Heartburn Drugs Could Put Your Heart at Risk

Acid indigestion can strike at any time and can be seriously uncomfortable when it does. Luckily, though, there are a range of over-the-counter medicines available, which quickly relieve the symptoms of acid indigestion, also known as heartburn.

But now a new study, recently published in the journal PLOS ONE, has revealed that your chosen heartburn remedy could actually be putting your heart at risk; even if you’ve never had heart problems before.

Researchers found that people who took proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) to tackle acid indigestion were at 16% greater risk of a heart attack than those who didn’t.

Not all acid indigestion medications are classed as PPIs and the other main type – H2 blockers – were found not to pose the same risk of heart attacks by the researchers.

“These drugs [PPIs] were only approved for short-term use, but as over-the-counter medications, the duration of use is not being monitored adequately,” said John Cooke, MD, PhD, study author and chair of the department of cardiovascular sciences at Houston Methodist Research Institute.

“Furthermore, these drugs should only be used when safer agent, such as H2 antagonists like Tagamet or Zantac, are not effective in treating symptoms.” He suggests that PPIs should only be used under the directions of a doctor.

So the next time you get acid indigestion, think twice before grabbing PPI medication…

 



 

Photo credit: CNN