Acidic Foods that one should refrain from eating too much

Many of us have suffered from a problem where we eat a little bit too spicy food or drink too many cups of back coffee and end up having conditions like heartburn or acid reflux. The thing is that these food items actually have low pH value that makes them unsafe to be eaten in large quantities.

For our readers today we have gathered a list of these acidic foods that one should refrain from eating too much.

First of all, you need to know what an acidic food is. Following are the pH levels.

• pH 0 means that the food has a high level of acidity
• pH 7 means that food has a natural level of acidity
• pH 14 means that the food has a basic level of acidity

All in all, foods that have an acidic level below 7 are acidic.

Sauces & spicy foods

Spicy foods are responsible for easily triggering the irritation in the esophagus lining that can lead to discomfort. Eating lots of spicy foods often can lead to a person developing a disease like Heartburn.

The pH level of the chili sauce is in the range of 2.8 to 3.7.

Caffeinated beverages

Caffeinated beverages such as the following can lead to a person having conditions such as heartburn and acid reflux.

• Coffee
• Tea
• Energy drinks

They cause irritation to the esophagus and also weaken the lower sphincter of the esophagus which results in the content of the stomach to be flown backward in mouth and throat.

• Coffee, pH level 4
• Back tea, pH level 4.9 to 5.5
• Green Tea, pH level 7 to 10
• Energy drinks, pH level 3.4

Citrus fruits

For those who already suffer from acid reflux or heartburn, they should avoid eating citrus fruits. Mainly oranges and the grapefruit are the main citrus fruits that have a high pH level that can upset the stomach to cause overall discomfort.

• Lemons, pH level is 2.2 to 2.4
• Grapefruit, pH level is 3 to 3.7
• Orange, pH level is 3 to 4

Mint

While there is a common belief that drinking green tea actually soothes the digestive system but this is wrong. High consumption of the spearmint tea can actually lead to a person developing acid reflux and heartburn. For those who drink peppermint tea on a regular basis, they actually increase their risk of developing heartburn by 2 times. In order to avoid these conditions, you simply need to lower the consumption instead of giving them up altogether.

Peppermint tea, pH level is 6 to 7

Fried foods

Fatty and deep-fried foods are risky for the digestive system because they cause the stomach acid to regurgitate back into the esophagus. The deep-fried and fatty foods contain fat that results in heartburn by lowering the lower sphincter of the esophagus and releasing the hormone named cholecystokinin.

Fizzy drinks

While you might think fizzy drinks are no harm to drink, they actually are really bad for health. Carbonated beverages put a person at risk of developing acid reflux disease if consumed on a regular basis. Bubbles of these drinks actually expand in the stomach and put a lot of pressure on the esophageal sphincter.  This pressure build-up causes the stomach acid to be blown back up in the food pipe.

• Coca Cola, pH level is 2.37
• Fanta, pH level is 2.82
• Sprite, pH level is 3.24

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