Blah blah bland
Justin Smith/Wikimedia Commons
I hate heartburn.
I never had heartburn – didn’t even know what it felt like – until after I turned 30. Now, for some reason, I’ve had chronic heartburn for the past several weeks. The doctor calls it “gastritis.” I call it a royal pain in the … well, chest region.
They’ve got all these prescription and over-the-counter drugs for heartburn, and I’ve been taking those, but my mom said what worked best for her was to force herself to go on a bland diet for 2 weeks to give her stomach a break. After that, she said, she felt “cured” other than the occasional flare-up when she eats something really spicy. So, while I know there isn’t much exciting about a blah-blah-bland diet, I also know that’s part of being a human and it technically falls under the food category.
I’m guessing some of you have had this problem before, so I want to share some ideas with you. I found a great list on one of the National Institutes of Health websites for what you can eat on a bland diet and what you should not (note that it does not mention alcohol, which definitely does not belong in a bland diet. And avoid meds with aspirin or ibuprophen, if possible). I will attach the food advice below, with my notes in italics. Have any of you found that this helps?
Foods you CAN eat:
Milk and other dairy products, low-fat only
Cooked, canned, or frozen vegetables
Fruit and vegetable juices (I’m not sure I believe something like orange juice or tomato juice is good for stomach problems, so I’m avoiding that)
Cooked or canned fruit with the skin and seeds removed, such as applesauce or canned peaches
Breads, crackers, and pasta made with refined white flour
Refined hot cereals, such as oatmeal and cream of wheat
Lean, tender meats, such as poultry, whitefish, and shellfish that are steamed, baked, or grilled with no added fat
Creamy peanut butter (Yay!)
Pudding and custard
Eggs (Yay!)
Tofu
Soup, especially broth (I made some good chicken noodle)
Weak tea
Foods to AVOID:
Fatty dairy foods, such as whipped cream or high-fat ice cream
Strong cheeses, such as bleu or Roquefort
Raw vegetables
Vegetables that make you gassy, such as broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, cucumber, green peppers, and corn
Fresh berries and other fresh fruit
Dried fruit
Whole-grain or bran cereals
Whole-grain breads, crackers, or pasta
Pickles, sauerkraut, and similar foods
Spices, such as hot pepper and garlic (double bummer)
Foods with a lot of sugar or honey in them
Seeds and nuts
Highly seasoned cured or smoked meats and fish
Fried foods
I would add coffee to this list, too, as much as that bums me out.
Other tips from the NIH (most of this is generally good advice anyway):
* Eat small meals and eat them more often during the day
* Chew your food slowly and well
* If you smoke cigarettes, stop.
* Don’t eat within 2 hours of bedtime.
* Stop eating foods that are on the “avoid” list if you do not feel well after you eat them.
* Drink fluids slowly.
Any other tips you guys would offer?
September 29, 2010 - 12:18 PM
RSS feed 
Over-the-counter Prilosec does just fine for me, and I eat whatever I want.
Drink a lot of water. When I wake up with heartburn at night, I drink a glass of water and that generally helps a lot. No drugs, no side effects. All natural!
I saw where cucumber is in your list of things to avoid. I suffer from heartburn and while looking on the internet it said cucumber is a good cure for heartburn. What do you think?
You know, Leona, it strikes me that there might be a lot about heartburn that doctors and researchers don’t know for sure. I’ve read that there are possible trigger foods but studies showed that a food would trigger heartburn one time someone ate it, but the next time it wouldn’t. So odd. I guess cukes are on the list because raw vegetables cause some people to have gas and other discomfort. Also, the site I quoted said: “A bland diet can be used to treat ulcers, heartburn, nausea, vomiting, and gas. You may also need a bland diet after stomach or intestinal surgery.” So it could be that the specific diet depends on the particular problem you are having.
Aloe juice is a great gastric sedative. Drink a half a cup twice a day and it soothes things pretty quickly.
Tomatoes bother some people’s stomachs – that might be one to watch.
Not eating 2 hours before bed is good advice too.
Hmm, I had not heard or thought about aloe juice, D, but it makes sense. I’ll look into that. Thanks!
Better add a good multi-vitamin and a fiber supplement if you’re going by that “can eat” list! Removing fresh produce and whole grains from your diet and replacing them with canned and refined products seems counter-intuitive (and somewhat destructive)to me.
Twenty some years ago, while being treated for an ulcer I asked my dr. what diet recs he had and he told me they don’t do that anymore because they hadn’t found a bland diet really made a difference. He did put me on Tagamet, which was available by prescription only back then. It’s over the counter now. Haven’t had a problem since.
That’s a good point, Rebecca, although if someone is just doing a bland diet for a week or two, it probably isn’t so bad.
Has anything in your life changed significantly? I never had heartburn until I started a new medication…then I got it like clockwork every night. Switched meds and heartburn went away, never to return in the 6 years since.
Well, I got a dog … if that gave me heartburn, then it’s probably a good thing I don’t have kids!
So you say you got a dog recently? How much chili did it have? That might be the cause for your heartburn.
Just sayin’…
This is the food blog, after all…
I’m hungry, I’ve gotta go…
You crack me up.
One thing we tried with heartburn…sometimes it’s caused by a lack of acid in the stomach and not an over-abundance. So, we tried taking shots of cider vinegar…and it helps quite a lot when that’s the case. I’t not pleasant, but it might help. If there is a real underlying acid reflux or other problem though, the vinegar likely will not help.
I refuse to give up the great tastes I love, so I live with it and take the over the counter generic Prilosec drugs. It is a shame when your body betrays you, but I am learning to live with it. Yes, age has a lot to do with it.