What Should You Eat if You Have Gastritis

I have generally talked only about irritable bowel syndrome until today and I think we should take a break from it and focus on other abdominal problems. We’re keeping in the same area and today are talking about gastritis.

There are two types of gastritis – low acidity and high acidity and obviously the treatment and diet for each is completely different. Since my gastritis is caused by high acidity, that’s what we are going to talk about right now – diet and permitted foods, to be more specific.

Unlike diets for colon related problems, diets for gastritis are pretty permissive. There is a general rule of thumb here, though, which is usually ignored by the busiest doctors: there are different types of food which could do wonders for some patients, while others might feel sick after consuming them. So the basic idea is that if you feel that your pain is getting worse after eating a specific product, don’t eat that anymore until your gastritis is gone, even if your doctor told you it could be a good thing to eat.

For example, I ate milk and other milk-based products and had no problems (they even calmed my abdomen), but other people I know having gastritis have a bad reaction to milk consumption. So always test before you stock and be ready to listen to your body.

However, there are some things (just like milk) which generally are good for fighting against gastritis. As I said, just to make things clear: these types of food should NOT be used in fighting against the irritable bowel syndrome!

You can usually eat any of the following: tea, milk, dry biscuits (digestive ones are even better), a little butter, egg yolk (very, very healthy), steam vegetables or meat, different kinds of soups, pasta, all sorts of purees (excluding spinach). Coffee drinking is, but no more than one cup a day.

You should try to avoid eating fresh bread, cakes shaped, oily meat, cabbage, prunes, strong tea, cocoa, spices, salt, grapes and other citric fruits or things like French fries, hamburgers or other junk food, peas, beans or other things that lead to constipation. Cabbage could also harm you and alcohol is a big No-No.

When you have problems with gastritis, the best thing to do would be to always carry dry biscuits with you and whenever you start feeling the burning down your throat or inside the stomach, eat no more than 2-3 pieces. That should calm you down and help reducing the acidity in your stomach. And also be prepared for seasonal pain: I have bigger problems during spring and autumn. Stay healthy!

Note: If you are interested in a seven-day diet plan for gastritis, please check my Gastritis Food Program.