1. Eat smaller meals at frequent intervals. Eating large meals causes your stomach to expand and this increases the pressure in the esophageal sphincter. When this happens, your lower esophageal sphincter (LES) will find it hard to stay closed. In eating less at a meal and more frequently, the risk of getting acid reflux is reduced.
2. Select your foods properly. You should consume more foods that rarely cause heartburn and avoid those that cause heartburn. Proper selection of food would differ from person to person. You should also try to limit the amount of acid stimulating foods and beverages. Also, eliminating coffee, tea, caffeinated and carbonated beverages, alcoholic beverages, spices, pepper, onions, tomatoes and tomato based products, citrus fruits, fried and fatty foods, chocolate and peppermint from your diet is also helpful.
3. Wait for at least three hours after a meal before lying down. The acid breaking down the food may flow down upwards, if you lie down sooner than three hours. Doing so would trigger acid reflux symptoms such as heartburn. Hence, make plans to have early dinners and try not to eat late night suppers or snacks.
4. Sleep with your head elevated. The fourth lifestyle change to keep your head elevated a few inches while sleeping. By laying down flat, you put pressure on the stomach's contents against the LES. With that, elevating the head a few inches which means higher gravity that helps reduce this pressure
5. Have a reasonable and healthy weight. Obesity is known to create abdominal pressure, which pushes stomach contents into the esophagus. In fact, experts say that as little as a ten percent decrease in weight will improve many people's heartburn symptoms.
6. Do not smoke. Another lifestyle change is to stop smoking. This is especially if you suffer from severe heartburn symptoms. Cigarette smoke causes the production of saliva and lowers the amounts of bicarbonates in the saliva, which help to neutralize stomach acid. Therefore, the longer you smoke the more chance you have that your body will be unable to keep down the stomach acid.
7. Refrain from alcohol. You should not be drinking alcohol if you suffer from acid reflux. However if you still want an alcoholic beverage, then limit yourself to rare ocassions.
8. De-stress. Simply resting the body and mind can help ease heartburn symptoms. Although, stress is not directly related to heartburn, it can lead to bodily reactions that trigger heartburn. When you are under stress, you may disrupt your regular eating and exercise plan. This plan may have been put in place because of your acid reflux. Therefore, find ways to alleviate stress in your life.
9. Dress with proper selection of clothes. Try not to wear belts or clothes that are tight fitting around the waist. This will squeeze the stomach and force food up against the LES causing food to reflux into the esophagus.
10. Maintain a logbook. It is a good idea to keep a logbook of your acid reflux symptoms. Maintain a record of what you eat and when you eat. Then make notes on what triggers your acid reflux and how severe each episode of acid reflux is. Take note of how your body reacts and what you do to find aid. You can take your logbook to your doctor so he can help you with more suggestions on lifestyle changes.
The above lifestyle changes may sound tedious or easy, depending on your attitude. However, they may just be the solution you need to help you cope with acid reflux better. You need to stick to the lifestyle plan to reap the maximum benefits.