Your stomach should be a PH of 1 or 2 to be healthy this is strong enough to dissolve meat in half an hour. That is a healthy stomach even vinegar is not that strong. I had bad acid stomach and would be up most of the night but after listening to that doctor I now have a cast iron stomach.

PB, The information I referred to would only be for someone who would be in the early stages of this problem, and who may not yet require advanced treatment. Certainly, anyone with acid reflux disease that has major erosion of the esophagus, would be beyond any potential relief from using vinegar to try and correct imbalances of digestion. It's interesting though, that the first thing that people do when they start to have problems with acid reflux, is to begin using things like Rolaids, Tums, or Bicarb of Soda, to reduce the amount of stomach acid coming back up. If you take a pop bottle and fill it with a cup of vinegar and then add a little soda, you may reduce the acid, but you will also cause the contents to foam up and push up out of the bottle just as you would if you used some Rolaids for acid reflux. I would think it would make more sense just to drink plain old water instead of using an antacid. You'd be washing the acid back into the stomach, and diluting it at the same time, and not pressurizing your stomach to push this material back up. A website that discusses some options for relief of acid reflux is at ths site: http://www.greatestherbsonearth.com/nsp/gastro_health.htm Some other information I came across, discusses the relationship of ulcers caused by H.pylori bacteria and acid reflux. Apparently H.pylori is one key factor involved with acid reflux problems. Here is the website for that: http://www.acu-cell.com/dis-hpy.html About 10 years ago I was diagnosed with having an ulcer. My condition caused me to have stomach pain which was most severe after a few hours of sleep. I accidentally discovered that taking very large doses of vitamin C would ease the pain, and I could sleep. Now, vitamin C is an acid just like vinegar, and although I don't recall having any symptoms of acid reflux, this did provide relief for the pain, so somehow this was affecting the ulcer. One website even goes into a little detail about the use of vitamin C for ulcers. My doctor tried Prevacid and one other prescription, which I can't recall, neither one helped. I don't know why he didn't suggest an antibiotic for the ulcer at the time. I found a recommendation for a product called Mastic which was supposed to be effective on H.pylori bacteria. I used the product for about a month, and I have had only one problem with an ulcer since. I went back on the Mastic for another month and no longer have any problems. Anyone having digestion problems should also investigate Digestive Enzymes. These are beyond the papaya pills normally available to help digestion. A good quality product should contain a variety of enzymes which will work to digest fats, sugars, starches, and proteins. I've been using them for the past couple years with good results. Here is a website that goes into some detail: http://www.wholehealthmd.com/refshelf/substances_view/1,1525,10051,00.html#Health_Benefits GG

When you have a digestive challenge you'll find soaking or sprouting grain before consumption will aid in easier digestion. Soaking/sprouting allows enzymes, lactobacilli and other helpful organisms to break down and neutralize phytic acid. The simple practice of soaking cracked or rolled cereal grains overnight with some whey, kefir, buttermilk or yogurt added to the soaking water will not only make the grains easier to digest, but it will improve their nutritional benefits. The soak neutralizes enzyme inhibitors. During the soaking and fermenting, gluten and other difficult-to-digest proteins are partially broken down into simpler components that are more available for absorption. Oats/oatmeal may be low in the hard-to-digest gluten protein, but oats contain more phytates than almost any other grain. So if you have digestive problems, pre-soaking all grains, especially oats, would be very important. Freshly-milled whole grain flour can be made into a gruel and the gruel used as a base for a smoothie, instead of a fruit/dairy-based smoothie. You can add all kinds of things to your gruel-based smoothie. If you don't have a grain mill for this process, you can use a coffee/spice mill for milling small amounts of grain into flour (barley, brown rice, wheat, kamut, spelt, rye, etc.) and mill it as needed because FRESH IS BEST. To make 2-cups of Gruel: (source: Nourishing Traditions - by Sally Fallon and Mary G. Enig, Ph.D.) 1/2 c. freshly ground organic flour from spelt, kamut, rye, barley, wheat, rice or oats 2 c. water plus 2 T. whey, yogurt, kefir or buttermilk 1/4 t. salt Mix flour with water mixture, cover and leave at room temperature for 12-24 hours. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add salt, reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, about 10-minutes. Let cool slightly and serve with cream or butter and a small amount of a natural sweetener, such as raw honey. ------------------------------------------------------- Add ground flax seeds (flaxmeal) for more nutrition and fiber. Flax seeds are relatively low in phytic acid and when taken in small amounts do not require soaking. Mill them in a coffee/spice mill so you have the freshest source possible, plus they are less expensive. I'd also suggest adding chia seeds or chia seed gel (chia seeds mixed with water) to this gruel smoothie for additional fiber and nutrition and the great health benefits from this simple little seed. Chia seeds are easy to add to water or other beverages. A common drink used with them is called "fresca" - 1 glass of lemonade and 1 t. chia seeds - allow to sit for 10-minutes before drinking. I realize lemonade would be too acidic, but that's an example of how to add chia seeds to your diet - in any kind of beverage - just allow to sit for 10-minutes. Another add-in that would raise fiber AND aid in digestion is High Maize Resistant Starch. We add all three of these to our morning smoothie. Add water, juice, dairy, if necessary, to make the smoothie texture. --------------------------------------------------------- Have every tried crumbling baked goods in a bowl and pouring milk over it. Lots of people crumble cornbread and top if off with buttermilk and I thought it might work for wholegrain muffins or cake. This recipe is a nice wholegrain snack cake that might work crumbled. Just omit the topping and the nuts in the recipe. BANANA CRUNCH CAKE (Source: The Quaker Oats Wholegrain Cookbook) Crunch Topping: 3/4 c. Quaker Oats (Quick or Old-Fashioned, uncooked) 2 T. butter or margarine, melted 2 T. chopped nuts 1/2 t. cinnamon Cake: 1/2 c. butter or margarine 2/3 c. firmly packed brown sugar 1 c. mashed banana 2 eggs 1 t. vanilla 1 c. ground oat flour* 3/4 c. all-purpose flour (use whole wheat or spelt flour) 1 t. salt 1 t. soda 1/2 c. chopped nuts, if desired For crunch topping, combine all ingredients; mix well. For cake, beat together butter and sugar until light and fluffy; blend in banana, eggs and vanilla. Gradually add combined dry ingredients, mixing well after each addition. Stir in nuts. Pour into greased 8-inch square baking pan; sprinkle with crunch topping evenly over batter. Bake in preheated moderate oven (350-degrees F) 40 to 45 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. *How to make your own ground oat flour: 1. Place 1 to 1-1/2 c. oats in blender or food processor. 2. Blend or process for about 60 seconds Yield: about 1 cup ground oat flour 3. Store in tightly covered container in cool dry place up to six months. ------------------------------------------------------- -Grainlady

That was me Vannie. I'll go check out GMA's website. Thanks for the headsup.