Heartburn/GERD Health Center

Keeping a Heartburn Log

Heartburn symptoms can be triggered by certain foods, beverages, and activities. For example, some people suffer heartburn after eating onions, peppermint, chocolate, caffeine, citrus fruits, tomatoes, or high-fat foods. Others suffer heartburn if they lie down after a large meal.

What are your triggers? Find out by keeping a heartburn log.

Each day, jot down your symptoms and the time they occurred. Then note the foods you ate and your specific activities before the symptoms began. Once you notice a pattern, you can start to make changes in your routine and avoid triggers that affect you most. For instance, you can begin taking walks after a meal if inactivity triggers your heartburn.

For help in spotting heartburn triggers, show the log to your doctor after keeping careful notes for several weeks.

Remember, for help detecting triggers, print this log each week, fill it out for three or four weeks, then take it to your doctor.