Herbal Teas
Peppermint tea is super soothing for digestion and can help calm the spasms that are causing stomach pains and even gas or bloating. Chamomile is also very calming and is known to ease discomfort in the gastrointestinal tract. It’s also known to be anti-inflammatory and to reduce bloating.
Lemon Water or Apple Cider Vinegar
We recommend drinking warm lemon water every morning to hydrate and alkalise, but there are more perks to being alkaline when it comes to indigestion. Alkalinity helps to neutralise stomach acid, so lemon water might be a big ally for those experiencing acid reflux often. Try a tablespoon of lemon juice in warm water before every meal, and reduce to once a day in the morning once things are under control. Apple cider vinegar has a similar effect, but can be too intense for some people, so make sure to dilute as well.
Fennel Seed
This Ayurvedic herb is another antispasmodic to alleviate stomach and gastrointestinal cramping as well as bloating. Add the seeds to your cooking, or steep them for 10 minutes in a tea (it helps if you crush them first to get the most potency out of them) to reap the benefits, which include getting rid of bloat, as it’s a diuretic.
Ginger
Anti-inflammatory, anti-ulcer, and great for nausea, ginger is one of our favorite healing roots. Try steeping the fresh root in a tea, or buy the tea dried. You can also add it to smoothies daily, or juice it for an immune boost, though the burning sensation of pure ginger juice might be a bit extreme when stomach acids are already wreaking havoc, so dilute in a glass of room-temperature water.
Aloe Juice
Aloe vera is a miracle plant in so many ways. While the jelly is incredible for the skin, it’s also super powerful to get things moving in the digestive tract if indigestion has us suffering from constipation. Aloe jelly and juice can also help soothe an irritated tract if we are suffering the, er, opposite issue. It’s anti-inflammatory as well, which helps with pain, and it can help reduce an excess of stomach acid.
Sit Up (Avoid Lying Down)
If you’re experiencing especially terrible acid reflux at night and it’s keeping you up, sit up. If it’s late and you need to clock your beauty rest, prop up some pillows and doze slightly sitting up. Our gurgling stomach acids can reach our oesophagus much easier when we are lying down, so using gravity to keep as much of the discomfort at bay as possible is our best bet.