For many heartburn sufferers, the condition they dread is GERD, which is the more severe version of heartburn. GERD stands for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease. In GERD the stomach acidic levels are very high. Therefore when they reflux into the esophagus this leads to burning inflammations for the esophagus.

With an easy change in your lifestyle as well as the way you eat, you have the ability to relieve the nastiest effects of GERD. This change is called the GERD diet, and you'll find that the GERD diet is very simple to follow.

Avoid tomatoes and citrus fruits, and drinking coffee. Chocolates, onions, peppermints and food with a high fat level should be avoided also. The high fat content affects the pressure level inside your stomach. You might also want to check your usage of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

There are also a few simple GERD diet tips that you want to ponder following. Try and avoid taking large meals at bed time. Eat several small meals throughout the day. Discontinue the use of all tobacco and nicotine products. Do not wear tight clothes as they push against the stomach walls forcing the food into the LES. Sleep with your head raised higher than your body. Being overweight can also result in GERD, hence losing weight can help you on the GERD diet.

There are also some alternative foods that you can have while you are on a GERD diet. Instead of drinking whole milk you should try fat free milk or 1%-2%milk. Leave acid causing tomatoes out of your diet. Other vegetables are considered to be good on the GERD diet. Everybody loves fruits, but GERD diet followers ought to avoid grapefruit, oranges, lemons, limes and pineapples. You can eat chicken and other meat low in fats. Do stay away from bacon and processed meats like cold cuts.

Apart from these foods, there are also some drinks that you might have instead. Try some decaffeinated coffee instead. Have some herbal teas for a change, in place of your usual cup of tea. You can have fruit drinks (stay away from citrus based drinks) without digging into a carbonated fizzy drink. The other beverage to shun is alcohol in all its forms. That means no wines, beers or even coolers.

While you are following the GERD diet you should consider supplementing your nutritional intake with some calcium, magnesium, and potassium supplements. These minerals are known to have an alkalizing effect on your body by binding up the stomach acid.

Herbal medicines like Aloe Vera, Chamomile and Papaya Leaf help in aiding digestion. Aloe Vera helps in the healing of the intestinal tract and Chamomile is said to relieve esophageal irritation.

As you can see the GERD diet isn't too hard to follow whilst still leaving you with a wide variety of 'tasty' foods to eat. Besides which, if you have GERD, isn't it better not to suffer?