Natural Alternatives to Antacid Drugs

by Misty L. Trepke

Excerpts from the book "Prescription Alternatives"
by Earl L. Mindell, R.Ph., Ph.D (Best-Selling author in the Field of Health and Nutrition)
co-authored by Virginia Hopkins

Summary

There are many, natural prescription alternatives to help digestion and eliminate heartburn.

Eating a balanced diet of unprocessed, organic whole foods is your foundation for a healthy stomach. Eat an organic green salad or raw organic vegetables at least once a day.

To help increase stomach acid, drink a glass of room temperature water a half-hour before eating. If that doesn't help, you can add a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar.

If neither of these solutions work, try taking a betaine hydrochloride supplement (HCl) with your meal. Since stomach acid production declines as we age, HCl supplementation can be a good anti-aging strategy.

Natural heartburn therapies include deglycyrrhizinated licorice extract or DGI. Try one or two 380 mg tablets on an empty stomach, three to four times a day.

A glass of room temperature water, raw cabbage or potato juice (organic) and herbal teas, (lukewarm, no lemon) can bring quick relief.

Fresh organic papaya, ginger root, plantain or banana can help as well.

If you do need to lower your stomach 'acidity' you can use a form of organic sulfur called MSM (methylsulfonylmethane) in supplement form, 1,000 mg daily.

Remember, your stomach "acid" is one of your front line defenses against harmful bacteria (candida, parasites, worms, e-coli, etc). Suppress it and the rest of your systems have to work "overtime" to protect you.

Earl L. Mindell, R.Ph., Ph.D is a best-selling author in the field of health and nutrition. This excerpt is from his latest book, "Prescription Alternatives" co-authored with Virginia Hopkins.

Digestive Cocktail:

Every one of the ingredients in this tasty dessert contains significant amounts of stomach-soothing anti-ulcer compounds.

• Pineapple
• Blueberries
• Organic Ground cinnamon
• Organic Ground cloves
• Organic Ground ginger root
• Raw Honey or Stevia (optional)
• Unripe Banana

Cut up the bananas and pineapple, the amount and proportions will vary depending on how many people you're serving and which fruits you like the best. Place them in a serving bowl and add the blueberries. Season to taste with the cinnamon, cloves and ginger root (try to be generous) and sweeten with raw honey (if using).

If you like, you can also make a between meal drink by blending blueberry juice, pineapple juice, a banana and the spices listed above. Garnish each serving with a peppermint sprig.

Ginger Root is well known for its anti-inflammatory activity, but it is considerably less known as an herbal treatment for Indigestive. In fact, ginger contains 11 compounds that have demonstrated anti-ulcer effects. These chemical compounds are a real mouthful, but I think that you might find it interesting to know just how much anti-ulcer chemistry can be concentrated in a single humble spice.

Here they are in order, from most to least abundant: 6 shogaol, 6 gingerol, 8shogaol, 8 gingerol, 10 gingerol, ar-curcumene, beta-bisalene, 6-gingediol, betases quiphellan-drene, 6 gingerdione and 6 paradol.

Eating ginger root is a pleasant tasting treatment for ulcers, according to Paul Schulick, New England herbalist and author of the combination of raw honey and ginger is particularly effective. In addition to the antibacterial compounds, that are available from ginger, raw honey has antibacterial action, and the two together seem to produce synergistic effects.