Acid Reflux
Thyroid Trouble Was Behind Stomach Problems
Doctors often attribute stomach problems like indigestion or discomfort after eating to excess stomach acid. Usually, they prescribe a PPI such as esomeprazole (Nexium), lansoprazole (Prevacid) or ome…
Falling Asleep with Zolpidem | Waking up with He…
What do you do when you are caught on the horns of a dilemma? We describe such situations a couple of ways: “Between the devil and the deep blue sea” is one. A similar saying goes: “between a ro…
Does Your Microbiota Change When You Take Nexium…
The "royal we" may be more accurate than we imagine, and not only for individuals of noble descent. All of us might practice thinking of ourselves a a collective. That is because each of us contains m…
More Bad News About PPIs and Kidney Damage
The FDA loves proton pump inhibitors (PPI)s. So do doctors, especially gastroenterologists. Drugs like esomeprazole (Nexium) lansoprazole (Prevacid) and omeprazole (Prilosec) used to top the doctors' …
What Is the Right Dose of Baking Soda?
We love simple remedies using ingredients you already have on hand in your pantry, so long as they work and they are safe. One time-honored approach to ease indigestion is taking a baking soda solutio…
Will Apple Cider Vinegar Lower Your Blood Pressu…
Apple cider vinegar is an extremely popular home remedy. More than 50 years ago, D. C. Jarvis, MD, published his best-selling book, Folk Medicine: A Vermont Doctor's Guide to Good Health. In it, he pr…
What Happened to Cod Liver Oil as a Home Remedy?
The origin of many a home remedy is lost in the mists of time. Usually we don't have a good record of who started using it or when, and we also rarely have information on when and how it falls out of …
Show 1144: New Ways to Heal Your Digestive Tract
Heartburn is a common problem. Many people take powerful acid-suppressing drugs like Nexium or Prilosec every day to treat gastro-esophageal reflux disease or GERD. If untreated, chronic irritation of…
Will You Get Osteoporosis If You Take Omeprazole…
Do you take omeprazole (Prilosec) or another proton pump inhibitor such as esomeprazole (Nexium) or lansoprazole (Prevacid)? Such PPI drugs were once thought to be relatively free of side effects, but…
Swapping Losartan for Valsartan Results in Stoma…
The ongoing valsartan recall has caused a lot of trouble. Pharmacists have had to hunt for alternative suppliers that did not use the contaminated active ingredient from Zhejiang Huahai company in Ch…
Is Liver Cancer a Risk of Acid-Suppressing Drugs…
Not again! We are sick and tired or reading about another potentially serious side effect of proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). Over the last few decades the list of very worrisome adverse reactions has g…
Yet Another PPI Complication | Acid-Suppressing …
We know you are getting weary of reading about serious side effects linked to proton pump inhibitors (PPIs). They are among the most popular drugs in the pharmacy. They include dexlansoprazole, esomep…
Can You Use Almonds to Stop Heartburn?
Heartburn may seem like a recent problem, but in fact, people have been struggling with indigestion for as far back as medical history reaches and probably beyond. Hippocrates wrote about it more than…
How to Avoid Trouble at the Pharmacy Checkout
In one of the first scenes of the returning show, Roseanne, Roseanne is sitting at the kitchen table when her husband walks through the door, prescription bag in hand. “Oooh! My favorite! Drugs!” …
Skimping on Magnesium May Mean Trouble Sleeping
How often does a treatment for one problem lead to another problem? We suspect it may be more common than anyone could imagine. Who would guess that low magnesium levels resulting from a heartburn med…
How To Choose Safe and Effective Over-The-Counte…
Americans love to play doctor. And the FDA has made it easy. That’s because the agency has allowed Pharma companies to switch many Rx drugs to OTC in a big way. We spend $33 billion on over-the-coun…
Do Mothers with Heartburn Have Babies with Asthm…
Heartburn is a common symptom during pregnancy. New research suggests, however, that pregnant women who relieve their reflux with potent acid-suppressing drugs may precipitate unexpected complications…
Why Do Cough Lozenges Ease Indigestion?
Heartburn is hardly a new phenomenon. Humans have probably had to contend with indigestion for as long as the species has existed. Still, it often seems as though 21st century Americans suffer more of…
Will Your Heartburn Drug Cause Depression?
Proton pump inhibitors, or PPIs, are widely used for a range of digestive tract difficulties. These popular pills, including esomeprazole (Nexium), lansoprazole (Prevacid), omeprazole (Prilosec) and p…
Will Enteric-Coated Peppermint Oil Help Your Dig…
When you learn that an herbal medicine is helpful for some type of health condition, it may be a little tricky to sort out just which problems it helps. One reader found this especially troublesome wi…
A Pharmacist Remembers a Link Between Omeprazole…
On November 1, 2017 we sent out a People's Pharmacy Special Health Alert asking the question: "Do Acid-Suppressing Drugs Cause Cancer?" This article was based on new research from Hong Kong (Gut, onli…
Do Acid-Suppressing Drugs Cause Cancer?
Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) are among the most popular drugs in the pharmacy. Physicians prescribe them to 15 million people every year for ulcers, acid reflux, heartburn and Barrett's esophagus. Th…
PPI Side Effects Continue to Scare Us To Death
Have you ever met people who have a hard time admitting they might have made a mistake? Such individuals defend their decisions and actions no matter what the consequences. It feels to us as if the Fo…
What Do You Do When Your Specialists Disagree?
Let's face it. We used to be at the mercy of our doctors. If a specialist said "jump," they expected us to inquire "how high?" If a medication was prescribed, we were expected to take it. The fewer qu…
Will Home Made Ginger Ale Ease Heartburn?
Every family has at least a few simple remedies that can help in managing everyday problems, from hangnails to heartburn. Which ones did you learn while you were growing up? One reader learned to make…
Turmeric in Milk Prevents Stomach Upset
Have you considered taking turmeric for its anti-inflammatory properties? Perhaps you've considered it as a way to ease psoriasis instead. Researchers have suggested that turmeric or its principal com…
How to Use Baking Soda to Ease Indigestion:
You have seen ads for all sorts of pricey heartburn remedies. Some go to work quickly. Others, like the proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) take quite awhile to stifle stomach acid and relieve symptoms. Whe…
PPIs and Death: Why Are These Acid-Suppressors s…
PPIs (aka proton pump inhibitors) remain incredibly popular. These acid-suppressing drugs help heal ulcers. That's a really good thing. For short term use, they're terrific! The trouble is that they a…
What Are the Risks of Pepcid Complete?
Managing acid reflux can be challenging. You might take a proton pump inhibitor like omeprazole (Prilosec), lansoprazole (Prevacid) or esomeprazole (Nexium). Chances are, within a few weeks your sympt…
Will a Gluten-Free Diet Help Your Heartburn Symp…
Judging from the popularity of medicines like esomeprazole (Nexium), lansoprazole (Prevacid) and omeprazole (Prilosec), heartburn symptoms are extremely common. Is there a better way to prevent the re…
Will Aspirin Keep Barrett’s from Turning i…
Barrett's esophagus is a condition in which the tissue lining the bottom of the food tube changes to resemble tissue lining the intestine. It is considered a pre-cancerous condition and is often assoc…
Will Spicy Green Tea Stop Your Stomachache?
How did people treat their heartburn before drugs like omeprazole and esomeprazole? These proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are so good at healing stomach ulcers and easing heartburn that doctors often…
Will PPIs Protect You from Esophageal Cancer?
There are new guidelines from the American Gastroenterological Association (Gastroenterology, March, 2017). They inform physicians that best practices require prescribing proton pump inhibitors (PPIs…
Should You Worry About Kidney Damage with PPI He…
Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPIs) are incredibly popular. By one estimate, nearly 8% of adults took a prescription drug like esomeprazole (Nexium), lansoprazole (Prevacid) or omeprazole (Prilosec) in the …
How to Help Your Heartburn with Persimmon Tea
Heartburn is an ongoing problem for many people. Gastroenterologists may prescribe a proton pump inhibitor (PPI) such as dexlansoprazole (Dexilant), lansoprazole (Prevacid), omeprazole (Prilosec) or p…
Does Ranitidine Have the Same Risks as a PPI?
Americans must suffer from an awful lot of heartburn, because drugs to treat this painful condition have been best-sellers for a number of decades. The current favorites are proton pump inhibitors (PP…
Do People on PPIs Have More Infectious Diarrhea?
Is it smart to block the production of stomach acid with powerful proton pump inhibitor drugs (PPIs)? Millions of people take these drugs to control acid reflux, ulcers or gastroesophageal reflux…
How to Overcome Heartburn with Probiotics
The medications doctors prescribe most frequently for digestive problems may lead to serious side effects. As a consequence, many people would prefer to find natural ways to overcome heartburn. One co…
Can You Treat Heartburn in Pregnancy without Har…
Over the last several decades, acid-suppressing drugs have become extremely popular. Medicines like Tagamet, Pepcid, Prilosec and Nexium 24HR are available over the counter, and many people use them f…
Is It Safe to Drink Sparkling Water for Acid Ref…
Heartburn, indigestion or acid reflux all describe a similar type of discomfort: a burning pain behind the breastbone. There are numerous prescription drugs for this problem, including Nexium and Pri…