Why you may want to re-think this situation…
And I quote;
“Most patients will derive no health improvement from medication.”1
And [not to scare you, but…]
“Non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) carry a huge death toll, primarily by causing bleeding stomach ulcers and myocardial infarction, and most of those who die could have done well without drugs or by taking paracetamol. The idea that NSAIDs have an anti-inflammatory effect has been disproven by placebo-controlled studies”.2
Before you accuse me of quoting off-the-wall statistics peddled by alternative-medicine-promoting oddballs with an axe to grind, the first quote is by an NHS consultant cardiologist, and the second by a Danish physician, medical researcher, and leader of the Nordic Cochrane Centre at Rigshospitalet in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Can we agree to leave aside life-saving medication that is essential to prevent death or other extremely life-altering complications? I am mainly referring to the carrier bags full of pills that some patients lug home from their local pharmacy because they have been prescribed mostly for minor disorders by their GP, whose advice they take on trust without question.
One patient had been prescribed Omeprazole for indigestion. I asked her, ‘Why did your GP prescribe Omeprazole for indigestion?’ She said, ‘I don’t know’. But she still took it.
Omeprazole is a proton-pump-inhibitor which reduces the amount of acid in the stomach. It is used to treat ulcers, oesophagitis and reflux. Since stomach acid is the vehicle used to begin the process of breaking down proteins, and is essential in the initial process of digestion, I would have thought that lowering acid would contribute to the problem of indigestion.
Even when used for reflux, Omeprazole only masks the problem. When you remove the drug patients tend to get hefty rebound burning symptoms, sometimes worse than before they started it. [Omeprazole does not reduce gastroesophageal reflux3].
Needless to say, the Omeprazole didn’t help my patient’s indigestion.
If you still want to take Omeprazole, are there side effects? This is the common side effects list; headache, abdominal pain, constipation, diarrhoea, flatulence, and nausea/vomiting. If you want to see the complete list [always illuminating] https://www.medicines.org.uk/emc.
In addition, taking Omeprazole for more than a year [and some of my patients were] may increase chances of worse side effects, including: bone fractures, gut infections, vitamin B12 deficiency – symptoms include feeling very tired, a sore and red tongue, mouth ulcers and pins and needles. This is from https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/omeprazole/common-questions-about-omeprazole/ which is easily accessible to Joe Public.
What is my point?
As Peter C Gøtzsche says;
“There are simple solutions to our deadly drug epidemic. Make fewer diagnoses, prescribe fewer drugs and tell the patients to read the package insert on the internet. Then they might never take the drug. Many years ago, I did research on naproxen and when I read the package insert and realised in how many different ways this drug could kill me, I decided never to take an NSAID.”
If you decide not to take Omeprazole [for example] you are still left with reflux, so what to do?
This is where medicinal herbs and dietary change come in.
Certain herbs contain the actions you want without harmful side effects. These actions would be demulcent [soothing] and vulnerary [healing], and used carefully – bitters, which may help the oesophageal sphincter close properly, thus preventing the back wash of acid up from the stomach.
To do this simply at home, buy loose herb teas and steep one tablespoon of mixed herb tea herb for 10 minutes in a small French press using just off the boil water. Drink a small cup 3 times a day about one hour before food, or work out a system that is effective for you. A good herb tea mix would be:
Marshmallow leaf 2 parts [demulcent/soothing]
Calendula flowers 1 part [vulnerary/healing]
These can be bought from independent herb shops, or online from Baldwins.co.uk.
The easiest way to take bitters without going to a herbalist is to buy Angostura Bitters from a supermarket. Drip about 5 drops into a small glass of water and sip 15 minutes before a meal.
In addition, be sensible. Don’t eat huge meals till you feel like bursting, stop smoking [thought to relax the sphincter that you need to stay tight], and reduce alcohol [ditto], don’t lay down straight after eating. And if there are foods that you find make the problem worse, don’t eat them.
One modern-day problem is that people seem to want to keep eating and living just how they like and then pop a pill to address any imbalance that may occur. This may work for a time, but one day it won’t work, or it will eventually cause other problems.
For which another drug will be supplied…
1Aseem Malhotra Why modern medicine is a major threat to public health.
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/aug/30/modern-medicine-major-threat-public-health
2Peter C Gøtzsche. Prescription drugs are the third leading cause of death.
3Tamhankar, AP et al. Omeprazole does not reduce gastroesophageal reflux: new insights using multichannel intraluminal impedance technology. J Gastrointest Surg. 2004 Nov;8(7):890-7; discussion 897-8. doi: 10.1016/j.gassur.2004.08.001
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15531244/
If you have a pressing health concern, please contact your GP. I am not advising anyone to stop taking their prescription drugs.
