If you have gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) you know these unpleasant feelings -- heartburn, indigestion, nausea, and sometimes vomiting. Acid from the stomach can even regurgitate into organs connected to the esophagus, such as the larynx, trachea, and lungs.

One of the first things doctors tell people with GERD is to change their diet to reduce heartburn. This advice often means eliminating chocolate, spicy foods, mint, citrus fruits and juices, fatty foods, carbonated beverages, coffee and other caffeinated products, alcohol, and late-night meals.

Now a review of over 100 studies of these dietary and other lifestyle measures has found that, while consuming these foods and beverages may make GERD symptoms worse, there’s no scientific evidence that banning them from your diet will improve heartburn or fix the underlying problem of acid reflux.

What will work for GERD, according to the review, is sleeping with the head of your bed elevated and losing weight if you’re overweight. These strategies reduce heartburn symptoms and lower acid levels in the esophagus. Of course, if you experience heartburn after eating a certain food, common sense dictates that you avoid that food to see if your symptoms improve. If the symptoms don’t improve, see a doctor about taking medication for GERD, which will likely do more for your symptoms than dietary restrictions. [This study was reported in the Archives of Internal Medicine (Volume 166, page 965).]