We recently received a basic question from a reader about Alka-Seltzer for indigestion. That sent me on a trip into the Wayback Machine. Actually, I just reached on my bookshelf for the very first edition of The People’s Pharmacy (St. Martin’s Press, 1976. I started writing it in the early 1970s and had a section titled “What’s Good for Indigestion?” Here is the new question from a reader:
Why Not Alka-Seltzer for Heartburn?
Q. I wonder why you have not mentioned Alka-Seltzer for indigestion. I have found it really helps if I get heartburn in the middle of the night. Usually just one of the two tablets in the packet is enough, and it works pretty quickly. This is super handy when I travel. I just take a couple of the foil packets in my toiletry bag because they don’t take up much space.
A. Alka-Seltzer got its start in the 1930s. This antacid used to advertise “Plop, Plop, Fizz, Fizz, Oh, what a relief it is!”
If you have not seen the old commercials for Alka-Seltzer, here are some examples that might amuse you:
1976 Alka-Seltzer Commercial with “Speedy”
Charles Osgood on the CBS Sunday Morning Almanac show tells the story of Alka-Seltzer and the Plop, Plop jingle at this link:
If you don’t take a moment to watch that commercial I will be truly disappointed. Charles Osgood says it may have been the “most famous TV commercial of all.” If you are old enough, you will remember the iconic part of that commercial when Ralph says:
“I can’t believe I ate that whole thing…I can’t believe I ate that whole thing…”
Please let us know if the “Speedy” commercials ring a bell for you in the comment section at the bottom of this article.
Why Does Alka-Seltzer Fizz?
It’s because the original effervescent tablets contained citric acid, sodium bicarbonate and aspirin.
When sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and citric acid are combined in a glass of water you get a fizzy drink that helps neutralize stomach acid.
It does work quickly to ease heartburn symptoms. So does half a teaspoon of baking soda in 4 ounces of water.
My Ambivalence about Alka-Seltzer:
As mentioned, I started writing about heartburn in the early 1970s for the original People’s Pharmacy book.
Here is what I had to say in the early 1970s:
“The makers of antacids spent $42.5 million in 1971 to promote sales of $108.8 million (the market is now over $200 million per year). That means they spent almost half of every dollar they made convincing us to buy their stuff. Alka-Seltzer is the sales leader in this field. That shouldn’t be surprising. They spend the most cash on advertising. I grant you, they have clever ads, and I have been tempted to try the old “one-two” on occasions. [My reference to the “one-two” was related to the sales pitch that this remedy could relieve both an upset stomach and a headache at the same time.]
“But let’s see if some of these heavily promoted products are all they are cracked up to be. Hearings held in the United States Senate in 1971 uncovered the fact that of four hundred broadly representative OTC drugs, only 15 percent were effective for what they were claimed. 27 percent were probably effective, and a whopping 47 percent only possibly effective.
“Basically, Alka-Seltzer is promoted for ‘headache and indigestion occurring after over-indulgence in food and drink.’ It is supposed to neutralize acid, relieve heartburn, and end that ‘full feeling’ associated with overeating. How well does it satisfy its claims? All things considered, Alka-Seltzer probably does okay, since it contains all the necessary ingredients: sodium bicarbonate, 1,904 milligrams; citric acid, 1,055 milligrams; aspirin, 324 milligrams, monocalcium phosphate, 200 milligrams. Unfortunately, this combination of a pain-killer with an antacid is of very dubious medical value. For just a headache, you do not need to pay an outrageous price for Alka-Seltzer, since you are paying extra for the antacid properties. If you have indigestion or upset stomach, the last thing you want is aspirin included in the tablet. That is like trying to put out a fire with gasoline. Even though dropping their fizzy tablets into a glass of water converts the aspirin to a less irritating form called sodium acetylsalicylate, it offers no benefit for heartburn. More important, anyone who has had any alcohol in his system should never, never, never consume aspirin-like products, because the stomach lining becomes exquisitely sensitive to their hemorrhage-potentiating effects. That means if you pop two Alka-Seltzers after a hard night on the town so the hangover will be diminished the next morning, your stomach is going to bleed.
“Alka-Seltzer also has some negative properties which could be serious. For one thing, it contains an extremely high level of sodium (surpassed only by Bromo-Seltzer), That means that anyone on a salt-restricted diet (which should include anyone with high blood pressure) must stay far away from these Seltzers. An average dose of two tablets will include 1042 milligrams of sodium. The Food and Drug Administration strongly recommends that people on low-salt diets should not surpass 115 milligrams of sodium per day in their antacid preparations. An average adult dose of Alka-Seltzer is ten times that.
“Finally, someone who really gets carried away and consumes eight or more tablets a day (or three capfuls of Bromo-Seltzer) is way over the ‘safe level’ for citric acid established by the FDA. The point is that here we have a drug which is purchased by millions of Americans because of intense advertising. It is expensive when you analyze the basic ingredients (as much as twenty times the price of USP aspirin). The combination of aspirin and antacid is irrational, and there are some important hazards, especially for people with ulcers or high blood pressure.”
Fast Forward to 2025: Liking Alka-Seltzer More:
I have mellowed a bit over the last 50 years. For one thing, I now like soluble aspirin! When we traveled to Australia and New Zealand on a book tour we discovered products such as Aspro and Disprin. These effervescent soluble aspirin pain relievers are quite popular in other countries.
Why they haven’t caught on in the US is a mystery to me. The closest thing we have is Alka-Seltzer. You can read more about soluble aspirin at this link.
Then there is the whole question of aspirin in an emergency…such as when a person thinks they might be having a heart attack. In this article I suggest that if someone needs fast aspirin activity, soluble aspirin is highly desirable. Alka-Seltzer might be a good option. This article also has a do-it-yourself soluble aspirin formula.
Final Words:
You can learn more about Alka-Seltzer and many other options for easing heartburn at any time of day in our eGuide to Overcoming Digestive Disorders. This online resource is available under the Health eGuides tab. Please share your own experience with indigestion in the comment section below.
If you found the old Alka-Seltzer commercials rang a bell, please let us know. And if you think this article is both amusing and informative, please share it with others. You can do that easily by scrolling to the top of the page and clicking on an icon for email or social media.
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