TELL ME WHAT TO EAT IF I HAVE ACID REFLUX book:

3 Heartburn-Free Tips For Fast Food

By Elaine Magee

Besides the whole high fat food thing (when you have acid reflux you want to avoid high fat meals), there are a few other things about fast food dining that can greatly challenge your desire to be heartburn-free.

It's "fast food" after all, right? So guess what, we tend to eat our food--fast. Eating slowly will help the food go down in a relaxed manner. If we eat our meal slowly we may also avoid overeating. You have to give your stomach time to register to your brain that it's filling up. If you literally shovel it down in 5 minutes or less, you never give your tummy time to check in with your brain.

How are you going to wet your whistle? Your beverage choices in fast food chians are limited to soda, coffee, and milk. The only other beverage I've seen offered is orange juice and this high acid drink may not be the best thing if you have acid reflux (it can bother some people). The calcium in milk can stimulate the stomach to release acid, so this may not work either. It is possible to order ice water--all you have to do is ask for it. I do it all the time.

Everything about fast food is about MORE, MORE, MORE. Super size this, meal deal that. Eating at fast food chains is definitely going to test your desire to eat small sized meals (and avoid eating BIG). I know this is cheating, but if I want a hamburger, I order the kids meal hamburger. I get a nice, small hamburger (that automatically comes with catsup and mustard and not mayonnaise) and I get a few bites of fries (which is all I really want) and a drink. And even if I'm feeling like a chocolate shake, most of the chains will make you a kid-size shake instead of a soda. Again, this is just enough milkshake to satisfy me.