New studies find that drugs commonly used for heartburn, acid reflux, and ulcers can raise the risk of stomach cancer.
Scientist have been warning against the overuse of PPIs. A combined study published in 2016 of over 80,000 patients found that the use of proton-pump inhibitors was linked to an increase in the risk of gastric cancer.
Did you know that doctors wrote 114 million prescriptions these heartburn drugs last year? Americans spend $5.1 billion on Nexium, the most popular PPI, alone.
In fact, even the FDA report warns against high doses or prolonged use of PPIs, because they’ve been found to increase the risk of infection, bone fractures and dementia as well.
Stomach acid is needed for digestion.
Stomach acid has a very important role in the digestion of protein, carbohydrates and fat from the food we eat. When food is consumed, the secretion of stomach acid (HCl) triggers the production of pepsin, the enzyme needed to digest protein.
Therefore, if you lower the amount of acid in your stomach using heartburn medication, you definitely increase your risk of not just heartburn but also gastroesophageal reflux (GERD) and serious indigestion.
POPULAR PPI DRUGS Include:
- lansoprazole (Prevacid, Prevacid IV, Prevacid 24-Hour)
- pantoprazole (Protonix)
- omeprazole/sodium bicarbonate (Zegerid, Zegerid OTC)
- aspirin and omeprazole (Yosprala)
- esomeprazole (Nexium, Nexium IV, Nexium 24 HR)
- esomeprazole magnesium/naproxen (Vimovo)
- rabeprazole (Aciphex, Aciphex Sprinkle)
- omeprazole (Prilosec, Prilosec OTC)
- dexlansoprazole (Dexilent, Dexilent Solutab)
ALTERNATIVE TREATMENTS FOR HEARTBURN
You need to stop using PPI drugs and start using natural alternatives.