You Can't Beat Zero Heartburn:I Lost Mine When I Went Vegan
It is NOT about willpower. It is about reclaiming your health and vitality.
And it doesn't require a pill:
Heartburn used to be a chronic daily condition for me. When it first started to bother me I would chew Tums, every now and then. But, over time, heartburn was something I dealt with daily. When Tums was no longer effective, my sister recommended Pepcid. I began taking them every morning (since I would wake up with low-grade heartburn) and again in the afternoon (to get me through the rest of the day). I tried to figure out what foods or drinks were causing the heartburn. A few trigger foods were processed granola bars, such as Nature Valley Sweet and Salty bars. Coffee creamer, especially the tasty flavored varieties, always activated my heartburn. Other foods caused it, but it was hard to figure out which ones they were because it seemed like I never got relief from it. But Pepcid (or a generic substitute) would solve the problem. I told my doctors about my daily need for Pepcid. They were not concerned and offered no solution, so I accepted that taking daily antacids was just part of getting older. God forbid if I would attempt traveling without them. For those of you who live with heartburn or acid reflux issues, you know the misery to which I am referring.
If you have been following my health journey, you know that I "dove into" nutritional research in order to discover what a human should eat in order to be healthy, find a normal body weight, and feel good. That journey began in February of 2013. I was tired of accumulating weight and feeling discouraged about dieting. No one seemed to have the answer. And I wasn't the "Weight Watchers" type. Through my extensive research and experimentation with applying what I learned to myself, I lost weight and learned how to eat. I had learned that a diet rich in animal products (i.e., meat, eggs, and dairy) causes inflammation. Since I had been feeling "swollen" (and not just overweight), I decided to remove those foods from my diet and see if it made a difference. I immediately felt (and looked) less swollen. And the bonus was that I no longer had heartburn. I only took my antacid remedies when I felt the acid in my throat or stomach. And after a couple days of not needing my twice daily Pepcid, I realized that something was different in my system. How could it be that for a string of three or more years that I needed it twice per day and now my heartburn had disappeared? So people ask me if I miss meat, ice cream, or especially cheese. My answer is no. I really truly don't. Once you figure out what makes you feel and look swollen (face, neck, arms, chest, joints, belly, legs, feet, etc.), wouldn't you be happy to NOT eat them? If you figured out what food(s) gave you daily heartburn, wouldn't you be thrilled to eliminate it? To realize that my swollen features were disappearing at the same time my heartburn was eliminated, all by eating whole foods that made me feel healthy and mentally alert, was a breakthrough. The way I eat now does not require willpower. It just requires the common sense that I need to cherish my health and do what it takes to fuel my body properly. I thought this blog post might inspire those of you who have heartburn or acid reflux issues to give this way of eating a trial run and see how it makes you feel. Be sure to NOT eat the processed vegan junk foods that are out there. Returning to whole, unprocessed foods (i.e., potatoes, rice, beans, vegetables, fruits, grains and unprocessed bread) should make a tremendous difference. You will see that it isn't about willpower. It is about reclaiming your health and your vitality.
