I remember back when I was pregnant with my daughter suffering from major heartburn. I really had never experienced it before that. It was awful. I wasn’t able to lie flat on my bed at night! I had to prop myself up with pillows!
I tried a number of things but the only thing that seemed to work was the nasty heartburn meds from the pharmacy. Obviously this was prior to my finding real food! I wish I had known then what I know now about heartburn.
The Real Cause of Heartburn
A few months back, I had Craig Fear of Fearless Eating stop by and do a guest recipe post for me for beet kvass. In that post, he shared something quite shocking. It turns out the real cause of heartburn is not too MUCH acid, it is actually too LITTLE acid! Common heartburn meds actually only help with the symptoms but they don’t really heal the root cause of heartburn – low stomach acid. To read more about the science behind this and get a perspective from a nutritional therapist, I highly recommend Craig’s book, The 30-Day Heartburn Solution. Scroll down to find out how you can get his book. In this post, I will give you some home remedies for heartburn that will actually help you without throwing your gut out of balance!
5 Home Remedies for Heartburn
So now that we know the real cause of heartburn, we can now consume proper remedies for it!
1. Consume fermented foods like sauerkraut, pickles and kimchi as a condiment with each meal. All you need is a bite to get a load of probiotic benefit. There are literally billions of beneficial bacteria in just one bite. Plus the flavor boost you get with your meal will knock your socks off.
2. Drink fermented beverages during meals or as a tonic like kombucha, kefir and beet kvass. Isn’t it amazing that not too long ago, many of the carbonated beverages people enjoy today are really just a throw back to fermented beverages of old? They got their fizz through the process of fermentation and were full of healthy acids and probiotics to help us digest our food. The carbonation in sodas today is artificial and is full of chemicals!
3. Consume gelatin-rich foods every day like bone broths and foods with gelatin added like jello or even ice cream! Gelatin facilitates digestion by attracting digestive juices to food in the gut so it is actually best to consume it before a big meal. This is why we traditionally ate a soup course before our main course!
4. Chew a few pieces of fennel seed after a meal. This is quite common as a little take home ‘candy’ at Indian restaurants and it works. I usually just eat a few fennel seeds after a big meal. It really helps to soothe the tummy!
5. When I do suffer from symptoms, I love using my DiGize Vitality essential oil blend. I put 3-6 drops into a vegetable capsule and take it as a pill.
