And, while you're on the subject, the ENT said the sore throat I've had for a year is from acid coming up and I need to take antacids.

I don't want to because of all I learned from you about older folks having low stomach acid- and my digestion is lousy. I guess the thing to do is eat smaller meals and not lay down after eating. I also have Bragg's ACV and water in a thermos next to my bed and drink some at night and in the morning. I don't have heart burn anymore.

What about taking very small pieces of tums (calcium carbonate) throughout the day?

Any more ideas how to keep the acid from coming up?

 How can a person tell if they have too much stomach acid, or not enough? Sorry if I have missed if you answered it before.

The simple answer is that excessive stomach acid (hyperchlorhydria) is so rare that it is almost unheard of.   All the claims about excess stomach acid is just sales hype used to sell dangerous antacids and acid blockers (proton pump inhibitors).

Stomach acid levels naturally decline with age, which is why it becomes harder and harder to absorb nutrients properly as we age.  Especially silica, leading to many of the problems we associate with aging.  After the age of 40 is generally when the decline really starts picking up speed since the decline leads to an inability to absorb the nutrients needed to produce stomach acid, leading to less stomach acid, leading to less nutrient absorption for stomach acid............

Here is an old post on the benefits of stomach acid:

http://curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1581539#i

And a few other related posts:

http://curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1480855#i

http://curezone.org/forums/fm.asp?i=1474856#i