Once upon a time, a young couple went to a chiropractor upon the recommendation of a friend, seeking help for a bad back. It was a bizarre and somewhat helpful experience which caused a few raised eyebrows in our completely non-naturally-minded minds. (That’s a nice way of saying that we thought she was looney tunes cray-cray.)
This was a few years before we began our journey into real food and natural health awareness, and to be quite frank – we were ignorant. She had a can of diet coke on her receptionist’s desk, and it had a paper skull & crossbones taped on, with the word “poison” emblazoned above. We looked at one another and rolled our eyes.
Like I said – at the time I thought she was cuckoo and way over the top. (My, how things change. I’ll now preach the dangers of the evil aspartame to anyone who’ll listen…)
I still remember the visit fairly vividly. She guessed/knew that Chris had eaten beef for dinner after poking around his mid-section with her hands. That was weird. They talked about him being on a daily prescription medication for acid reflux. It was bad and getting worse – the doctor had already upped his dosage. He didn’t know what to do.
She told him to go home and drink a spoonful of vinegar.
“Say what now??!”
We did all we could to contain the eye rolling and stifled our laughter. Clearly this lady was out to lunch. He has terrible acid reflux, and you want him to drink acid? Ummm, no thanks.
She claimed that the acid reflux was actually being caused from the stomach originally not producing enough acid, and therefore going into over-drive and producing way too much, which causes it to come up the esophagus and creates that horrible burning pain of acid reflux. It was a horrid cycle, which repeated itself daily – hence the prescription meds.
We left the office still thinking she was nuts… but what did we have to lose, really? The acid reflux gets worse for a few hours? We figured it was worth a shot… so we went home and tried it.
The next time the reflux hit at mealtime, he poured apple cider vinegar into a spoon and swallowed it straight.
Ten minutes later… the reflux was gone.
This method continued to work. At first he would have to take a spoonful or two daily. Then it lessened. Eventually he was able to go off the prescription meds altogether.
Now, years later (probably about 7-8 years?) he doesn’t experience acid reflux at all any more. I think he has taken a dose of vinegar maybe once in the last year.
Somewhere along the way we became firm believers in embracing a natural and holistic approach to health, and we have never been healthier or happier.
Have you ever experienced acid reflux? Have you ever used a natural remedy to treat acid reflux?
Marti
I had severe pain they thought was related to the gallbladder, so they took that out but I still had pain. Thought that maybe my GERD was acting up too, which hasn’t in a very long time. I thought maybe it could be acid reflux? Although most of the pain is gone, now that my gallbladder is gone, I still had that pain. (behind my shoulder). ACV seemed pretty harmless so I tried it and omg the pain was gone in about 10 minutes! I take about 1 tbsp in the morning and another in the evening. I will keep it up as long as I don’t have pain. So far, so good. It has been about 2 weeks and I am so much happier. I take it straight since it is like a vinaigrette so the taste doesn’t really bother me. I am however being a bit more mindful of what I am eating. It is not my ticket to going back to the way I use to eat. I love spicey foods but will gradually add that to my meals but for now I am happy.
precious
can i combine honey and ACV?
can i use honey in the morning and ACV at night?
Debbie
After weeks of this misery at night, I took a spoonful of ACV last evening (without a cup of water) and the sensations were gone within five minutes. That was awesome. Better yet, they didn’t return all night. Thrilled. Thanks for sharing.
Beth
Yayyyy! Love it when the solution is so easy, and it really works. xo
Edith
I have GERD for years and have stopped taking PPIs since they were not helping anymore and I read some articles and in forums that it is not good in the long term. What has helped me before was to manage my stress level. My doctor told me to do breathing exercises using a brown bag. You inhale and then exhale in the brown bag while holding it in front of your mouth. It helps a lot in relieving the signs. Right now, I’m experiencing heartburn and a lot of burps maybe because of the spicy food I ate during dinner and I bumped into this website. I tried taking in 1 tbsp of ACV then drank a cup of water and I was relieved instantly. I’m doing the breathing exercise as well. 🙂
Beth
Glad the ACV helped! Thanks for sharing that about the breathing exercises – so interesting!
Jayne Wingo
My husband suffered through esophagial cancer and lost the battle. From experience I learned that you can not depend on medicines to fix gerd or acid reflux, as that just covers up the problem. I found a very quick and easy solution to dealing with it. Chew cinnamon gum and always sleep on your left side.
Urgent Care Hoboken
Try mint leaves, the really helped me in reducing my acidity.
sunny levin
I’VE HAD GERD FOR SOMETIME. I GAVE UP WITH MEDICINE AND HAVE TRIED ACV, HONEY IN WATER. IT DOESN’T ALWAYS WORK. WHAT ABOUT COLLODIAL SILVER.? I’M REALLY TO GIVE THAT A TRY. HOW AABOUT ALOE VERA?
THANK YOU
Megan from Akron ohio
Thank you I will always remember this new simple trick! I never get heartburn so when I found this I was extremely happy and tried it right away! Thank thank you!🌅
Rhoda Edwards
Oh yes I had a bout of the burning sensation in my stomach. At first I ran to the pharmacy and bought tums which was a complete waste of time and money. Then someone told me to drink a tablespoon of honey and that settled it. Now I have too options. Thanks a million because good honey is hard to find. Thank you once more!
Regina Irey
Any ideas for a toddler who has severe acid reflux. He is on Zantac 3 times a day. I never knew how bad acid reflux could be until my son.
Jean
OMG, remove him/her from Zantac. That will cause you all kinds of problems, please read up on that. I used to get bad heartburn when I eat things like crackers, bread, sweets, etc. When I stopped eating those things it went away. When I occasionally eat them, I go for the Tablespoon of ACV and a cup of water. Also, your toddler is probably acidic so they need things in their diet to make them more alkaline than acidic and you won’t have any heartburn. Try a more plant-based diet and go for nut flour and such instead of crapy wheat flour. It really helps.
Sandy
I have gerd, reflux, you name it. I had bad reactions to rx meds and would drink baking soda water for relief. I started eating ginger/honey candy a couple times a day. I take a tablespoon of bee pollen every day. I make sure Im drinking enough water. And at bedtime I drink apple cider vinigar in a glass of water. Reflux is gone!
Andrea
I had a case of acid reflux last year. It was horrible. I took 2-3 OTC meds and they made me feel even worse! I tried chamomile tea (the flower) and ginger root tea. Both worked fine for me. I also took Tums on occasion, but those seemed to prolong my issues. Eventually I tried ACV, and it took ALL my symptoms away. I now drink it just about everyday just to keep the reflux at bay and also for the ACV other amazing health benefits.
Laura
Hi,I have acid Reflux really bad,I to take a pill twice a day to maintain some relief.I have had it for years,and wish I could find some relief.Could someone please let me know how much Apple Cider Vineger I should take to help me get rid of my acid reflux. HELP
Daniel Comeau
I use 15ml of acv in a full glass of hot water. 15ml might be a little excessive if you’re just starting. Maybe start at 5ml or 10ml and see how it feels. I hope it helps.