<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>> Sorry this took so long to finish. I nearly forgot about it. There's just a few more items I wanted to include. [My comments in brackets.] ~Valerie -------------- When I was on Cimetidine and/or Ranitidine for acid reflux, the heartburn was pretty bad. And the medicine helped less and less every day, until I could not get any relief from it. Then I heard about chamomile tea, and started using that instead. Now I am prescription-free. I get occasional acid reflux, but only if I accidentally get gluten; then it's chamomile all . . . it's the way for me! Deb -------------- My Dr. recommended Carafate. This is also known as sucralfate suspension. It is a coating that promotes healing. It is now increasingly being used for reflux but had another use many years ago.. I take 2 teaspoons (10 mL)after meals and at bedtime. [That's one of the things Dr. Wright recommends in his book, WHY STOMACH ACID IS GOOD FOR YOU. Carafate is an old timey prescription medicine that coats & protects the stomach, clinically proven effective to prevent formation of ulcers in high stress situations such as hospitalizations & chemo, illness, etc. It's excellent because it is not absorbed in to the circulation and doesn't upset stomach acid & pH. But pharmaceutical reps are so busy promoting their more profitable acid blockers that many doctors have all but forgotten that basic Carafate.] --------------- [A couple people complained that HeartBurn Free is expensive because it's only 10 gel caps for $27. But it's really NOT expensive because you take one gel cap every other day & one treatment can give relief for up to six months. I haven't done the math, but I'll bet TUMS everyday would cost less than $27 over a six month period. Even though I don't believe anyone is gullible enough to believe this, I feel like I need to point out that simply popping a pill, any pill isn't going to cure all heartburn. [Say it ain't so! Please, say it ain' so!!!] There are also lifestyle & diet changes that need to be made. Heartburn Free was only ONE component of a comprehensive program that helped me eliminate a serious case of GERD I had 4 years ago. Other things that helped are discussed in great detail in Dr. Wright's book, WHY STOMACH ACID IS GOOD FOR YOU. Sorry, there's no one magic bullet that will eliminate all heartburn forever!] -------------- Lin: Yup. Almonds. Very old natural answer to heartburn. (At least usually) Strange but true....sometimes I find that if I drink orange juice (diluted...I never drink it straight) that it relieves the heartburn. So go figure. I would never recommend that to someone else. Chocolate really does me in...but I just try not to overdue it. Spicey foods never bothered me, but it kills other folks I know. Val: Spicey foods don't bother me either. I think people blame the spices when it's actually something else in the mix that's causing the problem such as cheese, pizza crust, food allery, etc. Food allergies can trigger heartburn. Lin: Yup, we're all different. What makes me wonder is why so many people, not just celiacs, have heartburn these days. What's in our diets that makes it such a prevalent disorder? Why are we a nation living on Rolaids and TUMS? Stress? Val: Yes. Lin: Rich foods? Val: Yes. And too much of it. Lin: I remember my grandparents drinking AlkaSeltzer or baking soda in water...but not as often as we hear now. Val: I remember my dad's AlkaSeltzer habit. But once he retired, he rarely used them. It was the stress of his horrible career that tore up his guts! But, I read once a fascinating study of ulcers in WW2 prison camps. A survey of Japanese prison records showed that the Japanese prison guards had a very high rate of stomach ulcers while their Allied prisoners didn't. (Can you imagine a more stressful situation than to be a prisoner???) The study results showed the difference was most likely tied to diet. The Japanese soldiers consumed refined white rice, but the prisoners were fed the cheaper rice bran. So apparently stomach troubles are somehow connected to refined rice & the rice bran was somehow protective against ulcers. Interesting, huh? Especially considering how much refined rice Americans eat, expecially in GF baked goods! HA! -------------------- Gum chewing after meals relieves my heartburn. ------------------ Just a thought--would a ph balanced diet help? Has anyone tried it? Basically it means consuming less or very little of high acid foods and more of high alkaline foods. See www.betterbones.com I started with a ph balanced diet (and I am not perfect) to help my osteoporosis. It has helped and I think I feel much better too. In fact, (I am not diabetic) the less sugar I eat the better I feel, especially my joints. Betty [If a ph balanced diet is as beneficial as it's touted to be, it certainly couldn't hurt. However, stomach acid balance is a totally different issue from pH balanced diets. I've heard of some people recommending alkaline pH balancers with meals. I don't recommend that as it will neutralize the stomach acid that is so vital in properly digesting our foods & helping us absorb important minerals such as iron, calcium & zinc. If one choses to use oral pH balancers, I believe they should be used one hour before or one hour after meals so as not to interfere with digestion.] -------------- * Visit the Celiac Web Page at www.enabling.org/ia/celiac/index.html *