Sunday, March 8, 2009

Acid Reflux Medications and Heartburn Solution

Anyone suffering from severe and chronic acid reflux heartburn symptoms should see their family physician for a proper diagnosis. The most common problems associated with taking acid reflux medications are side affects. Many times patients will not even inform their physician of their heartburn or acid reflux symptoms. In addition delaying treatment increases the risk of developing a more serious condition. Certain medications like calcium channel blockers used to treat cardiac problems and high cholesterol levels, cause the LES muscle to be less efficient thereby allowing to acid reflux symptoms up the esophagus. In addition some anti-depressant medications also cause the LES muscle to become relaxed causing acid reflux. Today there are several very good acid reflux and heartburn medications that your doctor can prescribe to reduce your reflux symptoms and heal acid reflux damage. H2 blockers are the most commonly prescribed medication for acid reflux. In general this group of acid reflux medications reduces the amount of acid that the stomach produces thereby reducing the damage done by acid reflux. If you take acid reflux medications that are required for other serious health conditions you will have to consider alternative methods of treating your heartburn and acid reflux condition. If you have severe heartburn and or acid reflux, surgery is a good alternative. Published result show that this method is very effective in patients that have severe acid reflux heartburn and or cannot take commonly prescribed acid reflux medications. The most commonly known medications for acid reflux include the following: 1. Antacids. These drugs are used to neutralize the acids in the digestive tract and also for relief of mild symptoms,including occasional episodes of indigestion and heartburn. They also strengthen the defensive activities of our stomach by gathering the secretion of mucous and bicarbonate. You can buy antacids most of the time without a medical prescription. Furthermore, these drugs are one of the first to be recommended by professionals to reduce the pain caused by heartburn or mild symptoms. 2. Acid suppressants. Examples of this are histamine blockers. Histamine blockers ruin the production of stomach acids by alienating the actions of histamine. Histamine is basically a chemical in the body that promotes the production and secretion of acids in the stomach. 3. Proton pump inhibitors. They act to decrease the production of stomach acids by reacting with the cells found in the stomach wall which produce and secrete acids into the stomach. However, findings have revealed that the use of proton pump inhibitors poses some concerns. Side effects, although uncommon, include diarrhea, headache, itching, and nausea. Lastly, these drugs are not good for pregnant and breast-feeding mothers. 4. Agents shield the mucus lining in the gastrointestinal region. This kind of drug acts by attaching to an ulcer crater so that it will be protected from damage brought by digestive acids. It is advisable for people undergoing maintenance therapy with mild or moderate acid reflux conditions. But it has minor side effects, including constipation. 5. Anti-spasm drugs avoid acid and even non-acid reflux. A gamma-amino acid butyric acid agonist, an anti-spasm drug is generally used to abate the spasms in the muscles. Unlike most medicines used for acid reflux, it can also reduce non-acid refluxes and amplify the pressure in the lower esophageal sphincter, a muscle that separates the esophagus from the stomach and prevents backing up of stomach contents.

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