Background: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a chronic digestive disorder that adversely impacts overall well-being, presenting symptoms such as heartburn, regurgitation, and damage to the mucosal lining. The prevalence of GERD has been increasing largely due to dietary habits, obesity, and sedentary lifestyles. Numerous studies have been conducted to evaluate alternative treatments for GERD, particularly with herbal medications. There is limited scientific evidence to support effective treatment of this disease in Sri Lanka. Objectives: To study the scientific basis of traditional plants that have been known to have mucosal protection properties. Methodology: A literature review was conducted using multiple sources including databases (PubMed, PubChem, Research4Life), academic search engines (Google Scholar), and publisher platforms (BMC, Springer, PLOS, and ScienceDirect) to provide evidence-based recommendations for these traditional plants, using the keywords “GERD”, “Medicinal plants”, “Mucosal protection activity”, and “Indigenous medicine”, from 2015 to 2025. Results: Plant-derived medicines have several advantages, such as economical value, improved tolerance by the patient, and the lower side effects compared to conventional therapies. Potent esophageal mucosal defense has been demonstrated by various medicinal plants by their anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and mucin–secreting action. Ayurvedic herbs are reported to reduce GERD symptoms in animal and human clinical studies by regulating gastric acid secretion and epithelial healing. In the Unani system, plants have shown the effects to improve mucosal resiliency and relieve dyspeptic symptoms. In the Siddha medicines, plants have shown mucosal protective effect in ethanol induced gastric ulcers. After carefully screening, 30 herbal plants in 19 families from 22 selected articles were shortlisted for this review. Conclusion: Herbal compounds protect gastric mucosa by reducing inflammation and oxidative stress, increasing mucin secretion, regulating gastric acid, promoting epithelial healing, strengthening mucosal defence, and relieving dyspeptic symptoms.

Keywords
Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) , Indigenous medicine , Medicinal plants , Mucosal Protection Activity