Heartburn Medication can WORSEN Your Acid Reflux

Medication for Heartburn Does Not Work Over Time. Get the Truth on Heartburn Drugs from an Ex -Heartburn Victim Who Went Through All of Them.

Conventional treatments are often used for relief by millions of individuals enduring the pain and discomfort of symptoms of gastro esophageal disease, the most widespread of which is in all certainty heartburn. Very popular at the moment, one of these heartburn medications, Nexium, even scored as the number three worldwide for drug sales, amassing up over $5.7 billion in 2005.

1. The mounting number of GERD (Acid Reflux) patients in the western world will only continue. In 2006 alone, there were approximately 25 million acid reflux patients with recurrent heartburn in America. 2. Drugs for GERD are marketed with huge financial resources, advertising and publicity, and by physicians prescribing them to patients. 3. Consumers can now purchase such drugs over the counter, a big change from the prescription that was required before. A decade ago, the Food and Drug Administration agreed to over the counter sales of Pepcid AC, Tagamet HB, Zantac 75 and extended a number of other medicaments from the prescription-only list.

Before passing any final judgment on the subject, let’s quickly go over the nature of acid reflux disease and heartburn, its most frequent external symptom. With the rising popularity of classical heartburn treatment, the big question when using such remedies is whether such drugs have the desired effects when it comes to eradicating the root causes of this medical problem and if the alleviation is better than the potential secondary effects.

The process associated physiologically with GERD is the abnormal amount of exposure of the esophagus to digestive juices. A factor that contributes to this problem is a weak lower esophageal sphincter (LES). The LES is a circular muscle behaving as a valve where the esophagus meets the stomach. When acid reflux disease happens, the LES fails to shut as it should, allowing stomach matter to flow back into the esophagus to cause heartburn. Another factor that worsens GERD is poor evacuation of gastric juice by the esophagus.

As well as those local reasons for acid reflux, other causes include genetic characteristics (not under our control) and other hidden factors and co-factors that create the context that encourages acid reflux (i. e. Candida overgrowth, dietary choices, sluggish digestion, emotional stress, inadequate sleep etc.). These underlying factors must be treated. If not, there is no long-term answer for this medical ailment.

Any GERD medication will be one of four kinds:

1. Antacids, an example being Alka-Seltzer, bringing relief of a few hours by the neutralization of acid in the esophagus. Upon taking the antacid, the neutralization of the stomach acid begins instantaneously, to limit the esophageal corrosion. 2. Alginates relieve symptoms by creating a “wrapper” that wraps around the stomach contents to decrease reflux. 3. H2-receptor antagonists such as HB, Zantac 75 and Pepcid AC are preventing the stomach cells from leaking acid, actually stop the gastric system and the stomach from producing acid. Patients must use H2-receptor antagonists ahead of any heartburn if relief is to be effected. 4. Proton Pump Inhibitors (PPI) such as Nexium, which stop the “proton pump” in gastric cells from functioning in order to prevent acid being generated.

Serious side effects may occur in treatments for heartburn that use such medicaments. In the first place, they may cause headaches, diarrhea and in some cases osteoporosis. Following that, their long-term impact is limited and the chance of physical long-term dependency correspondingly greater. Finally, turning to medication as the only way to treat heartburn is a poor approach, which works on the symptoms but ignores the root cause of GERD. Ignoring the causes like this can over time worsen your condition and even cause serious complications medically.

Using a holistic agenda, with particular herbal and vitamin elements, and by sticking to a complete set of dietary principles, getting rid of toxins and using Candida control protocols, a natural and lasting cure is available for your medical problem. Now you know that your discomforting and painful heartburn symptoms of GERD can be eradicated in a lasting and holistic way without recourse to medication for heartburn.

About the Author:

Jeff Martin is a certified nutritionist and author of the #1 best-selling e-book, Heartburn No More . To Learn More About Heartburn Medication Visit: Heartburn Medication