Since avoiding trigger foods isn’t as easy as consulting a list, you will have to figure out some of the foods that affect you personally by good old trial and error. My GERD Food Diary can be helpful in this process. Download it free of charge by clicking on the link in the box at the bottom right of this page (requires Microsoft Excel reader that can be downloaded here.)There are obvious ones to stay away from (go to the Triggers section to see the most common ones.) But, you may have some sensitivities that others don’t. I have found that spinach is a big trigger for me. So is broccoli. I wouldn’t have known that unless I had been keeping a diary. I had made a recipe out of a GERD book I have. It sounded innocent enough, spinach and rice casserole. But it was a killer.
I keep a diary of not only what I eat, but what time I take my meds and how I feel before and after a particular meal. It seems like a lot of trouble. But I think it gets you to a good list of safe foods much faster.
In order to stick with it, keep it simple. I use a small spiral bound notebook kept on the kitchen counter where it can remind you to write down what you eat. Try to take note of ALL the ingredients in what you eat. Start off with safe foods and get to the point where you are feeling pretty good. At that point you can add a food you haven’t tested yet. On a day you are testing a food, test only one food or you’ll never know which one gave you a reaction.
When you have determined that a food or ingredient cause you problems, add it to a list at the front of the notebook so you can avoid it in the future. You may want to keep a list of definite ‘triggers’ as well as ‘suspects.’ If you aren’t completely sure if a food caused the reaction, add it to the ‘suspect’ list and try it again at another time.
Its a slow process, but is definitely worth it.
Eating With GERD 