You know it's going to hit you moments after you've eaten something you shouldn't have. You start to feel that burning sensation in your stomach that slowly works its way into the back of your throat. Not only is it uncomfortable, leaves a nasty bitter taste in your mouth but it won't go away either. You gulp down ant-acids to no avail. That painful burning sensation stays with you for hours on end. And laying down doesn't help, just makes it worse making it nearly impossible to sleep.

These are the joys of acid reflux disease, also known as gastro-esophageal reflux disease. Acid reflux occurs when the contents of the stomach are regurgitated into the esophagus and throat. The culprit is a muscle in your esophagus that's not working correctly. Normally it restricts the contents of you stomach from flowing back into your esophagus, but when it doesn't function right your stomach acid and bile flows back into your esophagus causing that burning sensation and bitter taste.

There are quite a few natural cures for acid reflux but the best way to mitigate its affects is to eat a balanced diet that helps restrict the over production of gastric acids. If you suffer from acid reflux then you will come to know which foods tend to aggravate the condition so you can avoid those. Other things to avoid include fatty food, certain spices, caffeine and citrus fruits as these can cause episodes of acid reflux. Smoking has also been shown to increase the chances of acid reflux.

The known natural cures for acid reflux all have one thing in common. They calm the stomach and its production of gastric acids. One of the best ways to do this is to drink one table spoon of apple cider vinegar mixed in a glass of water. It is also best to drink this during a meal to get the most effective results.

Several fruits and vegetables are good when it comes to controlling the affects of acid reflux. These include, bananas, apples, figs, pineapple and papaya. You can also get the same effect from eating cabbage and carrots.

You can also use herbs and spices to help calm your stomach. Cinnamon, Cardamom, Mace, Nutmeg and Slippery Elm all have been shown to have reduced gastric acid secretion and settle an upset stomach.

One last natural cure you can use is chewing gum. Chewing gum increases saliva out put which is an ant-acid produced by the body. As you chew the gum and swallow your own saliva it calms your stomach.

Having to deal with acid reflux is not fun, but with changes to your diet and using some of these natural cures you should be able to live an acid reflux free lifestyle.