Vinegar Friday -- Before you belch...

TGIVF!

Last evening, I was speaking with someone who passed on my vinegar-for-heartburn tip to his daughter's pediatrician. It's such good advice, I thought I'd share it again, just in case some of you never heard it before and/or haven't had a chance to read my book yet.

If you suffer from acid reflux, apple cider vinegar is the answer. Wait a minute! I hear you protesting. Why would you take something acidy like apple cider vinegar when your stomach is already burning up? The unfortunate fact is hydrochloric acid backs up into the esophagus from the stomach and the traditional approach to dealing with this painful condition is to take acid reducing drugs.

Of course, pregnant women, who often suffer from heartburn, should not take any of these meds. So taking a tablespoon of ACV straight up, or diluted in a glass of water, is a safe alternative that will often do wonders. My best advice for any of you suffering from an inflammation of the esophagus is -- try it. While many of us assume it is an excess of stomach acid that causes acid reflux, the reality is it is a lack of acid in the stomach, resulting in a fermentation of undigested foods. Adding the ACV will help cleanse your system and prevent the heartburn and pain.

However, you want to make sure you are taking the right  kind of apple cider vinegar! When taking ACV for your health, you need to use natural organic, raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar, such as the Bragg's brand. Unfiltered ACV contains the "mother," a cobweb-like substance that is rich in the healing nutrients ACV is known for. Unfortunately, misinformation has been bandied about regarding the importance of not taking the unfiltered ACV. Even Dr. Oz had me fuming one day, when he talked about apple cider vinegar for weight loss, but had a bottle of filtered ACV on the table!

Be careful when taking it. It can burn your throat going down and can be abrasive to tooth enamel. The best way to take it is by adding a tablespoon to a large glass of cold water. I don't like to take it that way, so I simply take a tablespoon straight, followed immediately by a glass of water. I'm careful to drink the water before the ACV hits the back of my throat. I then rinse my mouth out thoroughly, so the acid from the ACV does not affect my teeth.

For additional health benefits, you can add a tablespoon to a tablespoon of raw organic local honey and taking it that way. This will help ward off pollen-related seasonal allergies as well.

More tips like these can be found in my book, Vinegar Fridays, available through Amazon or Lulu.com.

Check back next week for more Vinegar Friday tips!