Instead of typing out the plan I've been using that has been helping me, a good starting off point is this article on Dr. Jamie Koufman's website:
http://www.voiceinstituteofnewyork.com/principles-of-dietary-lifestyle-modification-in-the-management-of-airway-reflux-lpr/
It's important to reduce the pepsin in your digestive tract and that's what her 2 week induction diet focuses on. It's a very restrictive diet and you can only eat a handful of certain foods. She also has a lists of foods you can try and add to your diet after the 2 week induction phase.
Here is a summary of her induction diet:
"
Table 2: Basics of the Two-Week Induction Reflux Diet
Grilled/baked/broiled/boiled fish, shellfish, and poultry
All vegetables (except onions, tomatoes, garlic, and peppers)
Breads, rice, grains, low-sugar cereals, oatmeal, and tofu
Melons, bananas, ginger, agave, Manuka honey, chamomile tea
Low-fat soy, almond, coconut or cow milk, alkaline water pH >8
Finally, one cup of coffee or caffeinated tea per day allowed"
I disagree with a couple parts of it, especially if you have gastritis already or esophagitis like I do. I know this list is specifically for GERD, but needed to make the distinction if you have gastritis or esophagitis already, the diet needs to be modified.
Cereals should not be eaten (they are not good for you and the texture can irritate the esophagus). I'm surprised she allows one cup of coffee or caffeinated tea per day since it's a known stomach irritant. Caffeine also relaxes the lower esophageal sphincter. For someone like me, one cup of coffee would send me to urgent care. I recommend staying away from it for at least 90 days.
The diet is not easy to follow, but it works. I've tried just about everything, even several different kinds of PPIs like Nexium and Dexilant. While they did help some, they were only masking the symptoms and not the root cause of the problem. For many people, diet and lifestyle is the root cause, which is why I recommend reading the entire article so you can see why stomach acid is not the only problem.
Some GI researchers believe that the body needs a lot of time in order to heal itself as well as to have normal digestion to restore the digestive tract back to balance. The key is to not eat acidic foods over a certain PH number so it doesn't activate the pepsin.
Good luck to you.