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A Pharmacist's Guide to Treating Heartburn

If you're one of the 40 million Americans who have heartburn symptoms at least once a week -- or even among the 60 million more who have heartburn symptoms at least once a month -- you're probably always looking for new ways to relieve that acid reflux.

Even if your heartburn symptoms aren't severe and frequent enough to require prescription medication, you can still get a lot of help in managing your acid reflux from your local pharmacist. Pharmacists are savvy about not only prescription heartburn medicine, but also over-the-counter remedies and even lifestyle changes that can make a big difference in easing day-to-day heartburn. In many cases, you may be able to prevent acid reflux before it starts. Begin by paying close attention to what you eat, when you eat it, and what you do right after eating. To ease heartburn symptoms, you may try:

• Avoiding fatty or greasy foods.
• Avoiding citrus fruits or juices.
• Replacing large, heavy meals with several smaller, lighter meals.
• Don't lie down or nap for two to three hours after eating.
• Avoiding exercise, bending, and stooping for a couple of hours after eating.

Spicy foods, alcohol and caffeine may aggravate acid reflux for some people, but not others. Fatty foods are usually universal triggers of heartburn symptoms, but some people with heartburn can eat spicy foods without a flare-up. Many individuals can also identify the foods that trigger acid reflux for them, but others may need to keep a diary for a week - indicating when they eat and when heartburn symptoms arise. After doing this, you should be able to identify the foods that cause problems. Other lifestyle changes that may help minimize heartburn symptoms include:

• Losing a few pounds. If you are overweight, losing weight can help ease heartburn.
• If you smoke, quitting smoking can also help ease heartburn symptoms.
• Let Gravity work for you. Use a wedge bed pillow or raise the entire head of the bed on blocks 6 to 8 inches. Avoid proping yourself up on regular pillows - this will cause your body to bending in the middle and increase gastric pressure.
• Avoid tight-fitting clothing, especially anything that is binding around the middle.
• Using alternative medications. Certain medications can worsen or even cause heartburn. These include medications used to treat asthma, cardiovascular conditions, osteoporosis, arthritis, and inflammation. If you think your medicine may be causing acid reflux, ask your doctor if there are alternative drugs that can offer you the same benefit without the heartburn.

Although lifestyle can help ease heartburn symptoms, many people with recurrent acid reflux will still need medications to ease their discomfort. Fortunately, there are plenty of options for over-the-counter heartburn medicine. While most people choose quick acting antacids, an over-the-counter medication containing both antacids and h2 receptor blockers are more effective. Pepcid Complete is an example of this type of medication.

You can also plan ahead to avoid heartburn. If you're going out for a big meal as a treat, and know you might be eating some foods you shouldn't, take your heartburn medicine early. Use an H2 blocker like Tagamet or Zantac OTC, about an hour or two before the meal. It will kick in and suppress the acid that's causing heartburn symptoms before they start.

If you have two or more episodes of acid reflux per week, you may want to try taking a 14-day course of over-the-counter Prilosec, a heartburn medicine in a class of drugs called proton pump inhibitors (PPI's). These medicines shut off acid production more completely and for a longer period of time. About half of those individuals who complete the 14-day treatment will no longer have recurrent heartburn. You can try this course of treatment up to three times in a year; after that, if symptoms still persist, it is recommended that you seek medical attention for long-term therapy.

If you are an individual who is managing heartburn symptoms on your own, it's essential to know what symptoms should sound the alarm. Call your doctor if you have any of the following symptoms:

• Pain or difficulty when swallowing
• Unexplained weight loss
• Bleeding or dark, tarry stool
• Chest pain
• Choking or shortness of breath, including severe, persistent hoarseness and coughing

All of these are considered atypical and alarming symptoms. You may think it's heartburn, but, it could be something as serious as a heart attack. And if you are frequently using over-the-counter remedies and your body is not responding to them as they should, speak with your doctor. Acid reflux can also be a symptom of something more serious, like malignancies.

Nutrigeneis Source: Gina Shaw, Heartburn Symptoms: A Pharmacist's Guide to Treating Heartburn, WebMD Feature