In daily life, soda water is often considered a healthy beverage, especially favored by those with stomach acid reflux. But can soda water really help alleviate stomach discomfort? Experts point out that water mixed with pure baking soda powder has a high alkaline concentration and does have an effect on neutralizing stomach acid. In clinical practice, baking soda tablets belong to alkaline drugs that help neutralize stomach acid. But on the market, the concentration of sodium bicarbonate in baking soda drinks is generally low, and its effect on neutralizing stomach acid is not significant.
At present, there are many brands of soda water on the market, whose main ingredients are water and sodium bicarbonate. Some brands also add acesulfame, sucralose, edible essence, etc. A sugar free soda water that is popular on e-commerce platforms, with a promotional price of 4.6 yuan per bottle. However, can soda water, which is not cheap in price, be consumed as mineral water for a long time? Ma Qinyan, a chief physician in the gastroenterology department of a hospital in Jiangsu Province, said that compared to carbonated drinks, drinking soda water occasionally is sufficient, but it is not recommended to drink it in large quantities for a long time. Most sugary soda drinks on the market not only have limited effects on neutralizing stomach acid, but may even have the opposite effect, stimulating stomach acid secretion. Especially for patients with hypertension, hyperlipidemia and diabetes, sugar metabolism may also affect the control of blood lipids and glucose.
"Even sugar free soda water can increase stomach capacity after drinking a lot, and excessive liquid can stimulate gastric acid secretion, which may worsen the symptoms of pantothenic acid." Ma Qinyan said, "In addition, the sodium ion content in soda water is high, which may cause electrolyte disorder, especially for patients with renal insufficiency, long-term drinking may lead to water and sodium retention, aggravating the disease."
It should be noted that some patients with gastric acid reflux actually belong to alkaline reflux, and drinking soda water may actually worsen symptoms and increase the risk of esophageal reflux.
Ma Qinyan suggests that for people with obvious reflux symptoms, they should eat less soup, water, and other foods in their daily lives. After meals, they can take more walks or walks to help with gastrointestinal peristalsis and accelerate acid excretion. She believes that to nourish the stomach, the first step is to improve lifestyle, reduce high-fat and high sugar diet intake, avoid overeating and eating too quickly, and avoid food that is too spicy or sweet.