxiety. It isn`t - we have been married for 51 years so I do know him pretty well. We have tried cutting them out - using just the two heart meds but nothing is working. He is a very good bridge player but has not been playing for the last couple of weeks as the burping and the fatigue makes it impossible to concentrate.

[malcolmp]

This is due to poor diet leading to low levels of stomach acid and low levels of digestive enzymes and possibly hiatal hernia - clean up the diet, liquid chlorophyll to improve pH - apple cider vinegar before meals for acid production and personal recommendation jumping down the stairs to get rid of the hernia (stomach pushs up into the oesophagus) so you need to get the "kink" out. Aloe vera can also have a soothing effect.Just an alternative view to rushing for medication route.Hope this helps.Obviously the key thing here is to improve the diet as suggested by other contributors to this post.

[poplux]

i am 76 year old iv had reflux since i was 22 yers old when i had my gall bladder removed i had a few gastrascopy to be told i had dumping what ever than means

God knows the terrible burning sensation in the throat the vomiting in the night my doctor put me on nexium now changed to pantaprazole 40 mg 30 minutes before supper time 4 years ago i have not altered my diet but had no reflux since

i quit having night time snacks to i feel liberated

[MarBri in reply to poplux]

Thank you for your reply - you are exactly the same as my husband in age although he has not had the vomiting and burning just continual burping - very loudly which in the last year has made socialising outside the family very difficult. I am changing diet and taking probiotics and the pantaprazole before an evening meal. Lets hope it works for him as it has for you.

Thank you again

[poplux in reply to MarBri]

my problem was worst than i had asophigitis as well i was burping a lot to but i cary a few rolaids tablets they are inexpensive and comes in handy for socialising keeps the burps in check as well as the execesive flatulance

[MUTHER]

Hi, Not sure if this will help, but cucumber is the most alkaline natural food on the planet, you can either eat a whole one in chunks as desired or make a smoothie out of it. After taking lots of medication, i was left with extreme pain, (GERD) after eating cucumber on a daily basis,( which at first wasn't very nice!) eventually got rid of this extemely uncomfortable condition, I am now happy to say I no longer have it If I do get heartburn I reach for the cucumber not the antacids!! Also probiotics are helpful too. I hope you give it a try, be warned though, you will continually belch at first!! This is the stomach acids being neutralized.