Possible Acid Reflux That Won't Go Away

[MIgrainePosterChild]

When I was in high school, I was overweight and eating a lot of junk food. I also drank a lot of soda. I always figured this could have been why I had embarrassing loud gas noises that would come up into my chest during classes after eating. During periods of Silent reading, I worried that the whole class could hear my strange noises. 

 

As an adult, I have suffered from constipation and trapped gas frequently. I have never known how to burp. so the trapped gas "yo-yos" up and down my system making noises like burps from the inside. It causes major discomfort until I can let the gas out (usually by farting loud smelly farts). 

 

When the trapped gas is at its worst, I get a burning sensation in the middle of my chest and throat in addition to the loud noises. Last night, my husband and I had tacos for dinner and I told him he had made the meat too spicy. He had mixed the ground beef with taco sauce and basil pasta sauce. At the time, my mouth had been on fire and I surrounded the meat with lettuce, lactose free cheese, tomatoes, olives and a Gluten free tortilla. At around 1am, I woke up with the worst burning sensation in my chest and the loud gas noises. It was uncomfortable to lie down or sit. I tried taking Gas-X and later on a couple sips of sparkling mineral water, but nothing worked. I ended up staying up all night until 6am! When I woke up at 10am, I still had the burning. I ate a little piece of Gluten free raisin bread and had a cup of peppermint tea. My husband suggested drinking almond milk, so I had a little. He went to the store and bought me antacids (the gluten free generic version of Zantac) and I took one, still nothing! I had the symptoms most of the day. Around the afternoon, things had finally subsided a bit. For lunch I had scrambled eggs with turkey and lactose free cheese. Then for dinner, I had about half of a baked sweet potato with a little butter. Now it is bedtime and I am having the burning and noises again! The antacids don't seem to be working and I am so tired from not getting any sleep.

 

My doctor had recommended seeing a GI specialist, but I don't have the money to see one.  Any help would be appreciated as I am having a really hard time figuring out what is ok to eat and what is going to set my body off! I am figuring the taco combo had been too acidic, but is a potato a problem too or is my system still upset from the night before? Is this normal when you first go Gluten free? 

[jhol]

when i got the results of all my tests, the only thing they found was acid reflux!!!. i was given a prescription but decided there and then that i wouldnt start taking medicines for this and that.if something is irritating you it can only be something your eating or drinking. i went straight on the gluten and dairy free diet.

i havent have any reflux from that day (except for one incident with a strawberry smoothie). it could be a combination of things- maybe a food diary would help you track your symptoms. i personally would give the cheese a miss - you may have a problem with the casein as well as the lactose, but spices could cause the problem as well. if it is dairy you,ll have to use a dairy free butter and milk.

good luck!!

[dilettantesteph]

I can't tell from your post.  Do you have celiac disease?  Reflux can be a symptom of glutening.  When my son gets into too much gluten cross contamination he gets reflux.  Then we have to work on his diet.  More whole foods, and fewer things that come in boxes is what helps the most.  Keeping a food/symptom journal is helpful to track which foods are problematic.  In his case it takes two days of eating something to start noticing symptoms.  It can be hard to remember back that far without the journal.

 

Are you just experimenting with the gluten free diet to see if it helps with the reflux?  Once you are gluten free it can be very hard to go back to eating gluten again.  You need to be eating gluten to get a diagnosis for celiac disease.  The tests measure your body's response to gluten.  Your regular doctor can give you a blood test for celiac disease.  It would be a good idea to get that done before you stop eating gluten.  If you have complications later, it would be much better to have a clear diagnosis.

[julissa]

After I went gluten free I felt worlds better, but I still was having some nausea and terrible acid reflux. I went to an allergist who did a full panel of allergy tests, and it turns out I am allergic to dairy and soy. so being allergic to dairy means I don't have lactose free items, since there is still the milk protein present, casein. soy is in so many things it is amazing when you start reading labels for these foods too. so I basically eat one ingredient whole, fresh foods. last weekend I stupidly got soyed and was pretty sick and the acid reflux was awful.

 

it can be so many things, the best way to approach is with a food diary if you can't go for allergy testing. good luck.

[Chiana]

I'd cut out all of the dairy products.  That's what really gives me reflux.  If you can't go cold turkey, you could switch to all almond-based products.  Also: green vegetables are your friend.  Try eating a cup of green vegetables at lunch and dinner for awhile.

I go with Tums for acute reflux, but you may want to ask your regular doctor for a daily pill as well, if it's that terrible for you.  You don't take NSAIDs (aspirin, ibuprofin) on a regular basis, do you?

[MIgrainePosterChild]

I have gone off gluten and most dairy because I believe I have malabsorption and I think my digestive issues tie in with the migraines I have had since I was a kid. I have not been officially tested for Celiacs because my doctor discouraged it. I don't have any insurance and can't afford to get more testing done. I was already tested for Thyroid/metabolism and B12 vitamin deficiencies. All of those tests came out normal. 

 

I am so frustrated! I have no idea what to eat because everyone says to eat only whole foods, but there are a lot of fruits and vegetables I have to avoid because they cause gas, bloating and/or constipation. So, if you avoid dairy, gluten and a variety of fruits and vegetables...what's left?

 

I am dealing with health issues every day now and it is worse when I can't figure out what to eat. I keep a food diary, but I can't find a pattern. The other day, I had an artichoke with mayo and later on in the day, I got the worst trapped gas and felt extremely sick, so now I am avoiding those too!

 

I don't take NSAIDS, except an occasional Alleve if I am having a headache or arthritis in my ankle. I have pretty much gotten off all medications. I take a magnesium supplement and a women's multi-vitamin (both of which are Gluten free). 

[mommida]

So it seems your symptoms fit severe GERD or Eosinophilic Esophagitis.  (I understand medical costs would be very steep for you to get testing.  At this point you need an endoscopy with biopsy for diagnoses.)

 

The reason why a food journal is still not helping, is eosinophils, once activated, are active for up to 12 days.  That does not count time to heal for the damage caused from them.  Severe cases of GERD does show eosinophils, so a much higher than average count would diagnose the patient with Eosionphilic Esophagitis.

 

Finding food triggers is NOT easy.  You first start with the RESTRICTED diet.  Remove all top 8 allergens (you're in luck gluten free already took out wheat) and PEAS.  (Peas are on the list of high reactions.) (Go figure?)

 

If you are still feeling poorly after 2 weeks on the elimination diet, you would have to remove another suspect food from diet until you feel better and that 2 week time period is over.  Then you do a challenge with a suspect food with consuming a small amount in its purest form.  3 days, amount just under a Tablespoon.

[tarnalberry]

I also was going to point my finger at the cheese.

I'd try remove all dairy (not lactose, casein) as well, and continue looking into other food triggers.  (Though, if you're going all out on that front, make a plan first, as it can be very challenging to do.)

[mommida]

I was going to point my finger at the egg!  LOL

 

The top 8 allergens earned a spot on the short list because they are a "complex" protein for the body to process.

 

Some of the products that can be very helpful during an elimination diet.  Enjoy Life (especially when you need soy free chocolate),  I don't have a loaf here but Schar's sandwich bread is gluten free egg free (can't remember if there are other allergens in there)

 

My favorite cookbook is  The Allergen free baker's handbook by Cybele Pascal.  Because of replacing eggs, vegan recipes may be helpfull.  You will have to make adjustments to a lot of these recipes to make them gluten free.  Watch out because a lot of gluten free recipes have relied on eggs and peas for texture.  Kinnicknik all purpose flour also has peas in its mix.

 

Avocado can be used as "creamy" substition or spread.  It is also considered to be a "low reactivty" food and you can replace some some sources of "good" fat in your diet.

[julissa]

I am looking at the avocado with mayo and that caught my attention. all the mayo I have seen has soy in it, even a bottle I got before my allergy tests that was olive oil mayo.

 

so for me, soy looks like it might be an offender. and believe me, soy is everywhere! I think I was the most shocked when I found it in tuna.

 

I would avoid all dairy and all soy and see what happens.

[MIgrainePosterChild]

  On 4/5/2013 at 10:47 PM, mommida said:

So it seems your symptoms fit severe GERD or Eosinophilic Esophagitis.  (I understand medical costs would be very steep for you to get testing.  At this point you need an endoscopy with biopsy for diagnoses.)

 

The reason why a food journal is still not helping, is eosinophils, once activated, are active for up to 12 days.  That does not count time to heal for the damage caused from them.  Severe cases of GERD does show eosinophils, so a much higher than average count would diagnose the patient with Eosionphilic Esophagitis.

 

Finding food triggers is NOT easy.  You first start with the RESTRICTED diet.  Remove all top 8 allergens (you're in luck gluten free already took out wheat) and PEAS.  (Peas are on the list of high reactions.) (Go figure?)

 

If you are still feeling poorly after 2 weeks on the elimination diet, you would have to remove another suspect food from diet until you feel better and that 2 week time period is over.  Then you do a challenge with a suspect food with consuming a small amount in its purest form.  3 days, amount just under a Tablespoon.

Thank you for this. It is so hard to keep replacing groceries only to find out I might not be able to eat them when we don't have the money to do so. My husband recently signed us up for insurance benefits through his work, so as soon as that kicks in, I will hopefully be able to look into treatment for GERD. Would I need to see a Gastroenterologist? So, peas and wheat...what are the other top allergens?

[MIgrainePosterChild]

I arranged an a appointment for a free consultation with a naturopathic clinic and I am looking into their IV therapy treatments since they listed malabsorption, chronic stress, anxiety and depression among the conditions that are possibly treated (all of which I believe-the neurological ones stemming from the malabsorption). Does anyone have experience with IV Therepy and Naturopathic treatments? Would this help if I were experiencing GERD?

[mommida]

top 8 allergens are wheat, dairy, eggs, soy, fish, shellfish, nuts, and tree nuts.

 

I have known some Celiacs with Barrett's Esophagus too.  Your best option for medical treatment is a gastroenterologist.  First line of testing will probably be an endoscopy with biopsy.  The doctor will want you on a "normal" diet to find the type of damage that is being done from food or airborn "triggers".

[MIgrainePosterChild]

I am still having slight digestive issues, but taking a digestive enzyme pill after each meal seems to be helping.

[pricklypear1971]

  On 4/10/2013 at 5:52 AM, "MIgraine said:

I am still having slight digestive issues, but taking a digestive enzyme pill after each meal seems to be helping.

Lots of us take digestive enzymes in the beginning of healing. Your body has alot of healing to do if it's healing from celiac disease. Digestive enzymes help, as do probiotics. Just make sure both are gluten-free.