Fluids You Should Avoid

In one study of a variety of beverages, researchers found that the following beverages were most likely to cause heartburn symptoms (in this descending order, with grapefruit juice causing the highest heartburn score):

• grapefruit juice
• orange juice
• red wine
• white wine
• coffee
• V8 juice tomato juice
• pineapple juice
• beer
• Pepsi-Cola
• Coca-Cola
• Dr Pepper
• Diet Pepsi
• Diet Coke
• tea
• carbonate beverages

Also, when you have GERD, you should avoid alcohol, except perhaps for an occasional glass of white wine. Alcohol can greatly worsen your symptoms. Heavy alcohol use can double the risk of frequent GERD attacks, and chronic alcohol consumption can also lead to serious sleep problems

Especially avoid what I call the double whammy drinks, which combine two or more GERD-irritants in one. A few examples are:

• Bloody mary (tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, lemon, hot pepper, and vodka)
• mimosa (orange juice and champagne)
• egg nog with rum (high dairy/fat content and alcohol)
• grasshopper (creme de menthe, creme de cacao, and light cream)
• sangria (red wine, orange juice, lime juice, and sugar)