[Newsbot]

Title: Long-term heartburn medication use tied to higher risk of early death
Category: Health
Posted By: DrCaleb
Date: 2017-07-04 14:23:04
Canadian

[uwish]

if your taking meds like this for a long period, then you need to change your diet. Something you are eating is resulting in your reflux, or you could be vitamin deficient, some fairly simple tests can resolve this issue.

[housewife]

My husband was told he would be on that sort of stuff forever and to give up tastey greasy and spicy. He gave up cane sugar and all his stomach problems went away. He also lost weight and got of high blood pressure meds.

[raydan]

Medication with side-effects... who would have thought that possible.

[Sunnyways]

It's scary to think these drugs could also be affecting the proton pump in mitochondria which is the main source of energy in humans. I'll be going easier on them in future.

[DrCaleb]

Sunnyways Sunnyways:

I'll be going easier on them in future.

Start today. It's never too soon! Remember these seven words from an author I like:

"Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

http://www.pbs.org/food/shows/in-defense-of-food/

[Freakinoldguy]

$1:

Long-term use of a class of drugs that treat heartburn may be linked to a shortened lifespan, but doctors still need to determine if the risk of using proton pump inhibitor medication outweighs the benefits for individuals.

So if you don't mind would you guys give me a shout when it's proven scientific fact and not a maybe. Otherwise I'll be busy worrying about these other deadly killers.

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[DrCaleb]

Freakinoldguy Freakinoldguy:

So if you don't mind would you guys give me a shout when it's proven scientific fact and not a maybe. Otherwise I'll be busy worrying about these other deadly killers.

$1:

"We quantitated the risk of death, and it was about 25 per cent," Al-Aly said in an interview. "What that really translates to is that if 500 patients took the medication for about a year, then there would be one excess death that could be attributed to using this class of medication called PPI."

Al-Aly called the risk small but significant since such a large number of people in the U.S. and Canada are on these medications.

To conduct the study, researchers combed through medical records of about 275,000 new users of PPI drugs and nearly 75,000 people who started another class of drugs, called H2 blockers, to reduce stomach acid. The administrative data came from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and researchers followed half the participants for at least five years.

A study with that number of data points is a good study, but it's not enough of a population to say PPIs DO cause an increase risk of death. Only that there is an increased risk associated with long term use. It may cause death.

That's actually "science" in action.

[Freakinoldguy]

DrCaleb DrCaleb:

Freakinoldguy Freakinoldguy:

So if you don't mind would you guys give me a shout when it's proven scientific fact and not a maybe. Otherwise I'll be busy worrying about these other deadly killers.

$1:

"We quantitated the risk of death, and it was about 25 per cent," Al-Aly said in an interview. "What that really translates to is that if 500 patients took the medication for about a year, then there would be one excess death that could be attributed to using this class of medication called PPI."

Al-Aly called the risk small but significant since such a large number of people in the U.S. and Canada are on these medications.

To conduct the study, researchers combed through medical records of about 275,000 new users of PPI drugs and nearly 75,000 people who started another class of drugs, called H2 blockers, to reduce stomach acid. The administrative data came from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and researchers followed half the participants for at least five years.

A study with that number of data points is a good study, but it's not enough of a population to say PPIs DO cause an increase risk of death. Only that there is an increased risk associated with long term use. It may cause death.

That's actually "science" in action.

So, it's still a "MAY" cause death not an it "DOES" cause death and means that the overreaction to a drug with side effects is being played up yet again. Even the author of the article said the risk is small.

But anyway, I think I'll shift to a H2 acid blocker just so I don't become an unlikely statistic. As for the wag that said if someone is taking PPI's they should stop eating specific foods that upset their stomachs, allow me to point out that in alot of cases it isn't foods causing the problems it's the medications being taken to keep other ailments and injuries at bay that are responsible for the issues.

[DrCaleb]

Freakinoldguy Freakinoldguy:

So, it's still a "MAY" cause death not an it "DOES" cause death and means that the overreaction to a drug with side effects is being played up yet again. Even the author of the article said the risk is small.

But anyway, I think I'll shift to a H2 acid blocker just so I don't become an unlikely statistic. As for the wag that said if someone is taking PPI's they should stop eating specific foods that upset their stomachs, allow me to point out that in alot of cases it isn't foods causing the problems it's the medications being taken to keep other ailments and injuries at bay that are responsible for the issues.

"May" and "Does" are just indications on the size of the study population and the risk. 25% seems like a significant risk to me, considering how many people take PPIs. I was taking statins, and the 'risk' was less than 1% of side effects, but I got them! So I just quit eating all the bad stuff and didn't need them any more. Risk of not eating deep fried foods seemed better than risk of heart failure due to the side effects of statins.

Switching might be a good idea, and the article does say that it's a good idea to take them for the benefits. Just long term might be risky.

[herbie]

Used to get heartburn lots.
99% due to stress. Noticed that it was mainly at the end of the month, beginning of the month. 100% of the time it was when I was trying to sleep.
You're designed to be upright. Eat late and go to sleep within a few hours you're asking for it. I've never had it like in the commercials sitting in a restaurant eating Screaming BeJesus Chicken or Nine Precious Peppers of Death.

Last night I ate a greasy sausage roll with a ton of mustard on it watching the late news. Went to bed and had to eat a Tums a couple hours later. Big deal.
Tried that other stuff, but it was much better to get rid of the stress and watch what and when and how much I eat.
And the Tums stay on the beside table cuz it will be a cold day in Hell before I eat a damned salad for a midnight snack.

[BartSimpson]

I used to have a lot of stress. After I (redacted) a few people I felt fine.

[herbie]

Used to have a lot of stress. Years ago I made a really shoddy trophy cup out of tinfoil and presented it to the Chamber of Commerce to award to the 'longest surviving independent retail store in town' when the coming time came.
They refused to accept it called me a douchebag etc. etc. negativist blah blah.
One day the owner of the Ladies Wear shop came in and asked if I still had it. She took it and handed it back with a candy basket announced she was giving up. I even hung on for a few more years after that.
The wife just pointed out that that's the same bottle of Tums I bought in Newfoundland on my retirement trip in 2014.
What a difference.