How to Cure GERD Permanently with the Help of Ayurveda

Have you gotten into the habit of popping pills for heartburn or acid reflux?

Is your throat acting funny? Hurting, bringing swallowed food up, leaving a sour taste in your mouth?

Well, a pill might relieve you for a day (or the night), but it won’t solve your real, long-term problem – GERD or Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease.

Frequent acid reflux can be a symptom of GERD. It’s a digestive disorder that affects the muscle between your esophagus and stomach, causing heartburn and throat discomfort.

If you want to eradicate it right from the root, Ayurveda treatment will help. After all, Ayurveda is known to solve issues with natural solutions.

But before we go into how to cure GERD permanently with Ayurvedic treatment, let’s understand this condition in detail.

What is GERD, according to Ayurveda?

In Ayurveda, GERD is referred to as Amlapitta, wherein Amla means “sour” and Pitta represents the frame’s digestive hearth. Ayurveda explains that our frame’s fitness depends on the stability of 3 doshas — Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. When the Pitta dosha becomes imbalanced because of pressure, abnormal eating, or immoderate spicy meals, it causes acid reflux disorder and other GERD signs.

Frequent reflux allows the acid and food out of your belly and pushes upward into the esophagus, leading to burning sensations, chest pain, and throat infection. According to Ayurveda, to remedy GERD permanently, you must repair Pitta stability through food regimen, herbs, and mindful conduct.

The physiological process of GERD

The food we swallow flows from the esophagus to our stomach through a pipe. A valve in this pipe called the Lower Esophageal Sphincter (LES), connects your throat to your stomach. It allows the food to transfer from the esophagus to the stomach.

The LES also shuts once food enters your stomach as your stomach has hydrochloric acid that helps it digest your food.

Since the stomach is in charge of digestion, the acid belongs only there. But sometimes the LES doesn’t function well. It allows the acid that’s supposed to stay in the stomach, to travel upwards. This usually happens after meals.

But why does the valve act this way?

Causes of GERD

We know that GERD usually happens due to heartburn and regurgitation (when swallowed food travels upwards). But let’s understand what causes these.

• Abnormal eating habits – Eating at odd hours, not having a routine, eating after long intervals, not eating when hungry, overeating
• Smoking
• Stress
• Lack of sleep
• Oily and spicy foods
• Obesity Since we’re living in a world where junk food is at the tip of our fingers and working long hours is the norm, it’s easy to fall into these habits. This is why 8.8% – 25.9% of the European population suffers from it.

And you should undergo GERD treatment before the symptoms manifest into other diseases.

Symptoms of GERD

If you observe one or a cluster of these symptoms occurring constantly for weeks, it’s time to get a check-up.

• Frequent acid reflux
• Frequent heartburn that lasts for at least 2 hours
• GERD cough or hoarseness in the throat
• Chest pain, pressure, or a squeezing sensation in the heart
• Nausea or vomiting
• Bad breath
• Lump in the throat
• Difficulty in breathing
• Trouble swallowing

These symptoms are a result of our lifestyle and Ayurveda can treat it. From herbal remedies to Ayurvedic medicine, GERD can be cured with Ayurvedic treatment.

Ayurveda believes that any disease or disorder stems from an imbalance or stress. And for GERD treatment, it’s important to treat this imbalance with a holistic lifestyle.

So the treatment also involves working on these imbalanced factors and replacing them with healthier patterns.

Ayurveda treatment recommends restoring the pitta dosha with organic food, massage and other Ayurvedic treatment therapies.

These are small yet effective changes and you can make them by tweaking just a few factors.

Watch what you ingest

According to Mayo Clinic, most people can manage the symptoms of GERD with lifestyle changes.

First, let’s jump into what you should eat/drink.

• Aloe vera juice

The liquid in the leaves has antioxidants and anti-inflammatory components that can cool your system down. Have a glass of aloe vera juice in the morning. 

Simply take a large aloe vera leaf (or 2-3 medium ones), remove the white, translucent gel, keep it in water for a few minutes, then blend with 1/2 – 3/4th cup of water. Add a sweetener if you need it.

• Water-based foods

Watermelon, cucumbers, lettuce, and so on. You can include broth-based soups in your diet to ensure more water intake.

• Alkaline foods

Bananas, nuts, melons, and fennel are alkaline foods that are low on acidic levels. Hence, they don’t secrete additional acid in your body.

• Veggies

Broccoli, spinach, ash gourd, asparagus, potatoes, cauliflower, and so on add to the water content in your body, cooling it down.

• Lean proteins

If you need your proteins, stay away from its fat. Have skinless chicken, turkey and eat more fish and other seafood.

• Healthy fibre

Instead of high-fibre foods, go for healthy fibre such as couscous, sweet potatoes, oatmeal, beetroot, and carrots. High fibre food can make you more full and the goal is to eat relatively smaller meals that make you feel light.

What you should avoid

• Deep-fried, oily food
• High amounts of refined sugar
• Chips, soda, fruit juice, breakfast cereal, etc.
• Fast food
• Pizzas, cheesy food, and spicy food
• Fruits high in Vitamin C (orange, lemon, grapefruit, and so on)
• Trigger foods/beverages (chocolate, coffee, and alcohol spike acidity)

It’s essential to consciously create an Ayurvedic diet for acid reflux, one that has foods and beverages that cool your body down.

Massage and other therapies

A massage is one of the best Ayurvedic remedies for dealing with GERD. They balance your body, mind, and soul along with your doshas.

For GERD, massages don’t just help with physical relief, but work on a deeper level reducing anxiety and stress.

• Abhyanga massage

This involves using a warm, anti-inflammatory oil that works on deeper tissue. It calms the nervous system, reduces stress, and cools the body internally.

You can also opt for a Nabhi Abhyanga massage that focuses on your abdominal area. This one specifically cures digestive issues and releases emotions stored in the gut.

• Swedana

It is a therapy that gives you herbal steam that makes you sweat and release toxins and inflammation. 

It also helps improve your digestive health and increase blood circulation.

• Shirodhara (oil flow therapy)

In this therapy, warm oil is poured on your forehead, particularly on your third eye chakra.

Shirodhara is known to calm your mind and relieve you of anxiety.

Other Ayurvedic treatments and tools

• Medication

If your GERD symptoms are intense and persistent, it is advisable to visit an Ayurvedic doctor. While herbal remedies work well, some Ayurvedic medicines help intense cases of GERD too.

• Panchakarma

This is a five-step Ayurvedic treatment that detoxifies your body on a cellular level. It focuses on your digestive health and reduces acid reflux. Panchakarma can be a gamechanger for those struggling with digestive issues.

• Stress-reduction tools

Ayurveda recommends breathing exercises and yoga to cure digestive issues. They calm the body and mind. Yoga involves asanas that target your digestive system, making it function better.

Meditation reduces stress and guides you towards mindful choices. It’s known to have long-term benefits on your brain and overall well-being.

To Sum Up

Our gut health is a reflection of our mental health and vice versa. GERD is the result of an imbalance in our physical and emotional being and natural treatment is a powerful way of balancing it.

The reason we encourage you to cure GERD naturally with Ayurveda is because it works on a holistic level.

Ayurveda helps you make small lifestyle changes like adding routine massages, mental health tools, and healthier food to your day.

You may also need Ayurveda medicine with Ayurvedic herbs, and we recommend you visit a specialist to guide you in the best direction.

So, if you are thinking about how to cure GERD permanently, the answer is Ayurveda. It is so because they treat the root, not just the reflux.