Acid reflux and alcohol do not go well together. If you are a suffered of this painful problem, also known as GERD you will know that the pain is quite debilitating and the last thing you need is a hangover AND heartburn.

I’m going to demonstrate why, if you are an acid indigestion sufferer, you should give booze a wide berth.

Why don’t they combine well?

Well, firstly, alcohol doesn’t combine well with anything at all. You’re essentially poisoning your body. But I’m not here to lecture anyone on the evils of the demon drink, as I like to drink beer and wine myself. The simple fact is though, that nearly every adverse condition you may face will be made worse with the help of booze. Got a headache? Booze will make it worse. Got the flu? Having a few beers will make those symptoms even stronger.

Secondly, alcohol, or any relaxant really has a direct effect on the amount of stomach acid that will get into your esophagus. To be specific, your lower esophageal sphincter becomes more relaxed after the consumption of alcohol meaning it is less effective at keeping that acid in its proper place. What this means is that when you drink enough to relax your muscles there’s more chance of reflux effecting you and causing that terrible pain you just wish would go away.

In addition to that bad news, there’s more. Alcohol actually increases the amount of stomach acid that is produced.

And to make it even worse, the more booze you drink, the worse it will be.

So, what’s the solution? Is there a way to limit the effects or are you stuck being forced to choose between pain and a few glasses of wine?

• Moderation works to a degree. Only drink small amounts
• Water your drinks down. I know that’s a terrible thing to suggest but it will certainly help
• Drink beer and wine as opposed to spirits
• Switch to white wine
• Try non-alcoholic beer. There’s some good ones out there that taste virtually the same as the real deal

Of course there are only two real solutions..

1. Stop drinking.  While this may seem like sacrilege to many people there aren’t many downsides to it.  Alcohol will never be good for you really.  If it will hamper your social life to not drink, you might need to try solution 2
2. Pursue acid reflux cures.  The one that worked for me is the Reflux Remedy.  What made me happy with that is that the solution was all natural.  I didn’t feel like I was being bombarded with drugs to cure this ‘problem’.