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Heartburn

Acid reflux diet: foods to eat and avoid

Revisado por Dr Colin Tidy, MRCGPÚltima atualização por Lynn StephenÚltima atualização 21 Oct 2025

Atende aos diretrizes editoriais

If you have a burning pain in your chest or travelling up your throat after eating, you're probably experiencing acid reflux - a feeling more commonly described as heartburn. Some foods are more likely to trigger this annoying and uncomfortable symptom. So, if it keeps revisiting you after meals, it may help to look at how you eat as well as what you eat.

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What is acid reflux?

Acid reflux, also known as gastro-oesophageal reflux disease (GORD) is caused by acid from the stomach leaking up into your food pipe (oesophagus).

When we say we have heartburn, we're describing the feeling of acid reflux - that burning pain in your chest. Acid reflux can also cause this sensation in your throat.

What causes acid reflux?

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The symptoms can be caused by several different factors in your body:

  • Your stomach may be producing too much acid. One of the triggers for this can be stress.

  • The muscle ring (sphincter) at the bottom of your food pipe may be too relaxed and open, allowing food and acid to reflux upwards. Alcohol and smoking both relax the sphincter.

  • In people with a hiatus hernia, stomach contents can reflux easily into your oesophagus.

  • Your stomach may be slow to empty after eating. This is more likely if you eat a fatty meal.

  • Something may be increasing the pressure in your tummy (abdomen), forcing stomach contents upwards. Factors which increase the pressure include tight clothing, obesity, pregnancy and coughing.

Diagram of upper gut and nearby organs

Upper gut and nearby organs

Diagram of normal stomach

Detail of normal stomach

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What can trigger acid reflux?

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It is helpful to try to identify whether there are any particular foods which trigger your acid reflux. It might be a good idea to keep a food diary for at least a week, recording what you eat and drink and what symptoms you have.

There is quite a big list of foods which are said to cause acid reflux. However, they may not all apply to you. For some people, acid reflux may not be triggered by particular foods at all but by other factors. Sometimes the trigger may be a combination of foods and other factors.

There are lots of factors around eating which can make these symptoms worse:

  • Eating late at night. If possible, don't eat a large meal within three hours of going to bed.

  • Eating just before you exercise.

  • Eating large meals.

  • Eating quickly.

  • Obesity. Even a moderate weight loss may help to reduce symptoms.

  • Having a lot of fluid to drink with a meal.

Foods to avoid with acid reflux

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There are some foods which individual people find make acid reflux worse. An acid reflux diet doesn't have to mean missing out on all these foods - your food triggers may be different. But these foods have all been suggested as reflux triggers, so it's worth noting if you get symptoms after eating any of them.

Foods to avoid:

  • Chocolate.

  • Mint.

  • Tomates.

  • Onions.

  • Garlic.

  • Citrus fruits - such as oranges and lemons.

  • Caffeinated and fizzy drinks.

  • Café

  • Peppers.

  • Cucumber.

  • Spicy foods.

  • Processed meats - for example, salami, bacon.

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How to get rid of acid reflux

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An acid reflux diet involves cutting all of the suggested foods out of your diet for one or two weeks to see if your symptoms disappear. If they do disappear then you could add these foods back into your diet one at a time to see if they are what is causing your reflux.

If your symptoms come back, perhaps because of other factors as listed above, you may need to cut out potential triggers again until the symptoms have settled down.

Foods to eat with acid reflux

There aren't any specific foods to eat to treat that feeling of heartburn, but in general, a healthy diet is associated with a lower chance of acid reflux symptoms.

In particular:

Indigestion and heartburn are rarely due to a serious cause, but there are some possible warning signs which should be checked out by a doctor.

Symptoms not to ignore when it comes to heartburn:

  • Persistent heartburn or indigestion (acid reflux, dyspepsia).

  • Vomiting after eating.

  • Feeling full after small amounts of food.

  • Food sticking as you try to swallow it - difficulty swallowing (dysphagia).

  • Perda de peso.

  • Pain in the front or back of the chest as you swallow.

  • Perda de apetite.

  • Persistent stomach pain.

  • New feeling of being tired all the time (fatigue).

  • Darker poo - if it is black or tarry, call for an emergency ambulance immediately as this could be a stomach bleed and can be life threatening.

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