Kicking the Coffee Habit: What to Do When Your Coffee Gives You Heartburn
For many people, coffee is the lifeblood of their morning rituals. Its rich, bold taste and pleasant aroma make rising for the day an actually manageable feat, touching the soul at the first sip, as many say. But for some unlucky few, drinking coffee causes coffee heartburn or acid reflux. There are a few solutions out that may help you reduce your heartburn while still enjoying your morning cup. But they’re not for everyone. That’s when it may be time to call it quits.
What Is Acid Reflux?
Acid Reflux or GERD is caused when your stomach's acid or bile flows into your esophagus and starts irritating the lining. Some of the symptoms may include burning of the chest (heartburn) that can worsen as you lie down.
Why Does Coffee Cause Acid Reflux?
Coffee tends to be one of the more surprising triggers of reflux for people. However, it’s actually a pretty common one, as there’s two main factors to why coffee causes reflux: the high caffeine volume and the beans’ natural acidity. Sometimes both of these factors cause your reflux. Sometimes it’s only one or the other. To figure out which kind of coffee and how much (if any) you body can handle, you’ll have to do some experimenting.
The first thing you’ll want to do is to lower your daily coffee intake. This may mean just one cup in the morning. If it’s just the caffeine bothering you, switching to decaf may do the trick! Sometimes it can even be how you brew your coffee! For example, some coffee beans have higher acidity levels than others so you may want to switch brands. Learning what triggers you acid reflux can take some time, but getting chronic heartburn under control is always worth it.
For some, however, their reflux is too severely affected by coffee drinking, and no amount of switching to decaf or finding less acidic beans seem to work. These folks usually find it’s best to give up the drink altogether. Of course, we know that this is easier said than done, so we’ve compiled a list of tips to help you quit.
Tips For Quitting Coffee
If you've asked yourself, how do I stop coffee heartburn, then you're in the right section. These tips should help you wean off the coffee so that you can go about your without suffering from highly distracting caffeine withdrawals.
Reduce your intake by one cup per day for a month.
Slowly replace your caffeinated cup of coffee with decaf.
Get more sleep, so your body uses its stored energy, so you won't have to rely on outside stimuli.
Look at why you're using coffee and see if there're any underlying issues.
Switch to tea or matcha green tea. It's lower in caffeine but helps reduce stress and balance your sugar levels. Plus, it helps boost your mood and energy throughout the day.
Find a new beverage. This can be a coffee alternative like chicory, roasted cocoa beans, a morning smoothie, or herbal coffees.
Reduce your overall intake of caffeine.
How To Quit Coffee With A Reflux Specialist
Creating a plan to lessen your heartburn can take a lot of work and dedication. And sometimes it’s hard to do it on your own. Make the journey easier by talking to a reflux specialist here at the Tampa Bay Reflux Center! We’ll help you create a personalized plan to pinpoint the root cause of your heartburn (for example, if it is more than just reflux and is actually GERD), and advise you on the best treatment— even if that means helping you learn how to stop drinking coffee! Give us a call to set up your consultation today!