Acid Reflux Disease Causes
Q: It is used for acid reflux. I am most certain this
is the cause of my trubs. I did a 15 min search on it and found out
the symptoms I had been experiencing, are also the side effects of
this med. Mind you, it was only for the last few monthes these side
effects had surfaced and I have bene on it for 2 years now.
Any comment please?
A:A few months ago I had a very bad gastro-intestinal flu that lasted
for about 4 days. I did not consult a doctor. During this period,
and for the first time in my life, I frequently experienced what is
most commonly described as heartburn. Acid reflux disease is said to
be a chronic condition that produces bouts of heartburn on a
persistent basis. If you have heartburn only once in a while, or
while suffering from just a bout of some gastro-intestinal flu that
you might catch every now and then, you are not usually diagnosed as
a sufferer of acid-reflux disease. What I have said here is based
only on what I have read and heard about the subject. This is not
professional medical advice. What follows in the next paragraph is
only a personal testimonial, and you can take it for what it is worth,
if anything.
After the second day of suffering from the flu and heartburn I started
taking lots of Pepto-Bismol, but I did not exceed the recommended
dosage printed on the label. The stuff quelled my heartburn almost
instantly. It made me feel lots better. After I recovered from my
bout of the flu I stopped taking Pepto-Bismol and I have never since
ever experienced heartburn. BTW, there are some generic and less
expensive house brand over-the-counter medicines which have the same
ingredients and in the same concentrations as Pepto-Bismol. They too
come in a bottle full of chalky-tasting and minty-flavored thick pink
liquid. Yucch!
The directions on the label say that one should not take this medicine
for more than two days, and that if symptoms persist, see a doctor. etc.
One of the problems with heartburn is that some people confuse symptoms
of the preliminary onset of an impending heart attack with something
very minor, like just a bout of heartburn.
I suspect that there might be many doctors who routinely prescribe
an acid-reflux disease medication just as a CYA measure for themselves
so as to make it easier for them to rule out heartburn when their
patients come to them complaining of chest pains. I'll bet there are
a lot of people on some acid-reflex disease medications who don't need
to be on it.
I don't know whether you need to be on a medication like that, but I
do know that there are many kinds of such medications, and not all of
them will produce the same bad side-effects.
Instead of asking for advice here, maybe you should just tell your
doctor about your troubles and ask him if he would consider
recommending some alternative acid-reflux disease medication for you.
Also you might consider consulting another doctor for his opinion
as to whether