Conditions we support › Acid Reflux (GERD)
Fewer triggers, smaller meals, calmer evenings.
That burning an hour after dinner is the kind of thing you start planning your evenings around. Reflux and GERD flare with certain foods, large meals, and eating too close to bedtime. Calming it mostly comes down to smaller, lower-fat meals, leaving a gap between dinner and sleep, and easing off the common triggers. From there we tune to the ones that actually bother you.
Start your Acid Reflux (GERD) plan →We keep meals smaller and more frequent, lean toward lower-fat and non-fried choices, and finish eating two to three hours before you lie down. We ease off the usual suspects at first, then personalize things as you learn your own triggers.
People with frequent heartburn or diagnosed GERD who want to calm symptoms through what and when they eat.
Reflux happens when the ring of muscle at the bottom of your esophagus, the valve that's meant to keep stomach acid where it belongs, relaxes at the wrong moment or gets overwhelmed. That's the thread tying the trigger foods together. Fatty and fried foods, chocolate, peppermint, coffee, and alcohol all tend to loosen that valve, while large meals and carbonation push stomach contents upward by sheer pressure, and acidic or spicy foods sting an esophagus that's already irritated. Knowing the mechanism is freeing, because it means you're not doomed to a bland forever-diet. You're mostly just keeping pressure down and that valve calm.
Here's the part that surprises people: the food you cut often matters less than two other things. The best-supported changes for reflux are losing extra weight if you're carrying it, and not eating in the two to three hours before you lie down. Belly weight raises the pressure that pushes acid up, so even a modest loss can quiet symptoms noticeably, and a full stomach at bedtime is one of the biggest causes of nighttime reflux. That's why this plan leans on smaller, earlier, lower-fat meals as much as on the trigger list, and why the trigger list is a starting point we trim to you rather than a blanket ban.
Reflux is common and usually harmless, but not always, and that's the one place to be careful. See your doctor rather than managing it with food alone if you have trouble or pain swallowing, are losing weight without trying, are vomiting, notice black or bloody stools, or your symptoms keep breaking through despite treatment. Long-standing, frequent reflux can, over years, change the lining of the esophagus, a condition called Barrett's esophagus, and that needs a doctor's eye. So persistent heartburn is worth a real work-up rather than an endless supply of antacids. And if you're already on an acid-reducing medication, keep taking it and check with your provider before you change anything.
Triggers are individual, so treat this as a sensible starting point that we then tune to you. Persistent reflux deserves a proper medical work-up, since it can be more than discomfort. Keep your provider in the loop, especially before stopping any acid-reducing medication.
Answer a few quick questions and we'll build four weeks of Acid Reflux (GERD) meals, with recipes customized to you and a smart grocery list.
Start your Acid Reflux (GERD) plan →Not sure yet? Compare all the conditions we support →
