Everyone, even doctors, need a reminder about this heartburn drug danger
Tell your friends, tell your family, tell your co-workers, but, most importantly, tell your doctor: Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) may actually cause more problems than they solve.
Your friends and family will probably say, “PP…what? What’s that?”
PPIs are some of the most popular drugs on the market today. They treat heartburn. And just about everyone will recognize the brand names: Nexium, Prilosec, Prevacid, Protonix, Zegerid, and others.
One of the biggest problems with PPIs: They neutralize stomach acid that protects your stomach from C-diff (Clostridium difficile), a bacterium that often triggers severe digestive inflammation and diarrhea.
A new study in the Archives of Internal Medicine is a stark reminder of the PPI/C-diff problem.
Researchers examined more than 1,100 C-diff cases. Within two weeks of diagnosis, about half the patients were prescribed a PPI.
No surprise: Recurrence of C-diff infection was much higher among PPI users. And the risk was especially high among elderly patients.
The most troubling detail about this study is that so many doctors missed the PPI/C-diff connection and prescribed the heartburn drug for their C-diff patients. If you’re a heartburn patient, and your doctor isn’t aware of this problem–that’s a problem!
Need a safer way to treat heartburn without losing the benefits of stomach acids? Dr. Spreen offers a simple and effective treatment in “Fire Down Below.”
To Your Good Health,
Jenny Thompson
Source:
“Proton Pump Inhibitors and Risk for Recurrent Clostridium difficile Infection” Archives of Internal Medicine, Vol. 170, No. 9, 5/10/10, archinte.ama-assn.org
