whole milk has a high fat content, which is hydrolysed into fatty acids and monoglycerides. fatty acids would increase the pH of stomach acid, worsening acid reflux – so why is milk often recommended to treat heartburn? is this a myth?
In: Chemistry
The fat in the milk coats the lining of your stomach, so you temporarily don’t feel the acid. Or so I’ve been told.
Not sure how quickly triglycerides are hydrolyzed, but note that they’re fairly weak acids (carboxylic) in a stomach full of strong acid (HCl). They aren’t going to change the local pH much at all.
Acid reflux is literally stomach contents leaping up where they don’t belong. Milk works because it’s an excellent emulsifier. It has exactly the same effect on acid reflux as it does on chilli oils, reducing the “burn” and carrying the offending substances back to the stomach.
If changing PH was all that mattered then drinking lots of water would be sufficient.
I prefer apple cider vinegar. Yes it works.
Milk won’t neutralize your stomach acid, and it’d be less than great if it did because your stomach needs that acid to perform its functions.
What it does do is:
1) dilute the stomach acid with a weaker acid
2) coat the lining of your stomach with protein and fat to prevent the acid from directly touching your stomach tissue
3) bind with any capsaicin that may be in your stomach and help that move through your system rather than lingering
Water can also do the first but without the latter two it isn’t nearly as effective, and without protein and fats the water moves past your stomach a lot more quickly as well.
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