Potato's juice for reducing stomach acid
I got covid on the last day of the year. It was my first and last day when I really felt ill. Fever 38C was not too high, although I felt it in my joints. My first medicine is sleep, but I could not fall asleep, as I got this most unpleasant feeling from a very high stomach acidity. I have never experienced that before as I never suffer from reflux. May be this is the way the body fights against virus in digestive system… I tried herbal tea, then warm milk. It did not really help. Then I remembered raw potato juice. I have never tried it although I always speak of it when I speak of reflux in my workshops. I grated one potato, pressed out the juice, drank it in small sips. Too little. Then I grated the second one. Drank in small sips. It calmed down the stomach. I fell asleep and next morning I was almost healthy. A bit weak, but no fever, no pains. My only worry is not to pass on this virus, onto others, otherwise I feel healthy and full of energy. Ah yes! My sense of smell is still much weaker. Hopefully it returns. Life is so boring without smells.
Comments
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@jowitt.europe Glad to hear that you are feeling better.
I have never heard of potato juice for acid reflux -- I will give it a try. Thanks for sharing.
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@jowitt.europe I'm glad to hear that your health is improving. Potato juice is not something I had ever heard of using before but sounds really useful. Does it matter what kind of potatoes?
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@jowitt.europe thank you, I had no idea what this was (acid), I didn’t know what is acid reflux, so I was surprised that I have had it since the GI procedure two and a half weeks ago. I have had constant acid in my throat (!), it’s like the GI procedures hurt all the sore parts (I also have multiple ulcers). Sally Fallon Morell asked me if I was eating enough salt (that woman is a genius). I started drinking electrolytes (with salt), and I’m trying an enzyme for healing the stomach and gut lining (I hate taking supplements, so trying to get off). Also an acid blocker (yuck!) for two weeks, which I think is doing more harm than good; I’m not sure if I should keep doing the acid blocker — we need acid to digest our food, and even the FDA suggests only one or two months of this.
Potato juice sounds amazing. I have been wanting to make a smoothie with half a raw potato (or any raw starchy vegetable) in my vitamix smoothie. I’ll try it tomorrow! Thank you. This has been the worst holiday season my whole life, but on the mend, thanks to people like you in this group!
—Christina
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@heirlooms777 The raw potato juice sounds like a great substitute those acid blockers!
@jowitt.europe I'm also glad you are feeling better. Isn't it great when something we know comes to mind just when we need it?
I never knew about ghis remedy, nut I like the idea...inexpensive and common. No side effects either!
Thank you for sharing it with all of us! ❤
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I had never heard of the potato juice but will keep it in mind for sure. As to healing your gut issues. You might look into lacto fermentation. We used things like lacto fermented carrots and other veggies including sauerkraut along with a product from Doterra called digest Zen.
My husband had severe gluten intolerance (not celiac) for 5 years we went to doctors and they ran all kinds of tests, gave him a bunch of different medicines. Nothing helped. They had no clue what his issue was. I found out while talking to friends online that he had gluten issues. Until we started all of the lacto fermentation and Digest Zen. It wasn't long before he started feeling better. We kept it up, it took a few years to make him feel completely better and, Big AND there, He can now eat whatever he wants again. No more gluten issues.
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@Michelle D I never thought of what kind of potatoes. I did some search and came across this article. It mentions a few kind of potatoes: “The potatoes most effective were Maris Piper and King Edward potatoes in the United Kingdom. American alternatives would be a Russet Burbank or a Kennebec russett style.”
I just use what I have, so the kind is not that important for me, but I have to say, that I either use my own home grown - no pesticides, no herbicides, no fungicides, or potatoes from a reliable organic farmer. We always buy potatoes from our neighbour once ours finish.
@heirlooms777 sorry to hear about your health problems. It must be hard to have this unpleasant feeling of acid reflux. If you try potato juice, I would not mix it into anything. Try with small amount and in small sips. Always freshly made. And one should not overdo as with anything else. I just found some other article. https://www.css.ch/en/private-customers/my-health/health-glossary/home-remedies/potato-juice.html
@vickeym thank you! Oh, I love fermented food. I have something fermented every day! Luckily I had this acid reflux only once. Hopefully never again, but it is always useful to know what could help.
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I'm passing this on to a relative. Thank you!
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@jowitt.europe This is a really great idea for an inexpensive home remedy. I will be trying this next time I have an issue.
@heirlooms777 The digestive enzymes aren't all that bad. I take a bromelain product whenever I need something. I had ulcers at one point along with a hiatal hernia and thanks to a great naturopath, that was resolved and now I just have occasional discomfort when I have over eaten or eaten highly processed junk food (hardly ever but sometimes when travelling it is hard to avoid).
Bitters are an excellent solution to many digestive issues. Another thing I take regularly. There are many different brands and recipes out there, but you should talk to a herbalist or other natural health practitioner to get a combo that would be most appropriate for you.
I would talk to your doc about the acid blockers, though. They are terrible drugs that can be very damaging to your kidneys. I have a relative who wound up in hospital with kidney failure and the suspected culprit was Nexium. Also, counter-reactive as you need acid to digest your food as you have pointed out. Without acid the food sits in your stomach, brewing and fermenting. So that accounts for a lot of gas and acid reflux.
Raw cabbage juice is also recommended as a healing agent for ulcers. Studies have been done using cabbage juice, showing a recovery rate that is one third the length of time of standard treatments, as well as studies showing anti-ulcerative properties to prevent the issue from starting.
Do you know the cause of your ulcers? Research has determined that a lot of ulcers may be caused by the bacteria, Helicobacter pylori. Your doc can test for this. If this is the case, there are options besides the antibiotics they would like to give you. Oregon Grape root is antibacterial against H. pylori and as a bitter can help with digestion, so 2 for 1.
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@jowitt.europe thanks for the article! I shared it with my parents. Mom has been on massive amounts of acid blockers for years, and they do nothing for her. It would be awesome if this helped with it, or some of the other pains she has.
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Raw potato juice----never heard of it, but will be giving some to my mom! Fingers crossed!!
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I had never heard of drinking potato juice although it does make sense. I think I will tell my sister about it. She is always eating tums and is now on acid blockers. I keep telling her to wean herself off of them. Sure hope she will try it and that the potato juice will work for her. It is also an excellent source of potassium although that may cause other problems for her since she is on a potassium supplement. Don't want her to get too much.
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@gardneto76 @water2world @marjstratton I hope that potato juice will help you close family members. I have no idea how it would react to medicaments they are using, whether there might be any contraindications. I myself do not use any pharmacy products, only natural plants or home made tinctures, oils, etc. thus my experience is based on that.
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@ jowitt.europe Thanks for the comment, but I'm thinking since my mom eats potatoes from time to time with no problems, it shouldn't interfere with her meds. And on the plus side, I always have plenty of potatoes!
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@torey This is all very helpful! They want to do an MRE (like an MRI but with dye injected into pain the blood stream). I am tired of tests. They said they need to know how deep are the ulcers, and such. I am tempted to not do the MRE. I will start trailing off the acid blockers, they don’t help anyway. I need to find a functional doctor or a program. What are examples of bitters you recommend?
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@jowitt.europe @LaurieLovesLearning @torey How do you juice a potato and when do you drink it? Can I use other root vegetables? How about sweet potatoes or carrots? Jerusalem artichokes?
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@heirlooms777 Have you ever grated a potato? Do you remember the starchy "juice" that comes out from that? If you squeeze the grated potatoes, even with your hand, you can get even more.
I can't answer your other questions, but this one I know. 😉
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Hope it helps them as it did for my husband. It was hard for him not being able to eat "real" foods. We both love fresh baked bread, pastas, pizza and such and the gluten free versions leave a lot to be desired.
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@heirlooms777 I made my juice exactly the same way @LaurieLovesLearning described. I grated it, pressed out the juice and drank it.
i would drink it when I feel that the stomach acid increases - the unpleasant feeling of reflux. I would not take it before the meal, because stomach acid is necessary for digestion. Only after, if there is an unpleasant feeling.
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@heirlooms777 You could start with just about any bitters but, depending on the formula, some bitter ingredients shouldn't be taken with acid blockers. Gentian is one and it is in a lot of formulae.
Chamomile is a bitter, surprisingly enough, as well as an anti-inflammatory agent for the stomach. So you could start out with a nice bitter, anti-inflammatory tea. Chamomile and ginger is a popular commercial combo. Although, you would be better off buying chamomile and ginger and making your own. Ginger will help with the nausea that sometimes can be part of the acid reflux picture. Ginger has actually been shown to be superior to lansoprazole for preventing ulcerations.
Licorice root helps repair stomach and esophageal damage. So that could be added as a tea, too. Although, licorice isn't for everyone's taste and there is a caution that licorice shouldn't be taken if you have high blood pressure or are on meds for HBP.
I've already mentioned Oregon Grape root. It can be found in some bitters formulae.
Rosalee de la Foret has a nice entry level bitters formula with an ACV base instead of alcohol. It has chamomile and dandelion in it. I've made it before but have made it with all ACV instead of the balsamic addition. It makes a great base for a salad dressing. Just add some olive oil.
Dill, caraway, fennel, sweet cicely, parsley and coriander are all great calming, digestive herbs. Dill, caraway and fennel can often be found in gripe water recipes.
Slippery elm will heal the digestive tract. It can be taken in capsules or lozenges or you can make a gruel-like preparation with the powder.
Marshmallow is one of the most recommended herbs for dealing with inflammation of the mucous membrane. It can be taken as part of a tea blend or in capsules.
Fermented veggies will add good bacteria to help your stomach with digestion and improve nutritional uptake.
Bone broth can help repair your stomach; high in collagen and gelatin. Cabbage juice helps to heal ulcers. So lots of coleslaw. :)
The raw potato juice is such an easy thing to do. Its such a popular remedy that I found a commercial product. Biotta.
Avoid: Caffeine, soft drinks (particularly those with caffeine, although, a good homemade root beer could be helpful), fried and overly fatty foods, concentrated fruit juices (frozen or "reconstituted"), non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS), corticosteroids and pasteurized dairy products. A high carb diet, particularly processed foods will promote bacterial overgrowth which can lead to acid reflux.
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@jowitt.europe @torey @LaurieLovesLearning
how do you know all of this? Incredible. I am feeling better but doing an MRE (like an MRI but with the poisons) to see why this is happening. My doctor said that I am not absorbing nutrition.
Here is something fun, some background information from the app Cures A-Z (there was no link so I am placing it here, the app is free or $1.99, but the links don’t work). I personally would not drink anything cold or anything with corn syrup or toxic like artificial sweeteners, and I heard more than one MG of melatonin before bed is not necessary and could be harmful, but otherwise I’m trying his ideas.
I can’t wait to try your potato juice idea. So far I’m receiving some relief from baking soda (just some on the tip of my finger), aloe juice, licorice root, marshmallow root (steeped cold), and something with L-glutamine (but I don’t like taking supplements often, so trying to find a more natural source). And for me, deep breaths. It’s like I have never breathed before. I have many ulcers, a hiatal hernia, and I am not absorbing nutrition well, which can be seen in my skin and blood vessels, anything like an IV is painful. We are still trying to find the cause. I have never been sick before in my life, so I am a bit out of my league here. I’ve always cured with food. Now I need bland food, and I guess rest, I am not sure what is going on. Here is information from Cures A-Z by Drs Teitelbaum, M.D:
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Hiatal Hernia
Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), also called Hiatal Hernia or acid reflux disease, is caused by stomach acid squirting up from the stomach into the food pipe (called the esophagus). This causes heartburn, reflux or backup of acid into your throat, or coughing/choking. It can get worse at night as gravity is no longer helping to keep food down in your stomach where it belongs. If you inhale the acid while asleep, which you usually aren't aware you are doing, it can also cause night sweats and worsen asthma or bronchitis.
Although your stomach has a special mucus lining to protect it against stomach acid, your esophagus does not. A special valve between it and your stomach (called the LES or Lower Esophageal Sphincter) acts like a "one way door," letting food go down, but not back up. At least on a good day…
Aggravating Conditions
Sometimes the LES valve doesn't work well and the acid can squirt (reflux) back up into the food pipe. This is very common and is aggravated by:
Being overweight
This shifts the valve out of position so it leaks (herniates).
Indigestion
If you don't digest your food properly, it sits in your stomach churning and churning and churning. It should be past your stomach into your small intestine within an hour after eating. If digestion is poor (from inadequate digestive enzymes or stomach acid; yes, you heard correctly — too low a level of acid!), then the food sits in the stomach too long and starts refluxing back up. When this happens, any acid can burn the food pipe. (See Indigestion.)
When lying in bed, gravity is no longer keeping the acid down in your stomach where it belongs, so reflux while sleeping can be an especially severe problem.
Treatment
Unfortunately, physicians have been brainwashed to treat indigestion and reflux with a lifetime of acid blocker medicine, even though the FDA recommends using it no more than 1-2 months in most cases. And the side effects of long-term use are piling up (but so are profits — especially as acid blockers have been shown to be addictive, causing rebound excess acid secretion when you try to stop them). A better solution is to fix your digestion — and you'll be amazed as indigestion typically resolves over 1-2 months. See Indigestion for how to do this. You'll be glad you did!
For Daytime Reflux
Lose weight
If overweight, even losing 5-10 pounds can help considerably.
Improve your digestion
Add plant-based digestive enzymes with meals.
Improve stomach acid. Three ways to do this include:
- Make a salad dressing with 2 tbsp of vinegar, or
- Drink 4-6 oz of a diet cola (don't use ice — just refrigerator cold). Cola is as acidic as stomach acid (pH 2) so it can help digestion.
- If OK'd by your holistic physician, you can take Betaine HCL tablets, two per meal (you can find them at most health food stores).
Avoid ice drinks with your meals. Your body's digestive enzymes work best at 98.6 degrees.
If certain foods still cause indigestion, don't eat them. Your body may be trying to tell you it's junk food and doesn't want it or you may be allergic to the food. Food allergies can be eliminated with NAET (see www.NAET.com ).
Eliminate indigestion symptoms (See "Heartburn" for more info")
The following supplements are an excellent combination:
1) Antacids that are also heart protective
Do not use plain calcium antacids. Taking calcium by itself may increase heart attack risk 31%. Use an antacid chew that also contains magnesium, vitamin D and vitamin K to protect your heart and health (see Immediate Heartburn Reliefby EuroPharma).
2) Licorice
Licorce helps heal your stomach by helping the protective stomach lining to heal. Slippery Elm and marshmallow (the herb, not the candy) also support the stomach lining.
After 4-6 weeks on the above regimen, your doctor will usually be able to switch you from your acid blocker to non-prescription Cimetidine (Tagamet), which only partially blocks stomach acid. This can then be weaned by 200 mg a day each 1-2 weeks until you are off the acid blockers. Adding plant-based digestive enzymes plus adding acid as needed (for example with large meals) along with the chewable antacids will often be all that is needed to maintain healthy digestion.
For Night-Time Reflux
Though it's a bad idea to keep your stomach acid "turned off" during the day (you need it to digest food), you don't need stomach acid at bedtime while sleeping. So here are a few tips:
Bicarbonate of soda
Take 1/2 tsp of bicarbonate of soda (e.g., Arm and Hammer) in 4 oz of water at bedtime to neutralize the acid in your stomach (not for children under 16 years old). If you have high blood pressure, substitute food grade potassium bicarbonate (available on Amazon).
Don't eat within two hours before bedtime and take 2 caps of a plant-based digestive enzyme an hour before sleep.
This will ensure your stomach is empty when you sleep so that there is nothing to reflux for a few hours.
Sleep with your upper body elevated
Raise your upper body at least 6-8 inches when in bed (just raising your head with pillows won't work). One way to do this is to place a 6-8" brick or phone book under the legs of the bed (just the two legs by the end of the bed where your head is). Another wonderful solution is to use a sleep wedge pillow (you can find one online at www.Hammacher.com).
Melatonin
Take 5-6 mg at bedtime. This decreases reflux.
Immediate Heartburn Relief
These are very effective chewable antacids. Keep a few at bedside to take if needed.
Acid blockers
If other remedies don't work, try a mild acid blocker like cimetidine (Tagamet) 200 mg, which is less addictive than other acid blockers, at bedtime.
More Information Online
Hammacher Schlemmer (source for pillow wedges)
NAET (method for eliminating food allergies)
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@heirlooms777 I gave my friend herbal tea: rose petals with calendula petals. One should not use lukewarm water and keep for some time. The mucilage from those plants helped her at once.
when I need melatonin, I usually eat a few dates.
but we are all different. What helps one, does not necessarily help another one.
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@heirlooms777 The description given of hiatal hernia isn't quite right. A hiatal hernia can cause symptoms of GERD and acid reflux but isn't always part of GERD. There are people who have GERD and/or acid reflux but don't have hernias and there are people who have hernias and never have any symptoms associated with GERD or acid reflux. A hiatal hernia is caused when part of the stomach bulges and pushes up into the diaphragm, sometimes into the esophagus. Small ones rarely cause any problems and people can live all their lives without realizing they have one.
If you have been diagnosed with a hiatal hernia and want to avoid surgery (which is the usual medical treatment when medications fail), there are chiropractors (or naturopaths or osteopaths) who may be trained in visceral manipulation techniques that can be quite effective in relieving the symptoms of hiatal hernias without the need for surgery.
As to not absorbing nutrition (and I can certainly see this happening when everything you eat causes pain), I have made suggestions for nourishing herbal infusions. They are one of the best ways to dissolve minerals and other nutrients from plants to make them more bioavailable for disrupted digestion. Along with bone broths and veggie stocks.
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I am floored with all of the love and advice. So genious extrodinare, @Torey , what is an example daily routine or two for someone trying to absorb nutrition?
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Finding out the root cause(s) for an ulcer/ for ulcers leads to a solution. Cabbage juice.
Its so amazing how different plants and/ or foods have several medicinal properties!
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Chamomile Tea is a bitter! Wow! I don’t drink it yet I do know one person with ulcers so perhaps I’ll mention this to our Dietitian Director to see if this tea can be added for residents to consume during their meals. I work at a long term care facility.
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@heirlooms777 A nutritionist would be better able to advise you on a nutrition routine that would help you absorb more nutrients from your diet that I can. Preferably a holistic nutritionist. No offence to dietitians but they are generally following more of a medical model. At least in Canada. It may be different in other jurisdictions. There are courses in nutrition in most herb school but it isn't anything like what is taught in a holistic nutrition school. I am more familiar with recommendations for improving nutrition through the addition of herbs such as in nourishing herbal infusions. A quart of infusion is usually recommended as a daily amount, consumed throughout the day.
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@SuperC Chamomile tea would certainly be a good thing to introduce. Its a very mild tasting bitter and would definitely aid digestion. If taken at bedtime, it would make for a more restful sleep, possibly avoiding additional medications. However, one should always check what meds a patient in a long term care facility might be taking.
People on blood thinners should use caution with chamomile as it might increase the risk of bleeding, For those taking sedatives, it may increase the effects. In that case, it might be a good thing, cause one could reduce the amount of sedatives given, or add in chamomile if the sedatives weren't working well enough, rather than increasing the amount of sedative.
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@Torey This is what the local herbalist said:
Hi Christina! I got a message from Irv about you. For your ulcer in your gastro intestinal tract. Take Marshmallow tincture 30 drops before food with Goldenseal tincture 22 drops before food together with Urinary system support 26 drops also before food 2 x a day for 3 weeks. And take Comfrey tincture 22 drops 2 x a day after food for 3 weeks. Then stop 1 day, and repeat for another 3 weeks if needed.”
Now this is for me, and I see my Chinese medicinal doctor about once a week, so he knows me. -C.
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@heirlooms777 I am very glad that you have found a local herbalist to work with! It looks like a good protocol that he has developed for you. The marshmallow is soothing, goldenseal is antibacterial (in case H. pylori is causing your ulcers) and the comfrey will start to heal the ulcers.
Let us know how this works for you.
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@Torey thank you, I have the medicine and will start tonight —Christina
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